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malicious compliance

'The administrative tasks piled up, not that Karen noticed': Assistant manager insists employee 'print an MP4' file, employee spends hours completing her task

'The administrative tasks piled up, not that Karen noticed': Assistant manager insists employee 'print an MP4' file, employee spends hours completing her task

What would we ever do without receptionists ? These people keep the world running by doing all the organization and planning that keeps businesses afloat. CEOs and CFOs get the fancy titles and get to spend their time taking clients to glamorous lunches. They aren't the ones truly running the company, though. They may have the look of a person in power, but you know who's really in charge? The person who unlocks the doors each morning, keeps the office full of food and coffee, handles phone cal…
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‘Management finally caved in’: Management refuses to pay for loyal employee's car repairs until company goes down in flames, then employee quits

‘Management finally caved in’: Management refuses to pay for loyal employee's car repairs until company goes down in flames, then employee quits

Why be loyal when you can just quit? One employee gave their all to a company that had no intention of completing the yin with yang, and that lack of intention showed up in their refusal to pay for the employee's car repairs. Why would a company pay for their employee's car repairs, you ask? It's a fair question. Let's start at the beginning. OP was working as an IT project manager in Korea for an SMB. As the point of contact for the majority of the division's clients, OP had to travel a lot by…
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'She was holding the folder and looking confused and scared': Customer insists the DMV's 'grumpiest, most difficult employee' be fired on the spot

'She was holding the folder and looking confused and scared': Customer insists the DMV's 'grumpiest, most difficult employee' be fired on the spot

This story is a peek into the a life of a DMV manager and her least friendly employee. If you've ever been to the DMV before, I'm so sorry. They're usually one giant room full of chairs and workers behind numbered desks. As a customer, you show up ready to renew a license or passport, and then it's time to wait. It's best to bring a book or a crossword puzzle and just expect that you may spend several hours there.
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'I'm giving people 75-99% discounts': Retail employee saves customers $400+ on prescription glasses, getting payback against a manager who denied her a promotion

As we've all seen over the weekend, because of all of the Black Friday and Cyber Monday deals being shoved down our throats, sometimes companies need to slash their prices in order to make a sale. Discounts drive the consumer populous mad with desire and even if they're only saving 10% with our coupon, most shoppers will stop at nothing to get it redeemed.
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'You're on thin ice': Small town council complains about resident's dandelions and garden, so resident gets farm animals to 'mow the lawn'

'You're on thin ice': Small town council complains about resident's dandelions and garden, so resident gets farm animals to 'mow the lawn'

When you live in a small town, word gets around, and if you have beef with the city council, you had better giddy up for a long ride… of malicious compliance. One woman took on her HOA (that wasn't really an HOA, but more of a city council of sorts, as they were a small town) when they came with multiple complaints on different occasions about her property. The issue this woman had was not with their complaints, but rather with the fact that they did not bug any other of the neighborhood reside…
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'They emailed me in a panic, begging me to stop': Intern sends dozens of emails to lawyers after boss refuses to let them use a flash drive

'They emailed me in a panic, begging me to stop': Intern sends dozens of emails to lawyers after boss refuses to let them use a flash drive

Interns are allowed to make mistakes over and over and over again. It's kind of just part of the job. As a young person in college, you want to get some valuable experience in your career field with an internship. But since you are still in college, and have probably never worked in an office setting before, you're just bound to mess things up. At least at this point in your not-yet-existing career, you're allowed to make a few mistakes in the name of learning and gaining experience. This perso…
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‘You get what you asked for’: Doctor gives employee 5 days off every month for 1 year after company changes attendance policy

‘You get what you asked for’: Doctor gives employee 5 days off every month for 1 year after company changes attendance policy

Attendance policy changes on the whim of every company once in a while, and HR may or may not fail to inform team leads of the modifications… The problem with that is when attendance policy changes and employees are unaware , they could get written up for not adhering to it, which in my book, is totally unfair. In this case, a worker who was employed at a Pharmaceutical manufacturing company for over 5 years had no idea that the company's attendance policy changed. During the 5 years, the worke…
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‘Good luck replacing me’: Senior machinist gets fired for 'doing his job too well', company ends up hiring 5 employees to replace him

‘Good luck replacing me’: Senior machinist gets fired for 'doing his job too well', company ends up hiring 5 employees to replace him

‘If you don’t like it, find another job', said a grouchy manager through clenched teeth, certain that his employee would back down like a pup from a wolf, but to his dismay, this machinist did not take the bait. ‘Good luck replacing me’, said the machinist, grabbing his things and taking off, not forgetting to inform the manager that he would take ALL his accrued PTO & vacation time for the next 2 weeks. This is what happens when companies hire managers without a day of experience. A machinist…
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'You should fire us!.. Ok': Freight company calls client's bluff and fires them as a client

