‘She quit a week later. Three others followed. All four mentioned the "family" hypocrisy’: CEO calls company family for years, denies financial help to a longtime employee after she loses her house, then criticizes her for not being “team player”

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  • They Preached "We're a Family" Until Someone Actually Needed Help

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  • For three years, every company meeting ended the same way: "Remember, we're not just coworkers, we're family here." The CEO loved that line.
  • Pushed the "family culture" hard. Company picnics, birthday celebrations, the whole routine. Then my coworker's house burned down.
  • Lost everything. She had insurance but it takes time to process, and she needed immediate help with temporary housing and basics.
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  • She'd been with the company for eight years. Stellar employee. Never missed deadlines. She asked if the company could advance her next paycheck or provide a short term loan.
  • Not a handout - literally just her own money a week early. HR said it was "against policy." The CEO who talked endlessly about family wouldn't even take a meeting.
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  • Some of us pooled money to help her out. We raised about $3,000 between twelve people.
  • When the CEO heard about it, he sent a company- wide email praising our "generous spirit" and "family values." Didn't contribute a dollar himself.
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  • Two months later, same CEO sent out an email about how we needed to "go above and beyond" during a busy period.
  • Said "family steps up when it matters." Expected everyone to work weekends without overtime pay because "that's what family does." The same coworker who lost everything declined.
  • Said she had plans. Politely but firmly. She got written up for "not being a team player" and "lacking commitment to company culture." She quit a week later.
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  • Three others followed. In the exit interviews, all four mentioned the "family" hypocrisy. Management's takeaway? They need to "screen better for cultural fit during hiring." Still using the family line in meetings though.
  • Funny how that works.

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