There can be millions of reasons to leave a job, as most people who’ve ever had to quit one can attest. Even though some endings are sad or bittersweet, quite a few might seem like a sweet escape, especially when there are unpleasant people or events involved.
Redditor u/Sighablesire recently got curious about why people leave their workplaces. They turned to the members of the ‘Antiwork’ community, asking what was their “I quit” moment, and received plenty of answers, each more colorful than the last one. Scroll down to find them on the list below and see how many different reasons there are for employees to walk out the door.
#1
I worked at a paper mill running a hydropulper, basically a giant blender that chopped up bales of cardboard from grocery store to be recycled into new cardboard. By the time I was trained there were only 2of us working it. It was hard work and little to no downtime ever, no lunch no breaks. I was working 7 days a week and 12 hours a day, sometimes 16 hours a day. I made good money but I barely had time to spend it. I almost got evicted because I literally didn’t have time to drop off a check to my landlord ( pre internet)
The job was really dangerous too. I had to climb up on a platform to cut the wires holding the bales together. I wore a harness in case I slipped and fell i the blender that was connected to a rickety old rusty fence. I had slipped several times before but the harness saved me.
One day I slipped and one of the welds on the fence broke, dropping me farther into the blender to the point that my feet were touching the top of the cardboard milkshake below me. I freaked and yelled for help but no one heard me. With all my strength I just barely pulled myself out and laid there, trying to calm down. Still no one came.
I decided to see how long it would take for someone to notice. 10-15 minutes go by and a foreman comes over and yells at me for not making enough pulp. I tell him what happened and show him the broken weld. He thought it was funny.
I walked out right there with no one to operate the machine.
Several people have died there, and many others have had skin burned of, lost limbs, etc. never work at a paper mill.
Image credits: Luder714
#2
My direct boss (good relationship with her) told me I didn’t get a promotion I was busting my a*s for, because our manager blocked it, as I made them look good and my team was the only one keeping the metrics and numbers out of the whole department, quit 30 min later via email after a visit to HR, took all my vacation, plus sick days did only about a week’s worth of work out of a two months notice, no handover, no training, no knowledge transfer. 4 months later poached my old boss to a higher position at my new company and 3 of my teammates… I have never been so proud of myself.
Image credits: Wild-Individual835
#3
My manager slapped me across the face for dropping a sandwich.
I was a teenager and it was caught on camera.
I look back and am pissed I didn’t sue.
Image credits: transnavigation
#4
Years ago I was a temp doing deliveries for an auto body supplies company. Did my three months, boss told me he would get me on company within a few weeks. Come in on a Monday and there’s a new guy there. Boss asks me to show him my route, that he would be taking mine and I would start working in the shop mixing and warehousing because the old timer was set to retire. I thought ok, cool. So we get loaded, I’m driving to our first stop almost an hour away from the shop. We had the wrong product and I called previously mentioned old timer to see if we had the correct part to put on back order and deliver the next day. During this conversation I mentioned how I was excited to train with him and take over when he retires. Guy says, “I’m not retiring, what are you talking about?” I call my boss and ask him, he fesses up and says I’m training my replacement and wouldn’t have a position with the company after. I hung up, handed the new kid the keys and said good luck. Called for a ride. Boss kept trying to call me, finally I answered, he’s just screaming about how I f****d him and if he ever saw me he would beat my a*s. I said, ok…tell you what I’ll come to you. When I got back to town I had to get my car from the lot. I went in the store, and said I’m here for my a*s beating. This b***h ran into his office, locked the door and called the police. I just laughed and walked out. F**k that place, glad it went under
Image credits: testies2345
#5
When my manager suspected I was lying when I tried to tell him I needed a break because I was having an asthma attack.
Image credits: Fireball_Flareblitz
#6
60 hour weeks as a teacher while I have an 80% disability through the VA and getting written up for sitting too much. As a math teacher. I quit. They’re still hiring a math teacher. Looks like the gym teacher will have to fill in now.
Image credits: Similar-Orchid-6721
#7
Was told I would miss my daughter’s first birthday cause “we need products out the door, the rigs pay for your daughter to have a good birthday” hahaha not anymore they don’t.
Image credits: Bdhwoe42p
#8
My boss told me and the only other out LGBTQ+ employee in a meeting that it was our job to make our very right-wing and anti-queer governor “look good” at an event.
We did not work in politics.
I quit.
Image credits: eunicethapossum
#9
I worked for an insurance/wealth advisor who told me one day she goes to funerals to find new clients. Quit on the spot.
Image credits: BrahmTheImpaler
#10
When I was a photo specialist at Walgreens They made me dress up as the easter bunny for photos with kids. Every kid was terrified of the costume and cried for the photos and my Boss kept trying to make me dance. Once I realized that I was getting paid $8 an hour to make kids cry and dance like a monkey I put in my 2 weeks.
Image credits: Vagitron69
#11
Boss called me a peasant in the work chat so I blew that s**t up to the CEO. Loathsome people, dogs have better manners.
Image credits: ThemChecks
#12
My boss told me to “get back in your f*****g hole, no one wants to hear from you” (I was an exec chef, frustrated by being lied to about ingredient sourcing and being forced to lie to my staff about it)
I threw my keys at the wall, packed my knives, and left.
Image credits: downhillguru1186
#13
I used to work at a grocery store for 2 1/2 yrs during highschool. We had to work every other weekend and my graduation party fell on my weekend. I asked for just Saturday off a month ahead of time and the manager said remind me when it gets closer. I reminded him a week before, but he put me on the schedule anyway. I worked the Thursday before said Saturday and told him again, then he tells me I need to find coverage. I said I would try, so I called everyone not working that weekend and no one would work. I told him this and he says he doesn’t care, that I would have to work. I told him I absolutely am not working, we rented a park and I sent invites. He again said he doesn’t care and that I’m working, so I went home and grabbed my uniforms went back and into his office and threw my stuff on his desk and said I quit! He starts stuttering saying oh u don’t want to do that! It doesn’t look good on a resume! I then revealed that I already had a full-time job working at least 40 hrs a week. He just had this stupid look on his face all defeated. Lol. I was one of his best workers, everyone liked me and I took extra shifts when needed. Oh well.
