20+ Employees who quit on the spot: 'I haven’t regretted my decision'

Author image for Remy Millisky
Remy Millisky • Writer and Editor
Oct 28, 2025 3:00 PM EDT

Quitting on the spot is a dramatic choice, but these workers were grinning as they left work for the final time. 

When you've hit your limit at a job, you either start to become numb, or you start letting every little thing drive you nuts. You constantly feel like you're one impolite customer away from ripping off your name tag and quitting on the spot… or, you just choose to let every bad interaction slide off your shoulders without giving it a second thought. It's your choice! Neither attitude is ideal for the long term, and I think many workers may vacillate between these two phases 100 times during a shift. But that's one of the best signs that it's time to start job hunting before things get dire. If you're totally miserable at work, you really should spruce up your resume and see what's out there. You might find something you really enjoy, it might pay way more, and best of all, you'll get to see the surprise on your boss's face when you give them your 2-week notice. 

If you don't plan out your departure, you may find yourself like these people — quitting on the spot out of pure spite or dismay. That probably feels great too, but if you've got bills to pay, it's less stressful to have a new job already lined up. Then you can know for certain that you're leaving your old life behind, and you've got a bright future ahead to look forward to. 

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  • 01
    Older woman in orange apron holds yellow clipboard, behind her is a younger woman holding a crate of lemons in supermarket setting
    via Getty Images For Unsplash+

