'I had the worst interview of my life': 53-year-old professional gives potential employer a piece of his mind after being asked to work 10 hours a day on $65k salary despite 30 years of experience

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Ben Weiss • Writer and Editor
Dec 7, 2025 2:00 PM EST

This job candidate was repeatedly disrespected by his potential employer, as if it were some great honor to be underpaid and overworked.

Of course, it's worth noting that there are plenty of individuals who would be thrilled to receive a salary offer of $65,000 annually. Still, after three decades of experience in a field where this guy should have been offered at least twice that amount, it's safe to say that this was a paltry offer.

Unfortunately, it doesn't exactly end there. This manager was so focused on how great he was that he also managed to reveal his unrealistic expectations for the position, seemingly on purpose. Apparently, employees were expected to work 10 hours a day despite the fact that their salaries contractually reflected an 8 hour work day. That meant that the candidate was expected to work an extra 10 hours each week, unpaid. That's 520 hours a year. 

The most amusing part of it all is that this manager didn't bat an eye as he was delivering this information. His hubris seemed to cloud his judgment as well as any semblance of realistic expectations for employees these days. Keep scrolling below for the full story and to find out how the author responded to this offer in the end.

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  • It's worth acknowledging that the 53-year-old managed to maintain a sense of professionalism throughout the interview despite what he was being told over the course of that hour. He waited to officially respond until he returned home. That's when he gathered all his thoughts and stood up to this overly confident toxic excuse for an employer.

  • "I had the most insane interview of my life last week"

    I (53,M) had a second interview with an established small company last week and I cannot believe what the owner expects from his employees and what he said during the interview. Here's a few gems...
    via legend72
  • "Our hours are 8:30 to 5:30, but I will expect you to work 10 hours per day, every day. I keep an eye on everyone, so I know when people are coming and going,
    via legend72
  • and who's doing the bare minimum. You will work 50 hours every week." "I'm a grumpy old man, I'm like a baby T p."
    via legend72
  • "The job pays $65,000, hope you're okay with that." "There's only one word in the English language I hate, and that's "assume." I can deal with facts, but when you assume you get me in trouble, and then you really get in big trouble. Don't ever say that word again!"
    via legend72
  • "Our culture is pretty good, we went to Top Golf last summer." "Yeah, Carl (his employee) is both good and bad. Sometimes he tries to talk down to you because he knows more than you do."
    via legend72
  • "You have an ecommerce website on the side? I don't like that, you'll have shut it down if you get the job." "You're the front runner for this position."
    via legend72
  • So yeah, he wants to pay $65K for 40 hours but expects you to work an extra 520 hours a year for free. He was over the top intense and would micromanage you into the ground. I cannot believe anyone works for this guy. Oh, and his wife is HR.
    via legend72
  • When I got home, I sent him an email stating that I wish to withdraw my candidacy for this position. He wrote me back asking if I would do contract work for him. I replied and explained the reason I withdrew my candidacy, and he didn't get back to me. I dodged a bullet, big time.
    via legend72
  • A mature businessman holding a smartphone laughs while standing in an office.
    via Unsplash+ (Getty Images)

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

  • msut77 Its always even worse than you think. Made that mistake once
    via legend72
  • miah66 "nobody wants to work anymore"
    via legend72
  • Intelligent-Iron-632 "You have an ecommerce website on the side? I don't like that, you'll have shut it down if you get the job". tell you what I will sell it to you for $1 million instead
    via legend72
  • thr4sh_. I mean, but they did go to top golf last summer...
    via legend72
  • Zealousideal-Ad-... At least he's honest. Most psychos are charming in the interview and then like this when you start.
    via legend72
  • roysterino Good decision. I had a second interview once where they casually threw out that everyone worked Saturday like it was no big deal. Salaried job. Walked away.
    via legend72
  • snagsguiness hope you told him in your email that he can assume your withdrawal from the interview process.
    via legend72
  • stoicphilosopher Sounds like a successful interview to me. The company is a pile of shit, the working conditions are awful, they don't try to hide. it, and you learned enough to know it wasn't for you. I wish all interviews went this way.
    via legend72

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salary recruiter manager email overworked-employees job search job interview entitled people
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