Image credits: Jealous-Guidance4902
#14
I got passed up for a promotion, then was asked to train the guy who got that promotion on the things he doesn’t know. It wasn’t like a management position or anything, but it pissed me off.
Image credits: Danstine16
#15
I asked for raise and was told to wait half a year. So I quit and got three times the raise I asked for in the first place.
Image credits: pzi7799
#16
I applied for a new job in my company that I was perfect for. I was turned down for it right away and while confused just decided let it go. Then about a month later an internal recruiter contacted me for that position because as I said I was perfect for it. I told them I had been turned down for it and they were confused but we went through with it anyway. Had several interviews, everything went amazing and we were getting read to sign papers when the recruiter called me to tell me I couldn’t get the job. Why couldn’t I get the job? I didn’t make enough money in my current role that I was severely underpaid for. Apparently the pay jump from my current position to the new one would have been more than the system’s algorithm would allow. So I was literally too poor to get a new better paying job. Quit a week later.
Also, that company was GE. F**K GE
#17
I was 6 months pregnant and a server at Dennys and we had just gotten all new management up to the district manager. These were managers pulled in from other stores. No one liked them all that much as they were short with people, unaccommodating, and routinely expected servers to “hop on the line” during rushes to help cook meals for their tables. One Sunday morning (busiest day of the week for us) only me and one other server are scheduled and manager 1 decides to send home our hostess to “save on labor” because her and manager 2 are both there to help. We get absolutely slammed (as expected) and neither manager is anywhere to she found. I sat myself and other server over and over, and had a nearly full restaurant in a matter of 15 minutes. I start to take drink orders for a large party, people are still coming in, and managers are still MIA. So I stop what I’m doing to see where tf our “help” is and find both managers and one of the cooks out back, smoking and laughing. I asked, “You guys having fun?” And they just stared at me. I turn to manager 1 (who is in charge of scheduling and sent our hostess home) and tell her “I quit, learn how to staff a f*****g restaurant.” She tried to call out “I did!” As I’m walking back into the back of house to get my stuff and I just shouted F**K YOU. I wish I’d had something wittier to say but that F U felt pretty good haha. I’m not very confrontational and I was shaking the whole drive home lol
#18
Was working at a college town bar and pizza place (Milanos at University of Dayton).
It was Alumni weekend, which means non stop craziness.
Went in for my shift (waiting tables). Was supposed to have a five table section.
We were short staffed, so I had a five table section and also had to pick up tables on the patio.
I’m a capable server, so no problem.
Then, I find out WE DON’T HAVE A HOSTESS.
FOR ALUMNI WEEKEND.
ON A FRIDAY NIGHT.
Our manager thought it was a great idea to give her the night off because it was alumni weekend and she wanted to party. He consciously chose to go without a hostess on the busiest Friday night of the year. What a f*****g idiot.
My incompetent coworkers start wigging out and asking me to take tables for them.
Now I’m up to a 9 table section plus patio tables.
We have no hostess. Guests are making their own waiting list. Some are ignoring the list, walking into the restaurant and seating themselves at dirty tables. We also don’t have anyone cleaning tables, that is on the server. There are signs everywhere saying wait to be seated, so anyone who sits at a dirty table, I just completely ignore them.
We have no food runner.
Food is taking 1 1/2 to 2 hours to be made.
I walk into the bar to find one of the managers sitting at the bar drinking.
I ask on shift manager what that’s about. He says her shift ended at five.
I told him ” we are getting the s**t kicked out of us and we have no hostess, do you think she could help out? “
He looked at me like I’m crazy.
I repeated ” your business is crashing, guests are making their own waiting list, and people are walking out. We need help”.
Again, he just stood there looking like ” what do you want me to do?”
I threw my apron on the table and said “have fun”. Left my cash and checks so they couldn’t accuse me of stealing.
Walked out, never looked back.
Image credits: jfrawley28
#19
I was in physical pain. My back and shoulders hurt so bad I ended up in the hospital. They couldn’t find anything wrong with me. I laid there in the bed knowing it was work. Had to be, so I was discharged went home and called the top boss not my direct boss and quit on the spot. With in days all pain was gone, attitude was better and stress gone. It was then I realized stress can cause so much more than anger. I vowed to never let a company do that to me again. This was over 12 years ago and I have never let a company get close to messing with my health and well-being since. I did hear a year later that old d******d boss was canned but still wouldn’t consider working for that company again under any circumstance.
#20
For me, it was when I thought I was having a heart attack at work from all the stress of a bully coworker, with a manager who refused to do anything about it and HR who turned a blind eye despite multiple complaints about this person from a variety of staff and customers. Nothing was going to change, so I had to get out of there before it destroyed my health. Now I embrace the “it’s just a job” mentality and enforce strict boundaries.
Image credits: librijen
#21
I was working for a hotel that had an on-sight restaurant. I worked in front of the house as a waiter/barman and later I also worked in the kitchen on the kids’ meals. The place wasn’t well-run, shift leaders dating the staff, people constantly disappeared to go smoke for up to 30 minutes, I’d get spoken down to for “not covering enough” while they did this. This is just for context. So anyway I had a holiday booked and cleared but unfortunately, the kitchen manager apparently did not get this note. So there I am enjoying my holiday and I get text “where are you, you were supposed to be here at 9am!” (It was no more than 9.05 BTW). I tell them I’m on holiday and it was cleared and where they should check. I thought that was the end of it until later that day I get another message “you’re in tomorrow so we’ll see you at 9am.” Now I’m still on holiday tomorrow but I tried to compromise and state I can’t get back that fast, but I could get back in time for the evening service rush. “Not good enough. See you at 9”. Well, that was the straw that broke the camel’s back. “If that’s not good enough, how about you shove this job up your ass. I quit.” Que frantic phone calls and texts, that wasn’t me one of the other kitchen staff had my phone. The manager called me a few days later. “I’m really disappointed I expected you in on Monday,” told him I was really disappointed he didn’t know what quitting meant and hung up. It felt great to be done with that place. I was out of work for 6 months, but things worked out in the end.