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

  • 02
    sm1ttysm1t Back in high school I worked at McDonald's. It was a few weeks before college was starting, so I put my 2 week notice in. I came in the next day and I wasn't on the schedule anymore. The manager on duty said the store manager said just not to put me on at all, despite others putting in notice (for the same
    via u/sm1ttysm1t
  • 03
    reasons) and being on the schedule. So, I waited for my friends. on the morning shift to clock out, just about as lunch rush was hitting, and I walked up and clocked out myself. Fuck that place and fuck those people.
    via u/sm1ttysm1t
  • 04
    Helvetimusic My son was born and was super sick to the point where he had to stay at the hospital for a good 2 weeks before we could bring him home. I called out of work the second week and the owner of the shop told me if
    via u/Helvetimusic
  • 05
    I didn't open the store I'd be fired so I drove down, opened the store and gave him the keys when he came in and told him to go fuck himself.
    via u/Helvetimusic
  • 06
    [deleted] Summer of 2002 I worked one day at Diamond Mazda Used Cars in Baton Rouge. The manager lied about training, the other employees saw me as competition and spent the day throwing my desk chair and phone into the ditch behind the building. No one would tell me how to decode
    via u/[deleted]
  • 07
    the price information on the car windshield, which was a minor riddle to decode. End of the day I went to the managers office, explained that if I accidentally made them any money - they could keep it. Then I left.
    via u/[deleted]
  • 08
    [deleted] I got a job at a bakery in a grocery store doing the morning baking. When I was hired I was told that it was a 6am start time, no problem. When I started, they were having me come in at 3am, their reasoning being that it was so they would have plenty of extra baking time while they were training me. Fair enough. Weeks go by and I'm still not off the 3am
    via u/[deleted]
  • 09
    shift, so I explain to the manager that was not the shift I got hired for and asked to be moved to the 6am shift. I asked her every other day for four weeks about it, and nothing ever came of it, so I finally decided I would put in my two weeks and find something else since it was just a part time job anyway. I thought the manager was pretty nice so I figured she would understand. When I
    via u/[deleted]
  • 10
    tell her, she says to me, "you made a commitment to work here and you'll work the hours I give you, you little cunt. You aren't quitting. You better be here to bake tomorrow morning." I took off my name tag and uniform shirt, told her to go fuck herself, and walked out in my bra.
    via u/[deleted]
  • 11
    Notasupervillan I'd worked at a retail chain for 3 years doing logistics (unloading trucks, shelving items, etc). Out of nowhere our GM quits and a new one comes in. This guy decides. to change the logistic shifts to 4 AM instead of 6, which completely screwed over my sleep schedule being that I also had a night job. I gave it
    via u/Notasupervillan
  • 12
    a go for 2 weeks, worked on about 4 hours of sleep a day, and after passing out at the wheel I couldn't do it anymore. I went in and explained my situation, but he respond with "it's your job and your job starts at 4". Really? That's how you treat the most senior employee and head of the freight team? I quit and slept the whole day.
    via u/Notasupervillan
  • 13
    Kilen13 Worked at a night club in university for close to a year. I'd put in some time off around Christmas to go see my family and it had been approved 3 months prior.
    via u/Kilen13
  • 14
    The last day before my break my manager told me that my time off had been cancelled and I had to come to work the next day. Quit before that shift started instead and got an extra day off.
    via u/Kilen13
  • 15
    toughshit Worked for a once great company that turned toxic in 5 years time. I was a mid level manager overseeing a staff of really hard working loyal employees who I watched get the shaft from corp for a few years and it was getting worse daily. Had a very good employee who was out sick a couple of days call me one morning and tell me he just found out
    via u/toughsh**
  • 16
    he has stage 4 colon cancer and the doctors were saying he had maybe 8 weeks left and to immediately start settling his affairs because he would be deteriorating quickly. I gathered the team into my office and explained the situation as per my sick employee's request. With my entire staff in my office, I called the company VP of Operations who was my
    via u/toughsh**
  • 17
    immediate supervisor to tell him and to find out if there were any company resources besides HR set up to help employees going through a personal crisis. I called, VP answered with "What?" I told him the situation. His reply, "Post his job." and hung up the phone. I remember that as if it happened 2 minutes ago.
    via u/toughsh**
  • 18
    To be honest. I don't remember the next 5 minutes. Per my team's account, I sat there completely stunned staring at the phone in my hand for a couple of minutes. Then I hung up the phone. Picked it back up. Called my VP again. When he answered, I said "Post my job." Then I hung up the phone. Took my key off my key ring and set it on my desk. Grabbed a few
    via u/toughsh**
  • 19
    personal belongings. Asked my assistant to immediately notify HR about our sick employee's situation. Then I apologized, thanked them, told them to consider finding a better place to work, and I left. The first memory I have after "Post his Job" is pulling up in my sick employee's driveway.
    via u/toughsh**
  • 20
    e_double Worked at a BOFA corporate years ago, I was the top guy in collections there (credit cards). Every month a few would be selected and moved to a higher position and I was climbing the ranks, one month I had an instance where a jealous co- worker tried to start rumors against me. I shrugged it off and kept performing at a high level, time came to
    via u/e_double
  • 21
    promote and I was left out. Was told it was because of the alleged rumors that were never proven, during the same meeting with my boss, I quit. They brought in the director and two other managers to try and convince me not to but I was always too prideful and told
    via u/e_double
  • 22
    them I feel disrespected and can't recover from that.. About 1 year later the whole Countrywide scandal hit BOFA hard and the whole department was laid off.
    via u/e_double
  • 23
    Moose_Piledriver My father had gotten me a job at a warehouse right out of high school a couple years ago. It was general labor stuff and working with some fabrication machines, which I don't mind I'm a big fan of manual labor haha. But it was a small warehouse basically I worked with the same group of guys everyday and essentially I taught myself and all the
    via u/Moose_Piledriver
  • 24
    new people after me how to work. But what led me to quit was that one of the older guys would constantly ridicule me. I would consider myself pretty thick skinned but as an 18 year old at the time the 12.50 an hour was not worth feeling worthless all week. So one Friday I took my paycheck and told the boss I quit because I
    via u/Moose_Piledriver
  • 25
    constantly felt like I was treated like a dog. And I haven't regretted my decision to this day.
    via u/Moose_Piledriver
  • 26
    [deleted] I was working a lot of hours. around the holidays for a boutique/salon as the only help aside from the owners. (a husband and wife). I was there long hours and rarely got breaks. I was already stressed and overworked, and when customers requested that their purchases get wrapped up for gifting I'd take the
    via u/[deleted]
  • 27
    opportunity to sit down to wrap them and rest my feet. The husband came in and whispered that he'd recommend I stand up when I wrap the gifts, since his wife thinks I look lazy when I sit down.
    via u/[deleted]
  • 28
    I told him ok.... got up, got their business key off of my key ring and left it on the gift I wrapped. I walked out and didn't say a word—they called twice and I didn't respond. I didn't think they deserved it.
    via u/[deleted]
  • 29
    YesterdayWasAwe... "Come into work tomorrow." "My grandma died and I have to drive her daughter, my mom, 4 hours away." "This won't look good for you." "Then I quit."
    via u/YesterdayWasAwesome
  • 30
    Woman in blue and red vest writes on clipboard next to packages, in background man carries cardboard box
    via Getty Images For Unsplash+

