Congrats, you got a new job! You go over the contract, notice the 40-hour work week, say ‘Cool’ to yourself, sign, and move on. A month later you begin training, and everything is falling into place… except for one thing. Deadlines. The company expects you to work way more than 40 hours a week… but you're only getting paid for 40. Basically, the managers don't know how to manage their time very well, leading to a big workload. Then they work overtime to complete the projects they've been given.…

Let this story serve as a friendly reminder to never work for a business off the clock. If your company requests that you carve out any extra time outside of your regularly scheduled hours, you are well within your right to request that you be paid for that time or, at the very least, that a negotiation process can take place. Let's be clear: the higher-ups at your company are fully aware of what they are asking of their employees. If the topic of payment for that extra did not cross their mind…

If you're in a line of work that frequently deals with emergency break-fix scenarios where you're effectively permanently on call and might be expected (or required) to spring into action at a moment's notice at any time, having an expectation set that you'll never work overtime doesn't really work. Yet, that doesn't stop petty managers from setting petty rules for their frontline staff who are handling these types of situations. But, to be fair, it's not as if they really understand the indust…

'I'm out of here!' — Or at least, that's what some brave employees say when their manager comes up with the next ‘best’ micromanaging thing to say. It's almost like managers don't get how they're hurting the company. They think that ‘nobody wants to work these days’ but they couldn't be further from the truth. See, people do want to work these days… They just don't want to work for you . Maybe if you'd be nicer and take your employees into consideration, they would. But that's too hard, right?…

After being abruptly banned for working overtime and being called a 'time thief' by a new manager, one employee decides to maliciously comply with the new rules. Even though he's never worked overtime by more than 30 minutes, those 30 minutes add up in the long run. Because of this newly instated rule, projects start falling through the cracks. But the employee actually has no choice but to let this happen, considering the new strict rules. Things get worse when the new manager comes running to…

Why is it that so many bosses are too concerned with enforcing minor rules rather than focusing on what should be their priorities? The answers are almost related to money and ego. If it's money, you have a boss who can only think about budget, budget, budget, and nothing else. There's no concern for the wellbeing of your employees and, in some cases like this one, there isn't even much thought given to the overall wellbeing of the company (i.e. sometimes, overtime is necessary to keep things a…

If you've ever pulled an overtime shift, you know the psychological warfare that goes on throughout every step of that OT journey. Once you pass hour 8 of your work day, your concept of time starts to warp, turning your workplace into an inescapable purgatory in which you're trapped until your next 15-minute break. For the nurse in our next tale, her accidental overtime shift turned into a nightmare after her relief no-showed...

Not many of us have the financial luxury to sue anybody. Even if we have a case of a hostile workplace or cut wages or unpaid overtime, usually the cost of a lawyer is enough to dissuade us from pursuing justice. Unfortunately, this is how a lot of blue-collar and minimum-wage employees are exploited time and time again... But there are stories of fabled heroes standing up for the little man, where justice prevails and dirtbag bosses get exactly what they deserve.

Whenever new management enters the equation, there are bound to be a few issues that pop up, that can affect the entire company… but mostly the employees working under them. This boss joined a small cell phone company in a rural area, and coming from New York, he had no idea what kind of environment he was getting himself into. One of his employees, OP, worked on cell phone towers and used the company's competitors' phones sometimes when he had no service. The former boss had no issue with this…

This person found themself living every worker's dream: being instructed to work less. Speaking of following your boss's directions to a T… this person cost their company millions by allowing frozen food to turn to “boiled mush.”

The budget for employee retention vs the budget for new hires is simply not on the same scale, and it's a pity because that's a huge reason for high turnover rates. This employee was denied a well-deserved promotion, which led them to quit, leaving the company in the dust, and management working overtime to meet deadlines. In this case, the budget was less of a problem, and the work method was what got this employee. OP had given their all to their employer, but we all know how that goes… You t…

Time and a half… These are the magic words that make any hustler consider working a little overtime. Nobody wants to work OT if there's no reward. Our 40-hour work week is plenty of time on the clock, so anyone who's contemplating picking up a few extra hours on top of that is looking for s significant payout for their time. We work extra hours so we can get extra pay.

Employees do the work, while bosses do… what exactly? When it comes to daily operations in your workplace, there's nobody who knows stuff quite like you do. After countless hours watching the time click by on the dated analog clock in the corner, employees are specifically trained to know every detail about their office space.

During the holidays, it's almost inevitable that someone at the dinner table will ask you for free services related to your career. If you're a lawyer, you'll likely be asked for legal advice over the Christmas ham. If you're a doctor, your distant cousins might ask you if the mole on their neck is benign after a few too many glasses of grog. And if you're a daycare worker, you'll likely be asked to volunteer for free at your school's kiddo Christmas bash.

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…

Are you a full-time employee? Then we have a quick question for you: Have you thoroughly read your employee handbook? Many employees simply skim their employee handbook and don't read the fine print. Most of the wordage is to cover the derrière of the company, but it clearly states exactly what you are supposed to be earning. That means you are supposed to get paid for a minimum of 4 hours no matter what? You better charge that 10-minute call as if it were 4 hours. That is exactly what this tec…