#22
it started with my boss putting me on a PIP for petty reasons. i improved my performance and thought all was going well until she berated me for something that wasn’t a big deal. then we had a 60 day review and she told me “your work is consistent and you’re performing your duties but i still feel you aren’t committed and giving 150%”. i hit indeed really hard and got a new position about a week or two after that. handed in my letter and said “you obviously don’t have confidence in my abilities, so im going somewhere where they do”. happy ending because now im at my new job and my boss says im doing amazing.
Image credits: beetlejuicetrashbag
#23
Regional boss of my funeral home where I was working at the time was buttering me up to go get my licenses so they could have another full time director. I almost signed up to go to school for it but wanted to get some things in writing. Turned out he was a goddamn liar. Sure, they wanted me to be a licensed funeral director but instead of full time salary they were going to keep me in my position and also use my services at $75 per wake/funeral. So I’d do double the work and take on all kinds of responsibility but get paid literal PENNIES compared to the others.
I demanded an explanation. Received the “you’re young and should be grateful we are even offering”. I walked out that afternoon. I don’t want to work for an industry that takes advantage of people’s grief and thinks it’s okay to use and disrespect someone because of their age.
Cheap greedy pieces of s**t. Just get cremated and do a private memorial folks. The thousands of dollars to do everything traditionally isn’t worth it at all.
#24
My boss tried to fight me for requesting the money he owed me for mowing his lawn. Was gone with a new job lined up by the end of the week.
Image credits: Aggressive-Expert-69
#25
Working minimum wage in the fish produce department of a grocery store. I was already working alone in oeak hours plus had to take my lunch breaks before peak hours which is typically 2 hours into my shift. My I quit moment was when I was accused of stealing when I was just putting an on sale item on the side so I can buy it when my shift ends. F**k that man. I just left when that happened because I was too tired, demoralized and dehumanized. Eventually went to a job that pays mire than 2x the amount and am in a better place.
Image credits: DireBlue88
#26
Worked at a dog kennel named Whole Dogz. The owner of the kennel left me an envelope of dog s**t with my name on it for me to find inside of the break room fridge. She did this in order to let me know she thought I was doing a s**t job. That was my last day.
Image credits: wfriedma
#27
Prep/line cook in a kitchen. Was working with other guys who were on work release from prison (no -violent offenders who get time outside a cell to learn and work a regular job). Anyway, one of these dudes decided my calamari isn’t coming out of the fryer fast enough (not serving raw calamari here.) Anyway, he picks up a knife and threatens to stab me. Took off the apron and walked right out of there. The head chef tries to get me back by offering an additional 25 cents an hour. I told him my life was worth more than that. Don’t miss that industry.
Image credits: TheDeadlySquid
#28
I quit my first full time job after being there 7 years. 5 years in I start getting snagged for my appearance. Mostly just ratty work clothes, no holes, just stained (was one of their machinists and mechanical designers). They wanted me to dress better but I could barely afford to get the basics for living. Then one Friday after a chaotic move, I get told to dress better Monday or get 3 days off without pay. So I went home Friday, grabbed my toolbox key, went back, locked my big box, took all my small boxes, and said goodbye to a couple of the 2nd shifters. Come Monday, I slept in late, call the plant manager and said I wouldn’t be in today. When he asked why I told him that I quit. Then he asked if I could come in and talk about it but I said I have tried to multiple times but all I got was the when I was your age. The plant manager retired 2 years later. F*ckem
Image credits: no_name113
#29
When I was taking on more and more work while my coworker did puzzles. Not only was she pushing all her work on me so she could do nothing, she would then double check everything I did and critique it. This included the work she was giving me and my actual job that she knew nothing about. This happened day after day after day. She questioned everything I did.
It finally came to a head one day when someone asked if our boss was in his office, he was, she argued for a good 10 minutes he was not in there, I pointed out she had just come back into the office and did not see him return, she finally got up and checked. Oh I guess he is, no apology or acknowledgement of her mistake.
I immediately started rage applying and had a new job within a week or 2. I gave them 4 days notice and she asked who was going to do all the work? IDK you? It felt so good to leave that last day.
#30
I was a welder running electrical boxes that had to be perfect or they would get rejected. The company originally wanted 60 I could get somewhere between 20 45 a day depending on how they ran. They added 13 welds and another fixture and wanted me to get 90 a day. I could still only get 20 to 45 a day. Most days where mid 30s. They came up with a solution of 66 a day would be acceptable. I couldn’t run that many, my a*s was getting chewed left and right. They where threatening to fire me so I just quit showing up. I had a job within 30 mins of me leaving.
#31
Last year, I took a job with a great salary, so-so benefits that the salary made up for, in a managerial position at a small manufacturing facility. I did NOT do my due diligence and found out after starting the parent company (global, family-owned) was involved in multiple active lawsuits due to their treatment of employees. Matter of fact, there are subs on here devoted to this company. My manager, one of the chief company officers was notorious for cursing everyone out. He would always say, I’m not cussing you, I’m just cussing. It ended up I was putting in 60+ hours a week, the factory itself fell to hell as it was a pure sweat shop, hiring felons and any warm body. We had armed security it was so bad. A large (very large household name) contract was lost. The owners brought a “friend” in from out of state to turn the place around and they failed. One tense morning about 6:30am, I had just walked in to my office (accommodating the owner’s time zone), and got a call from my boss. He proceeded to curse me and ask why the F he had to call me to get me to do my job (make money) blah blah blah. Yelling and ranting. I said “I tell you what, I will save you $XXX right now. I quit”. Flash forward to meetings with HR, the “acting” plant manager, calls from the owners (3 family members as rich as Oprah). No, no, and no. Never looked back but lesson learned. I still google and check to see how the lawsuits are going.
Image credits: oneinfivethousand
#32
Mine just happened on Monday. I manage a team of people, and I’ve always cared about them more than the company I work for. Recently, two of my team members wrote letters to leadership saying they were unhappy with the lack of diversity in the workplace. I advised them to send the letter to the Diversity, Equity and Inclusivity group, which I’m a part of, and let them advise on how to handle getting the letters to where they need to go.