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

  • 31
    Cucumberish I worked for a CPA who owned his own business. Brilliant guy but a total asshat to work for. He hired one of his friends as the office manager (despite no previous experience whatsoever) and made her my supervisor. His wife usually did the payroll and, as was requested of me, I would come in 15 minutes before the office opened
    via u/Cucumberish
  • 32
    and I would stay until 5:00. The CPA frequently worked past that time, especially during tax season, so it wasn't unusual of him to ask me to make copies, put together, proposals, make a phone call, etc. after 5. No big deal. I did the work and then clocked out when I was done. Well his wife was out sick for an extended period and the owner did the payroll. When he saw that they were paying me apx. 2
    via u/Cucumberish
  • 33
    hours of overtime every week, he left instructions with my supervisor that I wasn't to come in until 8:00 on the nose and I had to clock out at 5. Any overtime needed to be approved. I think it's a little silly but I roll with it. The very next day, as I'm clocking out, the owner asked me to scan and email something. I do what I think I'm supposed to do, let him
    via u/Cucumberish
  • 34
    know that it's 5:00 and I was told I needed to have overtime approved. I said it in an incredibly professional way but he absolutely lost it and began berating me at the front desk (I was the receptionist) saying that he would just do it himself and that it would have taken less than five minutes. I finally lost my cool a little bit and told him that I was doing what I was told. The next
    via u/Cucumberish
  • 35
    morning, I sat down with my supervisor who told me that I should have just gone ahead and done it because that's what she (as a salaried employee who received no overtime) would have done. They genuinely expected to pay me from 8- 5 and then have me work for free after that. I started looking for a new job that day.
    via u/Cucumberish
  • 36
    About 6 weeks later, after sending out over 1000 hand-typed W2's and 1099s perfectly, I received one back that didn't have an address. It was for a contractor that had done a little work for us so all I had to do was call her for the correct address. I didn't even have to go through a middle man. The CPA happened to be standing there when that piece of mail was returned and
    via u/Cucumberish
  • 37
    immediately began berating me again saying that I must not be mentally there between the hours of 8 and 5, that I was insubordinate, and that anyone else would have fired me a long time ago. Considering I was 28 years old at the time, this was far from my first job and I had never once in my life. been fired or even written
    via u/Cucumberish
  • 38
    up, I was pretty offended. I turned in my resignation an hour later and walked out. It was over six years ago and still makes me mad to this day.
    via u/Cucumberish
  • 39
    djdogood I worked at a pretzel spot in a mall. I started as a crew member and worked my way up to assistant manager. I loved the job, my coworkers were great, the food was good, the owner started out ok too. Then the GM put in his notice, they hired another GM off the street who refused to learn how to
    via u/djdogood
  • 40
    make or cook pretzle's. He did not know how to use a computer either. I did a GM's job for 5 weeks before asking for a plan to get the new GM to take over, and some sort of pay increase for doing a GM's job on an AM salary (18$ compared to 11$) When I spoke to the owner, he treated me like an idiot and told me the store wasn't making money, we were one of the top stores in the nation.
    via u/djdogood
  • 41
    Then he tried to say i didn't work hard enough to deserve a raise, and if I couldn't handle it he would find someone who does. I close the store that night and never returned. The store closed a month later :3
    via u/djdogood
  • 42
    vomirrhea A locally owned restaurant. On my very first day training I witnessed multiple things that had me questioning wether they were following health code and then at one point the server training me told me to track my hours and my tips carefully because the owners had
    via u/vomirrhea
  • 43
    shorted his paycheck a few times. I also apparently had to be on the owner's ass on paydays in general because they were known to "forget to pay" their workers alltogether sometimes. Nope'd right out of there.
    via u/vomirrhea
  • 44
    Shes_ _Jim It was a Friday, my shift ended at 5am. At 4:55 my boss informed me he forgot an entire section of the store and therefore he needed me to stay an extra week to sort it out. I told him "I've enjoyed the years I've worked here, but I just decided right now that I'm done, I hope you find a replacement in time for the next job"
    via u/Shes_d***_Jim
  • 45
    To delve deeper into it, it was a job I was mostly doing to provide for my SO, but she passed away in April so I had no reason to stay with it.
    via u/Shes_d***_Jim
  • 46
    Woman in brown shirt with packages in background looks irritated while holding tablet
    via Getty Images For Unsplash+

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

     

