Boss schedules mandatory meeting just to fire "underperforming" coworker in front of all 25 employees: 'It felt like a power trip more than anything else'

Imagine waking up one day to find out that there is a mandatory all-hands-on-deck company first thing that morning.

Under these circumstances, you might be concerned about mass layoffs or a large restructuring of the company or even an emergency task that requires everyone's immediate attention. 

Now imagine that the meeting finally begins, and what ends up happening is a 30-minute diatribe from the CEO against one employee, culminating in their dismissal from the company.

This is the kind of unnecessary mistreatment that could inevitably cause a mass exodus. No one wants to find themselves in such a humiliating position, nor do they want to work for someone who thinks it's acceptable to treat people that way in such a public manner.

Most folks who have ever had a hot-headed boss know that whenever these uncomfortable events transpire, they are usually more indicative of the boss's fragile ego than anything about the work ethic of the employee in question. The author did not suggest that the coworker's actions meant that he deserved to be the recipient of any of this behavior. Keep scrolling below for the full account of the experience of being in that conference room.

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  • 01
    Business colleagues in conference room meeting during a presentation.
    via Unsplash+ (Getty Images)

    Image is representative only and does not depict the actual subjects of the story.

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  • If this CEO thought he was using this coworker's firing as an example, it most certainly backfired. He ended up showing his true colors, thereby inspiring several employees who were present in that meeting to start planning their exits. We hope that when the time comes for their exit interviews, they are upfront about the fact that their boss's behavior during that tense 30 minutes was unacceptable and unconscionable. Otherwise, this CEO is never going to properly learn his lesson!

  • 02

    "My boss just called a 'mandatory meeting' with 25 staff members to fire/humiliate my coworker in front of a crowd."

    This happened yesterday. Boss schedules an emergency all- hands meeting, wouldn't say what it's about. We all show up thinking it's something important.
    via rswick86
  • 03
    Nope. Spent 20 minutes publicly calling out my coworker for "performance issues" before firing them in front of everyone. Just stood there and tore into them while we all watched.
    via rswick86
  • 04
    The person was crying by the end. We were all uncomfortable as hell but nobody knew what to do. Afterward the boss acted like it was totally normal and went back to their office.
    via rswick86
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  • 05
    I've never seen anything like this. Is this even legal? It felt like a power trip more than anything else. Now everyone's on edge wondering if they're next. Looking for a new job starting today.
    via rswick86
  • 06
    Side angle of business colleagues in conference room meeting during a presentation.
    via Unsplash+ (Getty Images)

    Image is representative only and does not depict the actual subjects of the story.

  • 07
    FOTNMC. Your boss is a heartless sociopath. You should start figuring out exit strategies now.
    via rswick86
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  • 08
    heuristic_dystixtion ⚫ Everyone who witnessed that is now jobsearching. The idiocy is breathtaking.
    via rswick86
  • 09
    Ragnarok314159. I witnessed this once. The boss berates the guy in his office and told him to sit there. Wasted hours of his time and proceeded to yell
    via rswick86
  • 10
    at him some more, then fired him. A week later someone took a bat to the boss's face, knees, wrists, and arms.
    via rswick86
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  • 11
    One of the old guys at the shop said "can't do both. Fire a man, or lay into his ass, do both you get what's coming to you". Stuck with me.
    via rswick86
  • 12
    The guy who was fired had an alibi, but I was also 16 at the time and just kept my head down.
    via rswick86
  • 13
    Tricky-Gemstone I endured this once. I reported it to HR, then quit. You are worth more. Reach out to the person targeted, if you can.
    via rswick86
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  • 14
    reala728. If you have the means to contact them, please offer them your sympathies. That's horrible and I can't even imagine what they
    via rswick86
  • 15
    might be going through without support. Also, absolutely fucking leave asap. No doubt half your team is thinking about doing
    via rswick86
  • 16
    the same, if not actively doing so. Even if you stay on, you're about to inherit the responsibilities of 3-4 coworkers who are about to do better for themselves.
    via rswick86
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  • 17
    Darth-Bag-Holder ⚫ The only reason to do something like this would be for a power trip and/or to scare everyone else into falling in line. Even if the employee did something
    via rswick86
  • 18
    egregious, you still wouldnt do it publicly. Either way, it's not only unprofessional but someone needs to speak up. That's a culture killer.
    via rswick86
  • 19
    Front view of business colleagues in conference room meeting during a presentation.
    via Unsplash+ (Getty Images)

    Image is representative only and does not depict the actual subjects of the story.

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