When the Executive Director found out, he screamed at me. He told me my involvement with that team was “clouding my judgement” and the letters should’ve gone directly to him. A consultant on my team completely threw me under the bus and said if she was involved, the situation would’ve been handled a lot differently.
I told the DEI team about the backlash, and we decided to disband because we don’t want to be a part of this group just so the company can say they have one. I quit the next day.
#33
It was the end of our fiscal year. I was already over quota, but my VP’s team numbers were short. I had one more deal left to close that would have really helped him. I was doing everything I could since I was already in accelerated earnings and it would have been a nice bump.
But the client’s procurement system was down on the last day. I was on several calls with them that included our VP, and they were adamant that nothing could happen.
Then it’s 9 pm and I’m sitting on my couch and start getting emails about why it hasn’t closed. My director calls me that everyone above him is pissed that I didn’t get it done.
The following week the VP is in town and sits me down and tries to guilt me about it, but I had already closed it by then.
He said I should have done everything possible until 12:00 AM if I was really a team player.
A week later I quit. Said “I’m not the team player you need”, and went on to a much better job.
Image credits: PM_Georgia_Okeefe
#34
Worked in a shoe store on summer vacation between university. My boss was about 10 years older than me and working in the store was her career and she had some ego issues about it whenever I mentioned school.
She used to like to leave work 10 mins before close so she wouldn’t have to do closing duties or wait in traffic as the mall emptied, and my reply was always “you’re the boss.” I didn’t care if she left. But she LOVED that, and anytime she said something to flex her muscles she’d go “like you always say, I’m the boss!” So it’s 2 weeks before I’m leaving to go back to school and she’s making the next week schedule and I say I can’t work Friday aft and Saturday but can work Sunday and can work the full next weekend if needed. We were only 5 people total, so we often discussed the schedule together. She said “I wanted to have a BBQ at my house Friday night so I need you to work.” I reminded her that I had concert tickets that she knew about so this was just a reminder. She got this glint in her eyes and said “well, I’m the boss, so I’m getting the Friday/Saturday off!” I said “well, I’m going back to school so soon, I guess Thursday will be my last day and I’ll just end my time here early.
The look on her face. She flew too close to the sun with taking advantage of the “perks” of being the boss to an easygoing employee. She backtracked immediately. It’s been so long I can’t remember if I stayed the remaining weeks but I do know I went to the concert.
#35
SysAdmin in a production company.
Get called by production manager angry AF to the production floor “immediately”.
Spot the guy completely livid, screaming at the top of his lungs.
Sees me, steps towards me, starts yelling in my face about how tired he is of thealways-broken-IT (I was there for less than a year a that point, we didn’t have any issues for over 6 months after I spent my first 3 fixing everything that was fixable and replacing the rest).
I ask “what’s broken”.
*angrily points at a computer* Network is down ! Sees the network is indeed unavailable, lifts my eyes, look at the Switch stack 30m away, 10m high: everything is shut down.
“Did you do any electrical work today ?” Still screaming manager: Yeah so what ? We blew a fuse hooking a new machine. “Well, maybe you could go check why my switch bay that controls network for 75% of the production floor suddenly died”.
He then proceeds to tear a new one to another guy (maintenance/repair/electrician team), when he’s done I just ask “So, is screaming at me any use or you’re going to apologize ?”.
Dude lost it, Im not going to repeat what was said (general subject was how pissed he was to pay guys for doing nothing and that he’d act as he wanted).
I didn’t react at all, went back to my office, called my doc, filed for 30 days of medical leave for burnout, found another job.
#36
Was poached for a managing warehouse job with the promise of a substantial raise after 6 months. The company was in startup phase but had amazing profits and potential so I figured I’d give it a try. After 6 months the promise was “still trying to get everything worked out but guarantee you’ll get a big raise at the one year mark”. People were nice and was still paid well so I toughed it out.
At exactly one year to the day I went to see the boss and said “ok it’s been a year, let’s talk about that raise” he said “let’s give it another 6 months and see how the company is doing”
I said no way am I giving even another day unless I see the raise I was promised, they said they couldn’t and kept saying just wait a bit longer. I just told him “sorry I can’t, I quit.” Cue a bunch of promises etc from him but I stuck to my guns and left that day.
From what I heard apparently everyone else was getting wise to their promises and they lost all their key people and within 6 months then they filed for bankruptcy.
Oh and they sent me my last check but they put a stop payment on it, that was a whole other issue I had to get resolved.
#37
I was a systems engineer on quite possibly the worst run contract in the history of the US military (for sec/priv reasons I won’t disclose said info but it was at an AF base in the southeast). Our PM was a clueless dipsh*t who “ran” things by mismanaging every aspect of the environment, and throwing everyone under the bus. People from every team quit left and right. I stayed for a while, because frankly it was an easy job and I needed the money. One day he asked me to do something that was completely unrelated to my job and with which I had zero expertise. I explained this quite clearly but was told “ah you’ll be fine” and he dipped. I was able to fudge my way through with the help of ol’ trusty Google and taking my time. Apparently I took too long, and the PM emailed my company the next day trying to get me canned. My company forwarded me the email. I quit on the spot and walked, and since I was quite literally the only person on shift at that time, he was proper f***ed. Heard he was eventually canned for sinking the ship. Couldn’t have happened to a bigger douche.
