15+ Workers who quit their jobs on the spot on day 1: 'They told me it'd be unpaid training shifts... Nope'

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Remy Millisky • Writer and Editor
Oct 17, 2025 11:00 AM EDT

In case you've ever wondered what would cause a worker to quit on the spot on their very first day of work, let these employees quell your curiosity. 

Sometimes, you just know a job isn't going to work out. There are often red flags during the interview process, and maybe you ignore a few of those because you really need the work. For example, if you're hired on the spot, you might feel elated, but that's actually not a great sign. The company isn't picking the most skilled workers, and taking their time by interviewing lots of qualified candidates — they're just taking any warm body who walks in the door. A lot of times, young people find this out the hard way — they're hired on the spot, and they think that they must've impressed the hiring manager with their exceptional skillset. Uh… that's not quite the case. Instead, like some of these people, they quickly find themselves in work environments that most people do not want to find themselves in, and they have to quit ASAP.

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  • For example, one person realized why a factory position was open when they started getting terrible migraines from the fumes. That's bound to be a job with a high turnover rate. Another person got hired, only to realize they were stuck at a ceaseless manufacturing line that literally never stopped! That person only lasted 2 hours on the job before calling it a day and leaving forever. There's always a better job out there, and just because you start a bad one, doesn't mean you have to stick with it forever. 

  • 01

    'People who quit their jobs on the first day what made you say, "Nope, not doing this"?'

    Man in orange hardhat and overalls working at a factory
    via Getty Images For Unsplash+

    The image does not depict the actual subjects of the story. Subjects are models.

  • 02
    Silly... Server job. They told me it'd be unpaid training shifts first. Nope.
    via u/Silly_Accident3137
  • 03
    Fun_... Got a migraine from the fumes in a plastic part factory. Did not return. Decided to go to college instead.
    via u/Fun_Salamandar_8550
  • 04
    Was advertised as a marketing job. What it actually was, however, was a direct sales job inside a Home Depot selling bath
    via u/CitizenHuman
  • 05
    and kitchen upgrades. I was driven there by a senior salesman, so I spent about 2 hours wandering through Home
    via u/CitizenHuman
  • 06
    Depot until finally going back to the guy. He said "I was going to take you to lunch, but it seems like you just wanna go home". I said yup and then he
    via u/CitizenHuman
  • 07
    dropped me back off at my car.
    via u/CitizenHuman
  • 08
    Allenrw... I answered a help wanted ad to cut this guy's grass once a week, that's it - cut grass. That's all the ad asked to
    via u/Allenrw81
  • 09
    be done, but when I was finished this dude starts talking about hedge trimming and laying down sod and spreading
    via u/Allenrw81
  • 10
    gravel and all this other shit, I told him I wasn't doing any of that and left.
    via u/Allenrw81
  • 11
    Woode... Said "13 an hour is a lot!"
    via u/Wooden_Chemical_2317
  • 12
    Lovero... The other job offer came through.
    via u/LoverOfGayContent
  • 13
    molly_... Had to pay for parking, constantly leave to go put more quarters in the meter, and any
    via u/molly___hatchet
  • 14
    "assigned" parking was a mile away.
    via u/molly___hatchet
  • 15
    geek... With the onboarding paperwork the owner wanted me to sign a non- compete agreement that
    via u/geekworking
  • 16
    was absurdly broad that basically said that I couldn't work in the entire industry or related industries for a year.
    via u/geekworking
  • 17
    I was only 19 at the time and didn't understand how absolutely unenforceable this was, but I wasn't going to sign anything that
    via u/geekworking
  • 18
    I couldn't in good faith agree with. Guy was like sign it or leave. I left.
    via u/geekworking
  • 19
    Individual... Collection job. The guy I was shadowing asked the woman who had a TV on in the background, if that was a show on
    via u/Individual_Access969
  • 20
    cable. She answered yes. "You can pay for cable TV but not my client?"
    via u/Individual_Access969
  • 21
    She cussed him up and down in English and Spanish. When I went to lunch, I kept going. Never went back.
    via u/Individual_Access969
  • 22
    Rubysage3 Movie theater gig. It was too similar to my previous job, which I was burned out on food service, but the schedules cinched it. At the
    via u/Rubysage3
  • 23
    theater I heard from others it wasn't uncommon for people to be put on 9-12 hour shifts. For a part time job, keep in mind. You could be there all day. Show up in the
    via u/Rubysage3
  • 24
    morning or around lunch and not leave until late at night or the next day.
    via u/Rubysage3
  • 25
    I knew instantly I'd hate this with every fiber of my being and quit with an email after my first training shift. I refuse to subject myself to that, it's unhealthy anyways.
    via u/Rubysage3
  • 26
    Woman in blue shirt pouring coffee into mug while staring ahead blankly in diner setting
    via Alyssa Jane For Unsplash+

    The image does not depict the actual subjects of the story. Subjects are models.

  • 27
    No-Calli... Got hired to work reception in a podiatrist office. I sat and watched the head nurse make the other receptionist cry
    via u/No-Calligrapher3043
  • 28
    because she made a simple mistake. Then the dr who owned the practice came out and yelled at the receptionist in front of a lobby full of people and in front of me, the new
    via u/No-Calligrapher3043
  • 29
    girl. The toxic work environment was oozing from every corner so that was my first and last day.
    via u/No-Calligrapher3043
  • 30
    Old-Car... They assigned me a task I wasn't physically capable of performing lol
    via u/Old-Car1082
  • 31
    Dr_Spa... A busboy. Show up and 1 they ask me - to cut my hair, shave, and stop wearing this one bracelet that. I've had for a couple
    via u/Dr_Spaceman11
  • 32
    years. No, I did not have excessively long hair, and I didn't have more than a scruff for my beard. 2 - the staff was falling apart. Ended up working three or different
    via u/Dr_Spaceman11
  • 33
    positions because people weren't showing up and one quit on the spot. That was my first training shift and I told them the next day that I wasn't coming back.
    via u/Dr_Spaceman11
  • 34
    NeNe636 Telemarketing for a food company. Didn't really know what it was but got the job and started the next day.
    via u/NeNe636
  • 35
    Peaced out at the end of the day. I was 19 and told the supervisor my mom didn't want me to work anymore →
    via u/NeNe636
  • 36
    oldf Hired as a maint tech but was put on a manufacturing line that was non stop. Worked for 2 hrs and said fuck this
    via u/oldf***bob
  • 37
    GochaPonczocha It was in 90' in Poland. I responded to a job ad for office clerk. When I came it turned out it was door to door type job, selling some sh. I walked out the minute they gave me this huge bag. with sh to sale. Nope, nope, nope.
    via u/GochaPonczocha
  • 38
    NeNe636 Telemarketing for a food company. Didn't really know what it was but got the job and started the next day. Peaced out at the end of the day. I was 19 and told the supervisor my mom didn't want me to work anymore
    via u/NeNe636

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