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micromanager

'I decline, do it yourself': Overworked employee quits after dealing with upper management's double standards

'I decline, do it yourself': Overworked employee quits after dealing with upper management's double standards

I think that people only choose to become pettish when they are pushed to the brink. But if you ask me, the tale below makes a somewhat abrupt shift from magnificence to pettiness, leaving me astounded by the management team's lack of professionalism and arrogance. But instead of taking my word for it, let me give you a quick rundown of the events so you can be the judge. The story goes like this: OP says he has been looking for work for a while, therefore he is thrilled to be hired. However, a…
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'If you hire her, I'll quit': Employee terminates job candidate's offer after finding out the candidate is her old boss

'If you hire her, I'll quit': Employee terminates job candidate's offer after finding out the candidate is her old boss

One thought consistently haunts my brain, and that is you never know who might end up being your boss in the future… Karen from accounting who you suspect has taken your lunch at least seven times? You never know. It's not like upper management consists of the brightest crayons in the box… The proof is in the pudding with that one. This employee shared her own micromanager horror story on Reddit and explained the various ways in which her manager would make her feel like NOTHING she did was rig…
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'Drop everything now': Manager's micromanaging demand backfires after he interrupts an employee who is busy working on CEO's task

'Drop everything now': Manager's micromanaging demand backfires after he interrupts an employee who is busy working on CEO's task

Imagine you are sitting in your office at your own desk, minding your own business, when in storms your manager, unannounced, tells you to 'drop everything now' and immediately take care of a 'very important' task he gives you, which ends up being not very important at all. It shouldn't be hard to picture, as this is what managers are best known for… This manager was especially good at micromanaging his employees, and he wasn't even that high up on the food chain, so where he got all his confid…
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‘I'm leaving, good luck with the holiday rush': Senior employee quits after getting written up on his day off; boss backpedals

‘I'm leaving, good luck with the holiday rush': Senior employee quits after getting written up on his day off; boss backpedals

Coming to help in on your day off is like doing an angel's work, and bosses should be appreciative and not take it for granted. But upper management always finds a reason to complain, and they often feel entitled to employees' time, even when they aren't supposed to be working. This employee named Steve was probably a little too good at his job, and despite not being paid enough, he put all his effort into making the workplace better, even going as far as to come to help out in on his day off.…
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'You want more details, here you go': IT team complies with micromanaging coworker's request to provide ‘details' for new system update; turns out 120 pages long

'You want more details, here you go': IT team complies with micromanaging coworker's request to provide ‘details' for new system update; turns out 120 pages long

Some people are blessed with micromanaging coworkers who don't want them to get ahead and will go as far as to actively attempt to make them look bad so that they will stay in the same position for years, if not forever. That allows these mini micromanagers to get what they want, whether it's a promotion, a good reputation, or simple satisfaction that other people are as miserable as they are. If I had a penny for every time I met someone at work who was keen to throw others under the bus… This…
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'We can't work like this': Employees team up after boss docks 15 minutes pay from worker for being 1 minute late; productivity crumbles

'We can't work like this': Employees team up after boss docks 15 minutes pay from worker for being 1 minute late; productivity crumbles

When a boss tries to swing his weight around his employees, things can go south pretty quickly. One boss who was especially into micromanaging decided that if his workers were 1 minute late, then he would dock 15 minutes of their pay. He believed that this would lead to more productivity. Maybe he learned this approach in one of those faulty 'be a boss' courses, or maybe he took notes from his own former boss, but either way, this kind of thing is not gonna fly with construction workers. Trying…
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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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‘I’m the boss, you do what I say': Coworker micromanages employees until they walk out on her, leaving her to finish project by herself

‘I’m the boss, you do what I say': Coworker micromanages employees until they walk out on her, leaving her to finish project by herself

If you have ever had the pleasure of being micromanaged by a coworker who thought their presence in the office was a mere blessing, then you know the meaning of the saying, 'I saw red'. I think it's generally impossible to avoid working with at least one person throughout a span of 5 years who has a god complex, but maybe I've just been unlucky. In any case, this story is about a team of employees who were deeply entangled in a work project with such a coworker, and it did not end well… that is…
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‘We can do it tomorrow… when I’m being paid': Employee challenges boss by refusing to work unpaid overtime, boss calls HR on employee but gets fired instead

‘We can do it tomorrow… when I’m being paid': Employee challenges boss by refusing to work unpaid overtime, boss calls HR on employee but gets fired instead