Image credits: WarlordOfBeer
#38
Not an “I quit immediately” but kinda close. I was working for a small “family” company as a truck driver. When I wasn’t driving I would help in the warehouse, mostly testing laptops for resale. Picture 4 people sitting around a table mindlessly inspecting and powering up computers for 8 hours straight. If not for music and conversation we would have gone insane. New manager comes in one day and decides we’re too comfortable sitting in chairs doing the job so he’s bringing in standing height benches and now we have to stand. We got into it a bit and he decided he was going to swing his d**k around and send me home for the rest of the week. I was already planning my exit and got my offer and start date for my new job while I was off but I couldn’t start the new job until the week after I came back. My wife told me just to quit and not go back but I didn’t want to miss the weeks pay. I ended up going in and doing nothing all week except driving the truck. I was a complete d**k all week. About 3/4 through the day on Friday I started walking around saying my goodbyes to the people I liked. Went out to my truck and got my uniforms, gathered up everything I had that the company owned and dumped it all on the managers desk. Told him he could go f**k himself. He seemed surprised
#39
I was working at this company for almost 9 years. Started as the receptionist and moved to sales after maybe 3 years. After about a year in sales, I was writing more orders and doing more quotes than anyone else in that department. Of course, because I didn’t have ” sales experience”, I was also the least paid. But that wasn’t even the worst part… since NO ONE lasted in the receptionist position, we had a new one every 6 months or so, I had to cover the front desk (with no extra pay or help). Well, I eventually got tired of it, took years, and told my manager as much to which he replied, ” you do what we ask you”. Guess what? I got my s**t and left. I was able to secure another job two weeks later and now I make 2x (or more) and I’m doing a fraction of the work.
I wish I had left years earlier, but you live and learn…
#40
When I was much younger I worked at Lowes delivering and installing appliances. After working there for 2 years I only got 2 ten cent raises. Jokes on them though, i was supposed to return the old appliances back to the store and put them in a 53′ trailer so that they could make some money on them. I sold them to appliance repair shops and would easily take home $400 in cash every week.
Image credits: Geek_off_the_streets
#41
My first job was working at a bowling alley for $5.15/hr (minimum wage in 2004) and got a raise after a year and a half to $5.55/hr.
Minimum wage went up to $6.15/hr, I expected to be paid $6.55/hr because I was no longer a “base employee.” Got my first paycheck for $6.15 with a note that said “congrats on your new wage!” As if returning me to minimum wage was something to be proud of. I asked him about it and he gave me some spiel about how the law was b******t and he was paying me more so I should be happy about it. I quit on the spot.
That was a very early and quick exposure to the fact that business owners are prone to only looking out for their own bottom line. He saw it as an extra $5 he had to pay me each day and couldn’t recognize that it was an insult to make me minimum wage again after literally a tenth of my life at that point putting effort into the job – even if it was technically a raise.
It also taught me to understand that employees will *never* care about that bottom line in the same way the boss does, which eventually made me a better boss because I don’t ask them to.
Image credits: theotherpachman
#42
I was training a temp who decided to quit, told me the agency promised more than our boss offered after converting to full time … The reason the boss gave for not offering the “promised” salary was “PrestigiousYoda doesn’t even make that much, it wouldn’t be fair”. I gave notice shortly after.
Image credits: PrestigiousYoda
#43
Took time off for death of my uncle, a man I considered my second father. He was murdered in prison. My uncle was framed and had all his assets seized when he went to prison. While there the guards watched him die by slowly refusing to provide medical care for a week until he lost consciousness and had to be intubated. He died shortly after.
At the time I was on a two-man team at a Fortune 10 company’s analytics product group. Because he was not my father, mother, sibling, or grandparent I would be provided no bereavement leave. I was also a contractor at that time and was only entitled to 5 days of PTO, most of which I’d already used.
My family being a disorganized mess of people relied on me for planning the funeral. I had asked for a week off to handle this. Most of it unpaid.
Not three days in, I received a phone call from work on my personal cell asking if I could hop on a two hour meeting. Halfway through the meeting, I cracked. When my boss asked why I dropped off I said that I would explain when I returned from being out of office. I spent the next few days back applying to new jobs specifically looking for a manager that respected my boundaries, provided decent healthcare benefits (mental included), and expected nothing more than a 9-5 even if it meant taking a pay cut.
I found that employer relatively quickly. When I put my two weeks in, my old company panicked and the VP had everyone in middle and upper management schedule meetings to have me reconsider. They said it was career suicide. Even offered a 20% raise and Fridays off.
New job paid me 30% more for 50% of the work I used to do. I’ve moved on since then (regrettably) to higher paced work, but my career has done anything but wither away.
Lesson? Don’t ever do contract work. They can fire you at will, force you to work insane hours, and even compel you to change what’s on your LinkedIn to make you less attractive to headhunters. Contract work is for desperate companies looking to hire desperate (or in my case naive) people.
#44
Guy tried making me stay late for the 99 champions league final when I’d explicitly told him I would be leaving at normal time. It was a commission only job. I was young. When he saw me come back to the office and started giving me loads of s**t up close I just said “ok I don’t work here anymore” and walked out. He was very surprised. Thought he had some power over me or something
#45
I am a chef and started a new job as executive Chef for a resort a month before covid shutdown. They kept me on retainer pay for those 6 to 8 weeks which was a great sign for me. Then I got back to work. Just me in the kitchen from 7am to 10pm, not even a dishwasher. 67 days in a row, but that didn’t break me. After two(ish) years, with still no help, I had made through my second summer and had just rolled out another seasonal (Fall) menu. The maintenance man casually started a conversation with me about not knowing what to do during shutdown….”Shutdown?”…”Yea, when we close from November to February.” Well, f**k me, first I’m hearing of it. After doing some investigating, the f*****g owners told every other employee about a “renovation shutdown” but me in early August. This was the third week of October I found out. When I confronted one of them they said they were scared I’d quit if I knew. So I finished my shift (only because I didn’t wanna ruin a wedding) and never came back.
#46
I worked for a radio station in a small market. Town was well known for a binge drinking culture. We had to work unpaid events at a local bar all the time (“but you get an open bar tab!” As if that bought diapers for my kid). One Halloween, we had a costume contest. My boss was wasted so I emcee’d it. A pissed off, drunk listener who didn’t win pushed me and security did nothing so I left. She followed me to my car.
My boss called me in on Monday and YELLED AT ME for “leaving the team.” I’d already told her what happened but she was drunk and forgot. I went to my GM about it and he sided with her… and took away my bonus.
Bye, f*****s.
More radio people should post their stories here. The industry is a joke that treats people like sh**. You guys wouldn’t believe the stories some people have.
