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malicious compliance

'She is very happy with the results until she reaches ours': Customer service worker gets thrown under the bus by "unprofessional" boss, holds a grudge for two years

'She is very happy with the results until she reaches ours': Customer service worker gets thrown under the bus by "unprofessional" boss, holds a grudge for two years

Giving your overworked employees even more work: what could possibly go wrong? This person, u/TheMightyGalah, found out exactly what happens, but they were glad to watch their boss get her comeuppance. Good managers will be beloved by their team. You can tell when someone's an exceptional supervisor by the way their team talks about them: do they dread that manager seeing their work and results, or do they look to the manager for support and help? Some managers don't really manage much at all.…
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Manager refuses to reimburse client for wrongful charge, client cleverly complies with their no refunds ‘rule’

Manager refuses to reimburse client for wrongful charge, client cleverly complies with their no refunds ‘rule’

Exhausted from work and hunting for the perfect meal to satisfy your munchies, you might not bother looking over the bill to ensure you were not billed more than is needed. However, there are times when you do notice, and what do you do then? Do you give up and brush it off as simply another example of something that ‘is not worth your aggravation’ or do you fight for a refund? The story below is an account of a clever consumer. The original poster (OP) relates how he managed to outwit the near…
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'No shorts allowed in this heat? Sure!': Guy finds loophole in company's strict dress code policy, 'skirting' around the issue

'No shorts allowed in this heat? Sure!': Guy finds loophole in company's strict dress code policy, 'skirting' around the issue

Why do some bosses think that wearing a suit in exceptionally hot weather is a sign of professionalism? The reality is it is nothing more than a silly rule that makes employees look and feel miserable. What about employees who have to walk to work or who come into an environment with poor air conditioning? They are going to sweat like crazy and ultimately will come across as anything but put-together and professional. Let this story serve as yet another argument for employers to focus less on h…
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Manager cancels company's social benefit to boost sales, employees foil plan and outmaneuver the managerial team

Manager cancels company's social benefit to boost sales, employees foil plan and outmaneuver the managerial team

The business world is calculated and vicious. Whether on purpose or not, there are always some who want to take advantage of your hardship and struggle. The story below is an account of a frustrated employee. For a significant duration, the original poster (OP) was employed by the same company. The social perks that the company provided, such as the number of vacation days that could be carried over to the following year, were among its most notable benefits. Every worker received a total of th…
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new tech employees mess up and try to cover it up, other employees call them out on their sneaky behavior and it backfires on the new tech employees

‘Crashed the site’: New tech leaders try to cover up a massive mistake by blocking employees from downloading software, employees retaliate beautifully

Own up to your mistakes or things can get very messy!
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Company refuses to reimburse employee's work travel expenses, claiming he spent too much, prompting employee's $1000 retaliation and resignation

Company refuses to reimburse employee's work travel expenses, claiming he spent too much, prompting employee's $1000 retaliation and resignation

The majority of workers fantasize about taking business trips. You are free to follow your own career path and see different cultures around the globe. Nonetheless, when an employee travels only for work, it is customary, if not required, for the company to cover the necessary costs to ensure the worker enjoys a pleasant stay. So, how would you respond if the business declined to cover necessities such as food? The story below is an account of a frustrated worker. The original poster (OP) descr…
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workplace discussion workplace-stories jobs CTO manager job malicious compliance work coworkers ceo managers workplace workplace malicious compliance employment in the workplace - 35915013

CEO's return to office plan is upended by CTO when CEO refuses to follow their own rules: 'Guess who wasn't there? Yeah, the CEO'

“Rules for me but not for thee” is never more accurate than when dealing with C-suite executives and their return-to-office plans.
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'You're doing thousands of pounds worth of damage': School caretaker leaves hundreds of visitors waiting after being told he's not allowed to open the gate manually

'You're doing thousands of pounds worth of damage': School caretaker leaves hundreds of visitors waiting after being told he's not allowed to open the gate manually

This caretaker had to wield that phrase that should be a warning to any boss: “Can I have that in writing, please?” As an employer, that should immediately make you do a double take. It should make you think, “Hmm, why does my employee want to document this order?” Perhaps they've already had some reservations about it, or they see something you've missed. No matter, though, because that type of boss dislikes listening to employees. They think that they're superior in their role, and that their…
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'Call me on my days off? Guess you're paying me': Energy employee gets even with boss who won't stop bugging them on their days off

'Call me on my days off? Guess you're paying me': Energy employee gets even with boss who won't stop bugging them on their days off