You know you're in trouble when your boss calls you into a ‘formal meeting’, especially if you've had some recent beef with them. So many companies don't have their employees' backs, so it's nice and refreshing to read about this particular case that actually has a happy ending. One employee, u/nerdfury83, shared their story on Reddit, which included a micromanager and her failed tactics to get OP in trouble. OP enjoyed their work up until they got a new manager, who was a little bit of a contr…
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'You gave him too much overtime... you're fired’: Micromanager gets fired after forcing worker to work huge amounts of overtime at odd hours, that resulted in big bills for the company

'You gave him too much overtime... you're fired’: Micromanager gets fired after forcing worker to work huge amounts of overtime at odd hours, that resulted in big bills for the company

Some bosses have such low self esteem that they need to push their workers to see their ‘worth’, and you know what happens when people try too hard… they get the opposite results they would expect. That is exactly the case for this young micromanager who OP literally called ‘Babyboss’ in their post. The OP was very valued by their company because they had specialized education, and a deep understanding of a certain subject that was not disclosed in the post. I assume the subject of the work was…
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‘I put my key on the counter and walked out’: Bakery worker gets back at micromanaging owner, quits on ‘sandwich day’, leaving boss to make hundreds of sandwiches by himself

‘I put my key on the counter and walked out’: Bakery worker gets back at micromanaging owner, quits on ‘sandwich day’, leaving boss to make hundreds of sandwiches by himself

Working at a bakery is a dream come true for some, and honestly, what is not to like? The place smells like a literal heaven, and you get unlimited pastries. I might be exaggerating the ‘dream come true part’, because although the latter is true, there is still the pesky issue of the actual work. It can get repetitive, and the pay isn't great (in other words, don't expect to retire early), and to top it all off, you have annoying customers who have obviously never worked a day in their life, an…
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reddit accounting work beancounters working manager micromanager boss travel traveling traveling-salesman salesman sales business business-trip trip malicious-compliance

'It cost the company $10,000': Thrifty salesman scores luxurious business trips after the beancounters nitpick his travel choices

Sensible employees are burdened by sensible choices. It's the compulsory reaction of the working class to choose an affordable option versus an expensive one, so when a traveling salesman is faced with a frugal travel choice and a lavish one, they're most likely to pick the cheaper option. However, because company policy isn't always so practical, sometimes the rule-following beancounters come after you for the most reasonable of choices.
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'Being micromanaged...was not something that we were interested in': Small business trucking company lets client of 50 years go

'Being micromanaged...was not something that we were interested in': Small business trucking company fires client of 50 years over their rep's demanding attitude

Ask and you shall receive. When this company representative decided to make empty threats, I'm sure he thought it would make him look tough and professional. Instead, it backfired spectacularly on him. This malicious compliance story takes place at a small family-run company that specialized in trucking. This person knew that relationships with their clients were important to the company's long term success. So when they encountered another business's representative who rubbed them the wrong wa…
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'You are not allowed to clock out': Micromanaging boss chews out employee for clocking out early, employee maliciously complies and gets extra pay

'You are not allowed to clock out': Micromanaging boss chews out employee for clocking out early, employee maliciously complies and gets extra pay

Micromanagers need to be careful about what they wish for. In theory, they tend to demand things from their employees that are conducive to productivity. However, most of the time, it's really about asserting authority for no good reason other than some good old-fashioned ego-stroking. This manager chewed out an employee for allegedly not getting approval before they clocked out, even though of course, the manager was incorrect and the employee had done everything they were supposed to do. But…
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sales salesman work boss manager micromanager micromanaging reddit malicous-compliance broken reddit-thread

'This guy generates $1M+ in sales': High-performing salesman requests a replacement for a $15 computer part; boss refuses until it's ‘completely broken’, salesman retaliates by smashing his equipment

Top performing employees deserve top performing equipment. Any successful businessman knows that a company is only as strong as its heavy hitters, so why is it that micromanaging bosses are so obsessed with pinching pennies to save mere morsels on the sales floor when they could potentially be risking missions in losses?
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'Either you're with me, or against me': Micromanager gets fired after she won't let staff workers hire temps

'Either you're with me, or against me': Micromanager gets fired after she refuses to let staff workers hire temps

As a new boss, this person assumed she already knew everything there was to know about her new role . Unfortunately for her, the employees at this place knew exactly what would happen if she didn't do her job correctly. This OP shared their story of the time they worked in an elder care facility . They write that when they first began the job, they had a great boss who seemed to really care about the patients, ensuring that they were well cared for and had plenty of activities to fill their day…
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