#47
I worked in a warehouse for about 5 years. I was one of the few people that knew the software. We were bought out by a larger company and I was laid off in the process. The new company ended up only having a warehouse manager and no other employees so they offered me a job. I was more qualified than the manager and I was training him and saving his a*s daily. Nobody wanted to listen to me because of my age and I was pushed around. One day I had to drive around 400 miles making pickups and deliveries because their manager at another location was afraid to drive their 28ft box truck. I was maybe 22 years old being paid $12/hr. That night after dropping the box truck at my home office my work truck got a flat tire on my way home. At this point it’s around 2am. No spare or jack in the truck and nobody wanted to answer their phones. I left the truck on the side of the highway. Went to work the next day to have my a*s chewed out. I went to lunch and called my wife. I left all my s**t there and she picked me up.
#48
The company I worked for had a “compensation cycle” where your manager would rate your performance on a “bad”, “good”, “above average” and “beyond” scale. To get a promotion you had to be at least above average for a whole year.
So I tried to do that and talked with someone (a coworker/ friend) about hypothetical improvements to the software we were working with. It was across silos and in my mind would have benefited everyone in the company (internal tools). My manager overheard our conversation, told me to focus only on my job and gave me a bad recommendation.
So I said f**k it and left. Best decision of my life as I’m making 3x what I was making there and even have better benefits.
#49
When they called me crazy because I told them I would quit if they didn’t stop talking down to me.
#50
I ran the show for a family education program for about 3.5 years. Handled everything but the money. They refused to switch me from a low hourly to a reasonable salary after asking 3 times. Eventually, about 2 months before our biggest event of the year, I up and quit. Didn’t do any planning, just left a list of reasons why the ceo was the worlds worst boss.
When the clients all got to the event, which was barely organized and significantly below the standard id set for the last 3 years, and realized how bad the program was without me there, most opted to not renew their memberships for the following year. The program crumbled and was shut down within 6 months.
F**k you Mike, you chode sucking prick.
#51
my raging alcoholic egomaniac boss emailed me at noon on a saturday telling me the report i wrote for him (on which only he was listed as the author) was a disaster, even though all of his suggested improvements were objectively wrong. he told me i should check into alcoholics anonymous (and the irony was definitely lost on him) because nobody could possibly do such bad work sober. he also demanded an immediate response and apology (again, at noon on a saturday).
i saved the email as a pdf and still get a good laugh out of it every once in a while. it’s 9 pages long, sprinkled with random words bolded/highlighted/in all caps, riddled with grammatical errors, and just all around an absolute joke.
that guy is a multimillionaire. have never personally met someone less deserving of his success.
#52
I’m 3 years into the job.
I work 11am to ? every day for over a year.
Guaranteed close to 60hrs a week with OT.
It’s Friday night around 9pm and I am 5 minutes away from the office to finish my day of deliveries. My boss calls me and informs me at nearly 10pm that I need to do 4 more runs including the airport which is over an hour round trip. I told him sure I will be there soon. I brought all my personal belongings to my car. Took everything owned by the company into his office, placed it down on his desk, and said “I quit” while promptly walking out.
He proceeded to “joke” out loud by saying “you quit?” Is a sarcastic voice. I saw him scramble out the door as I drove away.
#53
It was a higher end clothing store I dreamt about working at.
Along with other new hires, I went through regular training and a training video. Training was rough. They expected we would be extremely direct with customers and basically fill their carts for them. We picked outfits for customers that *we* wanted to see them in. I was awful at it. But a job is a job, and I was excited about a store discount.
Everything seemed normal until one of the new hires asked me if I knew what we would be getting paid. I realized we weren’t even told what the pay schedule would be.
We ended up finding out it was an “internship” with an opportunity of being fully hired at some point. So I am working for free until you decide to pay me? No thanks.
#54
Last job I quit I quit because I constantly had to operate a whole dock by myself, and I mean completely by myself. I had to check BOLs and scan all items, stage incoming and outgoing materials, put away incoming stuff, load and unload trucks all on my own. I’m talking about 50+ foot trailers too 12+ trucks a night. Finally had enough and just jumped off my forklift mid-unloading a truck and quit on the spot…They had a rough day on the dock that day since they had to call 3 people from other areas in the plant to do my job.
#55
I was an analyst at a Fortune 100 company in a critical role. The role was respected by most people that had an idea of what we did on my team, but the execs just saw us as a “cost” of business, so it was a pressure cooker environment.
Regardless, I busted my a*s and flourished, in a way.
Manager and director put in for a promotion for me, without me asking, after about 1.5 years. VP pulled me in the office, shamed me for only having an AS degree, and told me my generation expects things too quickly and I need to be in the role 3-5 years to even be considered for a promo.
So I tried to stay in company and move to BI. It took about a year to land an interview, due to lack of degree. I Flippin nailed it, though. The BI VP offered me a higher role than I applied for, working with c-level execs at main HQ. I’D “MADE” IT!!!
We worked out salary, move dates, a sign on bonus to help with move, etc. While waiting for final paper offer, my VP found out and had worked at HQ. Called the BI VP’s boss (friend of hers), and shut it down. THEN CALLED ME ON MY PERSONAL CELL FROM HER PERSONAL CELL TO BRAG.
I dumped out 200 resumes that week.
They tried to give me that promotion to appease me. MFs offered me 63k for a senior analyst role in one of the biggest and most expensive cities in America. I took the promo.
Then, I took the first decent job that got me out of there.
I had trained half the staff there, and worked with people of all levels in departments all over the company. I told everyone who asked (and some who didn’t) why I was leaving.
That VP got retired a few months later. I like to think I played a role in that.
Still have friends from there. Went out with a big group of people last year, a few that I’d never met or known, and one asked me why I left. I told her and she went “wait.. YOU’RE THE GUY THAT HAPPENED TO?!?”.
Super satisfying that somebody I had never met had heard my story. It means it spread even after I left.
#56
23, recent grad, moved back home in the pandemic after graduation working at a restaurant I had worked at since I was 14. Pay was great, head expo $15 an hour plus tips. I was averaging $30-50 an hour depending on the night.