One worker was accustomed to working 8 days on, then having 6 days off. That sounds like a pretty sweet gig if you can get it! By the 8th day of work, you must be very ready for a break, but you could plan all sorts of fun activities during those 6 days off in a row. This person, u/WyoPeeps, was actually trying to go “off grid” during one of their 6-day breaks. But their boss was continually interrupting them. When that happens, it makes you feel like you've sold your soul to the company. How c…
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'I was tired of the unfairness of it all': Call center worker decreases their output by 80% after workplace changes pay incentives

'I was tired of the unfairness of it all': Call center worker decreases their output by 80% after workplace changes pay incentives

At this person's job, they were expected to make at least 120 calls per day. They're used to making more phone calls in a single day than I've made in my whole life. Despite all that hard work, their boss doesn't seem to appreciate how difficult it is to generate revenue off of them. At this person's job, they were expected to contact people who had debts , and try to get that person to pay them off. As you might imagine, the people who will answer a debt collector's call are usually the people…
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 Micromanager’s criticism backfires as junior employee withdraws support, prompting boss’s desperate plea for help

Micromanager’s criticism backfires as junior employee withdraws support, prompting boss’s desperate plea for help

Every business has a different hierarchical structure that is exclusive to it. The account provided in the story below comes from a former student. The original poster (OP) was a university student majoring in English. During her time as a student, she launched the department newsletter and helped with the editing and publication of the annual literary journal. She significantly improved the newsletter and the magazine, but since she was still viewed as a junior editor, she was expected to perf…
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workplace discussion workplace-stories jobs job malicious compliance work workplace workplace malicious compliance employment in the workplace - 35915269

IT Manager gets fired after company is forced to send worker their equipment when they're banned from taking it home: '[The] IT manager was nowhere to be seen. Turns out, she had been demoted'

When it comes to working from home or working in the office, a lot of employers insist that their staff work from the office—even when they could easily do their tasks from home. Especially when their work involves handling sensitive information which means the devices need to be kept safe and secure. Still, what constitutes “sensitive” is a grey area and when you're a middle manager of a retail operation there's probably a good chance that the information you're handling really isn't all that…
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landlord malicious compliance malicious-compliance-reddit tenant landlords bad landlord renting - 35875589

Landlord demands access to home to paint and sand, tenant makes them regret it with loud grating music: '[My] landlord tried to strong-arm me into letting him into the home'

It's never a good sign when your errant and aloof landlord suddenly takes a keen interest in shaping the place up. In almost every instance, it's likely that this means you're going to be looking for a new place pretty soon as they're either aiming to move back in themselves, renting the place to a relative—or even selling the place and cashing up. They probably won't divulge this to you directly, fearing that advance notice will lose them their income (—you). In the meantime though, there will…
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recruit sergeant tech support talesfromtechsupport commander malicious compliance navy technology military it commanding officer IT guy army military malicious compliance grunt - 35875845

NCO orders Air Force Information Manager to track their completed jobs, quickly abandoned when results stack in their favor: 'I had over [6 times] the jobs'

There's something about stories of time in the military that just really tick all boxes. For one thing, you have archetypical authoritarian figures aplenty who have a very real and absolute authority over their subordinates, the kind of power that a overstepping assistant retail manager or wizened doctor's office receptionist would salivate buckets over. The thing is, in this type of environment, you're going to be ordered to do things that you don't agree with or that just plain old don't make…
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Admin worker complies with snarky Karen coworker's request to receive all documentations, overwhelms her with paperwork: '[I] ended up with a stack of over 1,500 pages'

Admin worker complies with snarky Karen coworker's request to receive all documentation, overwhelms her with paperwork: '[I] ended up with a stack of over 1,500 pages'

No one needs that much paperwork! This admin worker relayed a story from earlier in their career when a snarky Karen coworker started to complain about “missing documents.” She would ultimately come to regret that she ever made a complaint in the first place. Essentially, it was the Redditor's job to follow a document distribution matrix model to ensure that all departments within their oil terminal company received the necessary paperwork regarding Bills of Lading. Now, the Redditor had been w…
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'I see the tow truck arrive and leave with the CFO's very, very precious Corvette': Secretary decides to follow conflicting instructions between their two bosses

'I see the tow truck arrive and leave with the CFO's very, very precious Corvette': Secretary decides to follow conflicting instructions between their two bosses

A couple of corporate bigwigs have gotten into the habit of only speaking to each other through their secretary. Their secretary isn't even supposed to have that job… they've just gotten themselves intertwined in the workplace drama between their different bosses. Up next, these HOAs have some really ridiculous rules that have tenants rolling their eyes, like one person who was informed, “ Your mailbox isn't shiny enough ."
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