Boss fires employee after he told the payroll lady that he didn't get paid for his 1st day of work: 'I'm sorry Jan chewed you out for not doing your job, but did you have to take mine?'

Author image for Emmy Pratt
Emmy Pratt • Writer and Editor
May 5, 2026 12:30 PM EDT

He got fired because she was momentarily embarrassed. 

If your best friend told you that they got fired from their job, what would you assume? Would you assume that their boss is evil and made a decision that was utterly misguided? Or would you assume that your bestie said or did something that got them fired rightfully? Your answer to that question depends a lot on your best friend's personality. 

Even if someone is even-keeled and generally professional, you can't assume that they got fired for no reason at all. People do things at work that can get them fired all the time. It's also true that a lot of employers have absurdly low bars for behavior they consider "fireable." An employer might fire an employee for using their personal computer to answer a company email on the weekend because they left their work computer at the office. Usually, something like that, if it's against company policy, might result in an employee getting a firm talking to on Monday morning, with the expectation that they  never do anything like that again. If you fire employees for the most minor mistakes, you'll end up throwing out the baby with the bathwater. Soon enough, you won't have any employees to fire. 

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  • Vertical waist up portrait of young man in office looking at camera
    via Getty Images (Unsplash+)

    A brand new employee who was fired for going over his bosses head and talking to the employee in charge of payroll directly.

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

  • The employee in this story did not deserve to get fired under any circumstance. He altered the payroll employee that there was a problem with his paycheck, and his boss got unreasonably angry about this incredibly banal choice.

  • I got fired after a week on the job and I know why.

    Started a job, everything was going well. On time every day no major f ups which is to be expected when new.
    via u/Jabathewhut
  • Well we download apps so we can track our pay and when we need to come in. I noticed that I wasnt paid for my first day.
    via u/Jabathewhut
  • So I scroll to contacts and see "Jan Payroll" so I send her a message describing this issue. A few minutes later I get a text from the manager saying "just so you know all payment issues come directly to me, not jan"
    via u/Jabathewhut
  • Okay my bad. I see that she fixed it, fantastic. The next day I come in and she says it just "isnt working out" I asked what I did wrong and she gives the same response.
    via u/Jabathewhut
  • Normally she is really sweet and nice but that day she was just straight cold to me. Im sorry Jan chewed you out for not doing your job, but did you have to take mine?
    via u/Jabathewhut
  • Woman with curly hair looking angry and frustrated
    via Vitaly Gariev

    Jan chews out boss for misreporting her employee's timesheet to her. 

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

  • Eddit13 I got 6 months of full unemployment from "its just not working out" in Washington state.
    via u/Eddit13
  • fletters "It's just not working out" doesn't constitute termination for cause in some jurisdictions. Depending on circumstances and applicable laws, the employer is allowed to fire you without cause, but you can still be eligible for unemployment benefits when they do. Same goes for reasons like "not a good fit," or even performance issues that you haven't been given an opportunity to correct. (Again: not true in all jurisdictions!)
    via u/fletters
  • SufficientCow4380 Even if you were on a PIP, they can't deny unemployment unless they can prove willful misconduct. I got unemployment after a bosshole quadrupled my workload and then put me on a PIP. I was keeping up with the double and triple work so she kept piling it on until I broke. They had to hire three people to replace me.
    via u/SufficientCow4380
  • SpiderWil Termination without cause is not the same thing as termination because of termination. Employers must still provide a reason for termination. They can't simply say, "I woke up one day and decided to fire this person for no reason." If they do that, you will be eligible for unemployment 100%.
    via u/SpiderWil
  • ZealousidealBrain910 You lost a job because she lost face. That's on her not you.
    via u/ZealousidealBrain910
  • likeawp Your boss probably got in big trouble for misreporting payroll, if you're in the US it is in the law that workers get paid exactly on time and the correct amount. If this mistake got caught much later payroll would be in much deeper sh. Your boss got spooked and fired you, you may have a case of retaliation if you documented the event, you have texts and email trails right?
    via u/likeawp
  • XXredrevolutionXX Retaliation/ wrongful termination is typically a bigger deal than accidentally so I'm not sure I buy this theory... up a payroll
    via u/XXredrevolutionXX
  • wildmooonwitch You think a middle manager has the brains to decipher which is a bigger deal and not lash out inappropriately?
    via u/wildmooonwitch
  • robotsaysrawr • 17h ago Yep, employee reported a payroll problem and was fired right after. At best OP should speak with an employment lawyer if they have all their records saved and see if there is anything there.
    via u/robotsaysrawr
  • Tomsoup4 its amazing how many hunans care more about some companys ability to make money over their fellow mans comfort and or survival
    via u/Tomsoup4
  • Retlaw83 I was once fired from a temp job for "just not getting it" after stopping some idiot lady from make a $30,000 mistake while she was training me on how to not make mistakes in checking corporate property tax forms.
    via u/Retlaw83
  • MaternalFornicator2 You thought for yourself, they see that as dangerous to their perceived control over you. So they let you go. It's pretty screwed up.
    via u/MaternalFornicator2
  • WeWuzLazy Yeah naw. There's more to this.
    via u/WeWuzLazy
  • Jabathewhut OP There really isnt. It was not a hard job AT ALL. You had a checklist of things you needed to do every day and I checked them all every day. Most of the time I was alone so the tasks took no time at all. Even talking to the other workers there they'd say "this job is so easy, just do everything on the list and then you pretty much just watch TV until your shift is over.
    via u/Jabathewhut
  • Man in white dress shirt holding white ceramic mug
    via CardMapr.nl

    Employee watches TV after finishing all of his work at his easy job.

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

  • Train DonutBBQ Not for nothing, but Jan sks. Boss made a mistake. Jan fixed it. Jan didn't need to rip your boss a new one
    via u/TrainDonutBBQ
  • Dentarthurdent73 OP sks a bit too. We all have to work, most of us wish we didn't, including managers. I will always give someone at work the good grace to allow them the opportunity to fix their own f up, before I tell someone else about their f up, manager or not. This is how I'd hope to be treated by others at work too. I would absolutely go to the manager first in this situation, not immediately go over their head.
    via u/Dentarthurdent73

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Payroll employee manager bad bosses trouble money fired work angry unemployment
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