My manager was an ex con, ostentatious a*****e. Bragging about cooking dope as a kid and being from the streets. Kind to act friendly to you but snap on a moments notice. Also took to flirting with the younger female employees despite having a wife and kid.
Christmas Eve rolls around and I’m booked for a double pending relief from the 4:00 shift lead. She’s 19, lives 45 mins away. I show up at 10am, prep, set up the line, and get hit right away. I’m slammed from 11-3 with no relief. Christmas Eve is usually busy during the day but dies off into the evening so I’m thinking I can get to go home.
Around 3:30 I’m taking a “break” which usually meant shoving some fries into my mouth when 4:00 texts me to tell me manager told her to stay home. I dropped everything that I was doing and called him. He goes “she lives far away and it’s Christmas Eve”. I said I’ve worked here for almost 10 years. If you don’t have the balls to tell your employees to come in, consider this my two weeks.
Dude says “alright bet” drives an hour to the restaurant screaming at me because he has to come in on his day off. Says we can handle it in the parking lot. I told him he was a petulant child and walked. They didn’t have an expo and he had to work the line on a slow Christmas Eve shift.
#57
I asked about a deserved promotion and my boss was surprised I’d even considered it. It wasn’t being passed over for a promotion that drove me out, but the idea that she found it so farfetched an idea that she acted in shock and surprise that I’d even have the gall to ask.
#58
Worked overnight for 6 years, developed a problem with falling asleep at the wheel (wasn’t getting much sleep due to having to give my diabetic cat regular meals and insulin, plus general trying to sleep during the day). Management was initially willing to work with me on shorter shifts. My manager got let go due to covid cut-backs and her boss temporarily took over the scheduling. We had a call out and he demanded that I work a solo shift (minimum 10 hours). I knew that being told to do this was a death sentence for myself or worse, that I may fall asleep at the wheel and kill someone else. I quit via email 15 minutes before my shift. Had the best sleep of my life and my daily nightmares stopped literally overnight. Last I heard about the manager is that he was let go in another round of cut-backs.
#59
I had been dreading coming into work most days, but after three months on a Sunday evening, I just stared at the ceiling until Monday morning, and after no sleep I walked into work and quit. The amount of relief was immense. I then immediately went and applied to a couple restaurants and served for about a year and a half while I figured out my next move it was a great time.
#60
I was working 60 hours a week in a bar. I’d booked a weekend off four months in advance with the duty manager, when the weekend came I was rotad on. I told the big manager and she said I should’ve booked it with her, we had an argument about the purpose of management. I went away for the weekend.
When I got back I was scheduled for my contractual minimum of 16 hours which I couldn’t afford to live on.
So I’m working and I’m already pissed off. I’m on shift with one dude and one manager. The manager has been sat at a tablet on a break since I arrived an hour ago, he’s only supposed to get half an hour and we’re busy. He finally stands up and I’m relieved, but he walks over to a till, orders himself some food and sits down again.
I check with the other barman that he’s ok with me walking out, and as soon as the manager’s food arrives I go up and tell him that he’s taking the p**s with his break and with me being only getting 16 hours a week as punishment is become a hostile work environment and I’m leaving. I hand him my fob and leave.
#61
I was working part time at Kroger as a meat cutter for somewhere around minimum wage so I was looking around for another job.
I interviewed at an independent market and told the meat manager at the interview that I could only work days. I had been fired the year before for not entirely clear reasons from a similar kind of place. I wasn’t ready to give up my s****y but dependable job at Kroger just yet and they don’t allow you to request day shifts (or really any kind of permanent schedule).
So anyway, I told him no hard feelings if he can’t accomodate that (it’s just sort of the nature of grocery stores, you usually get stuck with the night shift as a new hire) but that’s just what I’m looking for. He told me it wouldn’t be a problem.
And then every week, when he posted the schedule, I would have 1-2 night shifts. I would point it out, he would say he forgot and he’d fix it. This went on for almost two months.
So Memorial Day weekend, we’re crazy busy, he posts the schedule, I immediately stop what I’m doing to check it. Four nights, one day. I pull the sheet down and chase after him. He doesn’t even say anything, just cross the four nights off and walks away.
I walked into the back, dropped my apron and went right out the back door. It was a beautiful summer day. I had a very nice chat with the store owner about the weather and holiday plans and then went home.
#62
I can’t do math in my head. not even simple math. Sorry ?♀️ I worked at a thrift store as a cashier and the customer asked me for a discount on a piece of clothing that had stains. I told her, “I’ll have to show this to the manager since I cannot authorize discounts without permission. I’ll be right back.” I go to the back, manager says “I don’t really see any stains but go ahead and give her 20% off.” No problem.
Go out there and let the customer know, “we can give you 20% off the ($4.99) item, would you still like to purchase it?”
She asked me how much it would be, I told her I’d have to ring it up on the register and I can get a price.
Then she went off on me, asking me why I can’t do simple math in my head, telling me that I’m stupid and making comments about thrift store cashiers and how we are all beneath her and how can they hire people so dumb.
She left the store without buying the shirt.
I was 21, in college, working full time @ $12/hr.
I quit in that moment, feeling stupid for not knowing how to do the discount in my head, but also I was not going to keep being disrespected. This wasn’t the first time a customer was rude to me but this was the meanest one so far.
Now that I think about it… why couldn’t this customer do the math in their head?
#63
Worked in a hotel doing AV work, was told by boss we wouldn’t get yearly raises. I was working 60 hour weeks on a 30k salary, I quit 1 month after his announcement of 0 raises or bonuses
#64
1% pay rise, top of pay scale for roll blah blah blah.
Made company some 900k profit. This is before inflation hit 50%+ but we all knew it was on the way.
CEO takes 750,000,000 bonus on top of 70,000,000 salary in the news next day.
Was the final nail. They didn’t even try to keep me. Ended up costing them at least 2m in lost revenue ✌️
#65
I was so burned out. It was my first job and they kept scheduling morning and the next day all night. I worked in a large retail store. Anyways I wanted to go to the bathroom so I was leaving and they called me over and over again to open even though there are other people. I think they did that because I was the youngest. Mind you the managers were mean and sharp toned. I was done went on break and quit for good. I did have to awkwardly pick up my paycheck and hear the ‘I’m disappointed.’ I’m like Idc. I’m over this place. Lol moved on from retail.