  • 47
    [deleted] Estate agency owner I used to work for had the tendency to forget he gave the rent income money to his buddies (whom he managed flats or houses for) without telling me or even making a note of it. He kept asking me where the money was in a clearly accusatory manner as if I stole it.
    via u/[deleted]
  • 48
    The first two times I tracked the money down (I had pretty good system for keeping records of rent payments he was too stupid to understand). The first time I showed him the money was received and properly deposited into the safe (which was a drop down safe I could put money into but didn't have the combination to unlock it myself).
    via u/[deleted]
  • 49
    The second time, knowing how I keep track of moneys being paid to us, he said I only recorded it to use it as a fake proof. I wrote to the landlord who then confirmed he had the money, and it was indeed my boss who gave it to him. In person, I might add. I probably should have left at this point, but wait! It gets better!
    via u/[deleted]
  • 50
    When he tried to pull this shit again for the third time, I dropped the office keys on his desk, then left. Unfortunately for him, he was also too cheap to use legal copies of Windows on the office PCs, and since I didn't want to get into trouble with authorities (I installed those PCs), I used my own license on the reception PC which I worked
    via u/[deleted]
  • 51
    on. I also used my own Microsoft account to which the license was bound to. When I left, not only did I refuse to give him the password (which was also my personal account), I revoked the license from that PC the second I arrived home. I kept the database and lease agreements on his PC, but every
    via u/[deleted]
  • 52
    correspondence, and headed letter templates were on mine. Have fun with that, asshole. Thinking about this years later, I probably should've reported him, but right then I was just glad to get rid of him.
    via u/[deleted]
  • 53
    Spiritette Manager would constantly call me and other co- workers names and bump into us making us fall over saying "oh don't be so sensitive". I was carrying around 10 shoeboxes to put on the floor when she stuck her ass out and basically body checked me to the floor with everything falling out of the boxes. Instead of
    via u/Spiritette
  • 54
    helping she just said: "hey dumbass why don't you be more careful?!" While laughing. The district manager was there as well and saw it all happen and said nothing. Told her to fuck off and walked out. Found out later that 4 other people quit the same day for almost the exact same reason.
    via u/Spiritette
  • 55
    SimpleFNG One of the biggest ticket writers. I worked private parking enforcement violations. Some of my Co workers where lazy. I was chilling in the lot with them (I hit 30 tickets and was just tired and needed a break) my boss rolls up and starts reaming us.
    via u/SimpleFNG
  • 56
    We all scatter and than I get called into the office. Suddenly I'm demoted and sent to events. I worked when only the sounders played. Not making shit for money I quit and got some cross dock job. Two weeks later they called me and wanted me back. I them to go fuck themselves.
    via u/SimpleFNG
  • 57
    [deleted] Third day of working at Walmart, my dept manager was being a huge cunt. She told me I sucked and needed to move faster, so I looked at her and just handed her my vest and left without saying a word. Fuck Walmart.
    via u/[deleted]
  • 58
    TheSanityInspector Door to door sales job. I had no stomach for it & quit immediately after the training.
    via u/[deleted]
  • 59
    Mavman11 I started off working retail as part time, but they were extremely understaffed and needed me to go full time. As part time I started like $8.50/H I was told once I became full time officially which is 120 days of 40 hours a week I would make
    via u/Mavman11
  • 60
    $13/H so I was fine with it, 120 days pass no raise they said it just takes time and I would receive back pay.... Two more months go by and the raise only turned out to be 5 cents so yeah.
    via u/Mavman11
  • 61
    [deleted] Columbus Day weekend at Savers. 50% off. We were always required to do a "soft close" (can't announce closing time, just lock the doors at closing and walk around telling people to leave). We were so exhausted the manager that day let us make
    via u/[deleted]
  • 62
    announcements so we could get out ASAP. My coworkers did a sweep of the store and thought they got everyone herded up to the registers. We tried to check everyone out as quickly as possible while taking turns counting down our registers and closing them. I was the last person to close my register, and just as my manager was checking my numbers,
    via u/[deleted]
  • 63
    fucking Cat Lady comes out of nowhere with a cart piled high with stock. Not only did I have to re- open my register to check her out, she insisted on arguing the price of each item based on its condition. In a THRIFT STORE.
    via u/[deleted]
  • 64
    Man makes peace sign in front of older woman holding yellow clipboard in supermarket setting
    via Jonathan Castañeda For Unsplash+

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

  • 65
    I clocked out an hour after my shift ended and never clocked in again. I taped a letter of resignation to my badge the next day and handed it to the guy outside that helps people unload furniture. Never worked retail again.
    via u/[deleted]
  • 66
    friendrequestt Walked in with the sole intention of confronting my boss for talking shit about me to the other employees. He refused to admit he had said anything, and i lost it.
    via u/friendrequestt
  • 67
    This was the first time in my life i ever yelled at anyone. I cursed him out and stormed out. I didnt even feel bad that it was a busy night and he and one other person were the only people there. Screw subway.
    via u/friendrequestt
  • 68
    [deleted] 45 years ago, I was in 10th grade. I was a grill cook after school and weekends. I found they hired a new guy at $1.97 hour while I made $1.93. Manager was a weird dude back from two tours of Vietnam and loved it. Don't get me wrong, he was a nice guy but it set me off.
    via u/[deleted]
  • 69
    Walked the fuck right out for 4 cents an hour. Two days later I'm in school and get a call to the principal's office. I'm thinking WTF did I do? My boss is in a conference room and gives me a raise to $2.05/hour. I go back.
    via u/[deleted]
  • 70
    [deleted] Let me tell ya'll about Food Giant. I worked there for a couple months last year. The boss had no clue what she was doing, but the job was chill. Hardly any customers, get out pretty early in the evening.
    via u/[deleted]
  • 71
    But one Sunday, my manager pulled fried chicken out of the garbage and wanted me to sell it to customers. And there were dead and alive roaches everywhere. I legit just couldn't handle deal with handing this dirty food to these people. I clocked out for lunch, got it, came back and quit.
    via u/[deleted]

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