'[I] walked out mid shift': 15+ Employees who quit their jobs and never looked back

Author image for Remy Millisky
Remy Millisky • Writer and Editor
Nov 25, 2025 11:00 AM EST

These workers got so burned out from their jobs that they quit and never looked back. 

Efficient workers don't always get rewarded with raises or bonuses, but they do get saddled with additional work, since the bosses have confidence they'll get it done. Sometimes, this dynamic works out in infuriating ways. Maybe you turn in 100% of your work on time, while your coworkers watches YouTube videos and takes long lunches, only completing 60% of her work. Your boss might hand you an important file and tell you to have it completed by the end of the week, and then skip out to lunch with your lazy coworker! Now, they'll be dining and having a great time, while having the satisfaction of knowing that every task will be completed. Naturally, this builds resentment. And it's not always a dynamic that can be fixed. Sometimes you just have to leave and start anew. 

These people shared the things that made them quit, and a lot of them waited quite a while before finally gathering the courage to leave. It's inspiring to read about people who have worked somewhere for over a decade finally deciding that they can't stand another minute with their bad bosses and tiresome coworkers. It's on to the next job, with a higher salary and a better sense of self-worth, knowing they had the courage to find somewhere better. 

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  • 01
    Woman in striped sweater in office setting waves at laptop
    via Andrej Lišakov For Unsplash+

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

  • 02
    I. after 15 years they hired a moron to run the IT department and he had no clue what we did or how IT really worked. I told them we needed more people i couldn't do it all and i had to
    via u/Itchy_Pudding_9940
  • 03
    focus on cybersecurity and they said they would hire someone then months later said they wouldn't i would just have to do more for same pay. So i left .. 6 months later they got hit with ransomware.
    via u/Itchy_Pudding_9940
  • 04
    sikkerhet once I worked at a dominos and the owner would check the cameras constantly and call the store and tell me how to run my shift. Usually this wasn't a huge deal, you will just get a lot of micromanaging at any fast food chain, but this time I was the only leader in the building. There was a cook, 2 drivers, and a phone girl. It was absolutely necessary
    via u/sikkerhet
  • 05
    that I expedite (take finished pizzas out of the oven, check them for quality, box and cut them, and manage which drivers got which routes). Someone yelled at the phone girl over something that wasn't her fault. She was like 16 and it was baby's first workplace degradation so she started crying. I told her to borrow a cigarette
    via u/sikkerhet
  • 06
    from one of the drivers and go outside and pretend to smoke for 10 minutes so she could calm down (owner didn't usually bother complaining about smoke breaks)
    via u/sikkerhet
  • 07
    Owner calls, interrupting my call with a customer, and tells me to send her home. I explained that she just needed a minute and I needed to be expediting because the cook doesn't have the time and the drivers can't be trusted like that. He said if I'm doing fine wihtout her for ten minutes during the rush, I shouldn't be wasting his money having her in the building for a whole shift.
    via u/sikkerhet
  • 08
    I said I'm gonna just free up an opening so he can hire someone he trusts to make these decisions and walked out mid shift.
    via u/sikkerhet
  • 09
    P5ycho5quid Toxic work environment and false promises
    via u/P5ycho5quid
  • 10
    InkyDinkopolous If I didn't leave that job my wife would've divorced me.
    via u/InkyDinkopolous
  • 11
    sparklingcoconutt Realizing I spent more time stressing about work than actually living my life.
    via u/sparklingcoconutt
  • 12
    farmsf I was an English teacher in China. I had a group of adult students that wanted to improve their English because they worked in international companies. We got along very well, and after class one evening, we all decided to go out for some dinner and drinks,
    via u/farmsf***s
  • 13
    I got an angry call from the owner, accusing me of trying to "steal" her students and teach them privately. The restaurant was very close to the school, and it hadn't closed for the evening (night classes till 9:00), so I walked back, called the woman an idiot and quit.
    via u/farmsf***s
  • 14
    Then went back to the restaurant and got drunk with my former students. Back then it was extremely easy to secure English teaching jobs and I had a new one within a week. Screw you, ABC Language School!
    via u/farmsf***s
  • 15
    creeper321448 Terrible management.
    via u/creeper321448
  • 16
    PachaLlama People kept leaving or getting let go, and that meant that I kept getting more of the leftover work because I am "reliable", but my paycheck stayed the same. Unfortunately what I've learned is if you're efficient you get rewarded with more work, and I'm never letting myself get taken advantage of like that again.
    via u/PachaLlama
  • 17
    Zarko291 I was promised a promotion. The next year I didn't get it so they said I didn't look the part and I needed to wear a tie in the warehouse. The next year they told me another year. The next year they told me I needed to start working on their annual catalog.
    via u/Zarko291
  • 18
    By year 5 I got fed up with the carrot dangling. I put my 2 weeks in after I got a job making more. They told me I was making a huge mistake and if I would just work another year I was up for the promotion.
    via u/Zarko291
  • 19
    InsightValuation... Separate places: 1. "Why would we want to make it easier for our clients to access the data [that they pay super-premium prices for]?"
    via u/InsightValuationsLLC
  • 20
    2. Employer taking 2 weeks dragging their feet about a promotion (mostly in title, with a 10-15% raise) while another company offered a 35%+ raise if I could start within 2wks after a 20min conversation.
    via u/InsightValuationsLLC
  • 21
    darth_helcaraxe... Being set up to fail by my manager, having evidence of this, confirmation of this behavior from another former colleague, only to have HR tell me that it doesn't matter as they are the manager and I was just an employee.
    via u/darth_helcaraxe_82
  • 22
    It wasn't until I quit that a few of my other colleagues contacted me personally to confirm they were facing the same things. But none of them would speak up when interviewed by HR out of fear for their job.
    via u/darth_helcaraxe_82
  • 23
    i.. Boss (who I knew) knew I was wanting a management position. I did everything I could and took up getting extra certifications, etc to help broaden my knowledge and make myself more useful to the company. Instead, he said I didn't have enough experience (even though the carrots were hung saying there was
    via u/imoto314
  • 24
    potential to move up), despite being with them for years, and brought in one of his friends with zero experience to fill the slot instead. Then, proceeded to swap me to a different department, bringing in someone who he probably wanted to bone, and tried to change my pay for the worse...knowing I fought for
    via u/imoto314
  • 25
    a raise and needed to make x amount in order to stay. I went the self-employed route, and while it has its own stresses, I now make much more than I was there and have a better schedule.
    via u/imoto314
  • 26
    Fun-Philosophe... It was toxic. Now I'm in better place.
    via u/Fun-Philosopher671
  • 27
    Man in suit frowns while looking at papers with woman typing on computer in background in office setting
    via Getty Images For Unsplash+

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

  • 28
    MoroccanToes New hires without any experience getting paid more than experienced employees
    via u/MoroccanToes
  • 29
    coolbr33z Not wanting a dead end promotion being stuck at level years.
    via u/coolbr33z
  • 30
    bddelivery01 Owner sold contract to another person, new owner doesn't want to keep benefits and 401k
    via u/bddelivery01
  • 31
    The68Guns Got a .17 cent raise.
    via u/The68Guns
  • 32
    Fun_in_Space 2 raises in 20 years.
    via u/Fun_in_Space
  • 33
    Calgal041 The salary is low, and the colleagues, environment, and work are toxic. Every day feels miserable, and I have no motivation to go there.
    via u/Calgal041

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