In the world of client service, there's a common belief: go to any length—great lengths—to keep all clients satisfied, under contract, and coming back for more. Most managers frown deeply upon contract cancellation notices, forcing workers to submit justification for cancellation along with what their work group did to try and retain the customer. At the end of the day, the number of contracts signed versus the number of contracts lost is the only metric that's being tracked, so that's the only…
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'Nothing more, nothing less': PhD advisor corrects student's mistakes ahead of presentation, student rejects corrections, advisor maliciously complies

'Nothing more, nothing less': PhD advisor corrects student's mistakes ahead of presentation, student rejects corrections, advisor maliciously complies

Some people don't like to be told that all their work is wrong, even if it's the truth. We have all been there in some way or another, whether it was in school or at home or at work. At some point, some more knowledgeable person probably took a look at all your hard work and pointed out an error that effectively rejects all the hours of time and effort you put into the project. It's an inevitable part of learning and growing up, and it can be especially hard to take this news if you lead with y…
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Update: 'While I could have argued... I had a better plan': Neighbor warns college kid that if her lawn isn't mowed, she'll report them to HOA

Update: 'While I could have argued... I had a better plan': Neighbor warns college kid that if her lawn isn't mowed, she'll report them to HOA

Common sense isn't gifted to every person. Sometimes things will seem so crystal clear to you, and so obvious, that you can't understand how anyone could mess it up. But without common sense, people do dumb things. This woman in particular had a bone to pick with her neighbor, and I bet you can guess why her neighbor was refusing to mow her lawn for her. While some people really dislike mowing the lawn , others find it cathartic. If you can listen to music or a podcast over the crazy loud sound…
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'Read your lease! We were doing you a favor': Renter tries to leave apartment, management insists they pay fees hidden in the lease

'Read your lease! We were doing you a favor': Renter tries to leave the 'worst apartment,' management insists they pay fees hidden in the lease

Signing a lease for an apartment sight unseen is taking quite the risk. But this person, u/aalilyah, was living in Los Angeles, and couldn't get to New York to see the place before moving in. The OP then realized their new home wasn't as great as they'd hoped.
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officer military military malicious compliance malicious compliance navy army - 23159813

'SIR is reserved for those you respect': Commander demands respect, petty officer tells him he hasn't earned it

You can't command respect that you haven't earned, and just the mere fact that you're someone's superior doesn't mean you've earned anything. After all, there are plenty of people in positions of authority who have achieved that position for all the wrong reasons—usually because another person with a misunderstanding of leadership has granted it to them. You'll come across plenty of these authority figures in your life who wield their authority with impunity, demanding respect when they don't d…
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'He tells us we are trying to nickel and dime him': Autobody workers add oil to customer's car for a small fee, internet divided over the customers' reaction

'He tells us we are trying to nickel and dime him': Auto body workers add oil to customer's car for a small fee, internet divided over the customers' reaction

These auto body workers were surprised that one customer was throwing a fit over a pretty minimal fee … it was just $5. Depending on who you ask, $5 could be almost no money, or it could be quite a lot. If you're trying to buy a meal for your whole family with $5, it won't get you very far. But if you've lost your wallet and a bus ticket home costs $3, that crumpled $5 bill in your pocket is a life saver. Plus, in the grand scheme of things, spending an extra $5 at an auto body shop is just a d…
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'We aren't the problem': Family members accused of always being late, insist they will be on time, malicious compliance ensues

'We aren't the problem': Family members accused of always being late, insist they will be on time, malicious compliance ensues

Rallying family members for group gatherings can take more mental energy than taxes, apartment hunting, and scheduling your next doctor appointment combined. Everyone has that one family member who makes planning these kinds of social occasions way more difficult than it needs to be. It's like rallying a whole troop of soldiers, except really you're just rallying one infuriating human who has no regard for other people's time and schedules. I'm all for moving at your own pace, but not at the ex…
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'DO NOT attempt to login': Employee told to wait for green light due to tech issues, never receives confirmation, gets paid to do nothing

'DO NOT attempt to login': Employee told to wait for green light due to tech issues, never receives confirmation, gets paid to do nothing

There is nothing like a technical problem at work that allows you to have the whole day to yourself until it's resolved. Whenever a situation like this arises, it's important to luxuriate in the moment. This means you can finally get your act together. You can vacuum the apartment, do laundry, and cook yourself a nice meal. Or you can lie down on the couch for hours on end and finally binge the new episodes of The Crown . Who cares? The world is your oyster, and it's not like you're shirking an…
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