Image credits: Consistent-Trash-794
#66
I had “I quit” moments at a couple of jobs.
1 was after months of the manager harassing me and making my life a living hell by accusing me of sexual and romantic relations with coworkers (which never ever happened), threatening to fire me because I was sick for 1 DAY after working there for almost a year without missing a single day, and there were definitely some other things… he started following me to the bathroom. I proceeded to have a PTSD and anxiety-fuelled breakdown, realized he was slowly killing me, and I quit.
After working at a place for 5 months and being yelled at and berated by coworkers constantly where I’d sit in the corner and cry and contemplate life, 1 of them told me I should just quit… so I did. After I quit, the boss asked me why, I told him what I’d been going through, and they got in trouble. XD So, a small win there. 😉
#67
I was working for this small company, they did not keep their word (agreed pay rise after 6mo) and behaved chaotically. I had to stay that as I had no unemployment allowance (EU, you need to work at least 2 years to be eligible – I was working for a year only since my last unemployment) and I actually learned quite a lot which helped me to land much better jobs.
Anyways, we had a problematic client (consultant job) where the sales guy promised things that I couldn’t deliver. My boss sent a meeting invite at 17:30 for the next day at 8:30. I worked either from 8 to 17 or 9 to 18 depending on whether I went for a run in the morning – we had to be in the office from 9-15, rest of the hours was up to you. So as it happens he sent the invite when I wasn’t working and the other day I came to the office at 9. They were kinda expecting you should be checking your emails outside working hours, while paying 20-30% than other companies (it was a senior position)
We had the meeting later in that day (the sales guy wasn’t in the office also) and boss just got angry with the overall situation, threw his notebook on the ground and started screaming at the both of us, saying “I schedule a meeting and you don’t come” among other things. During his angry fit my mind just switched to f**k this mode, I quit in two weeks when I had a new job offer.
#68
i got a job at a laundromat when i was 17. i didn’t know what my ss number was at the time and my boss said “that’s fine, just memorize the last four digits so you can sign in to the system” and i was like alright. First shift, I come in, the lady I was working with (pretty sure it was his wife) asked me what my full ss number was and i said i don’t know, i only know the last four digits. then she calls up my boss and hands the phone to me and he proceeded to scream at me about how he told me to have it memorized in full when he 100% did not. so I texted him that i quit the next day lol.
#69
I was depressed working on a production line for 8 years with nobody speaking English around me, 1 day I was just staring into the abyss in a complete daze and supervisor walked up to me and asked if I was crying I wiped the tears off my face and just walked out didn’t say I quit or goodbye to anyone
#70
I worked at a place for 15 years and for years I was just overworked and underpaid. Finally I started advocating for myself, and I was told your raise is coming, we’re hiring help, your raise is coming, we’re hiring help, your raise is coming, we’re hiring help. They did finally bring in some help and the people who hired her never asked me what we needed or anything they just brought somebody in and she was completely incompetent but she was another set of hands. Then after about two months, they decided to let her go. Still no raise and back to where I was two years prior, I said I’m done.
#71
Worked at a grocery store in the grocery pick up department. Our store switched milk distributors and that company was behind on their orders so we didn’t get milk for nearly a week. But because it impacted our ability to fulfill orders, we grocery store employees were blamed for not having milk on the shelf. Yes they blamed us grocery store employees for an independent companys problems. I was done. I knew I could never “win” and they would always blame us and tell us we weren’t good enough or working hard enough.
#72
When our district manager walked in and started yelling at me because my name tag had popped off and we were super busy so I hadn’t fixed it (mind you he refused to let me put it on my hat even tho somebody higher up than him was okay with it. My chest made it pop off easier) but two other people that day were in things that were so wrong they should have gone home to change (the wrong shirt and another had unsafe shoes on)
This was after months of him nonstop being overly critical of me because he didn’t agree that family should work together even though he was just a fill in dm (our regular one had taken leave because she was very sick at the time) and our franchise owner was completely okay with it because he had several stores where family worked together.
I set my headset on the counter said I’m not doing this today and walked out.
#73
Managing an auto parts store. Worked way too many hours because my assistant was with the company long than I had been alive and didn’t respect me. My boss did nothing to help as I wrote him up, my assistant would b***h to my boss and I’d have a talking to. Had another guy who had been there 16 ish years who was lazier than s**t. Then he started to get health issues. Got approved for FMLA and got worse. Never knew if he was coming to work or not until the day of. I had documentation for him getting points non fmla time. Had him on his final written and some how HR lost everything. This was the 4th HR group in the 9 years I worked at this place. Those were angering issues but the icing on the cake was how they handled my mom’s passing. Because my assistant was worthless I still had to stick around and get a schedule done for next 2 weeks. I went home to see her for a few days, she passed. Went back to work for a day, even though I shouldn’t have then off for a week after that. There’s more details of stupid s**t prior. And then… when i put in my week and half notice my boss came down to talk to me in person. He asked what I wanted and I told him. He laughed at me when I said how much money I wanted as a base salary. Said you think highly of yourself? I made that store a powerhouse for them. Now I work for a customer who I serviced and everyone tells me how they want me back even 3 years later.
#74
Working as a bus driver and at pizza hut, what was supposed to be part time. I was scheduled everyday except Sunday. Boss never bothered to think I was working at or almost at 40 hours driving a school bus, and then another 20-30 there each week. Get up at 5am for bus driving. Split shift meaning it was 5-8am, 11-1pm and 2-5:30pm. Then to pizza hut from 6-10 or 11pm, rinse repeat and continue. All my free time was spent sleeping constantly.
I had an incident at the bus job that got my brain going, however being that sleep deprived means it took my brain a good 2 weeks to fully process my thoughts. I was about to take another 2 orders one night, and just went “what am I doing? I’m so f*****g tired” told my shift manager I quit, and then left after cashing out.