Every human resources department has been known for some shady behavior to protect the interests of the company rather than the interests of the actual humans who work there. Ironic, much? We all have these kinds of stories, particularly ones that involve employee benefits like paid time off. It's a tale as old as time: an employee requests vacation time for an important event like a wedding or a funeral, their boss approves said vacation time, then shames them in some way as the dates actually…

Sometimes, the best way to inform your boss that their newly implemented policy is flawed is by showing not telling. Lots of workplace practices are put into place in such a way that seems smart and productive in theory… until it's not. Of course, the people who are enforcing said policies often want them to work and refuse to hear any criticism from the people who actually have an understanding of how their workflow looks. This boss was running into some legal trouble and couldn't pay for any…

What part of “time OFF” do these employers not understand? This technician had been working at the same HVAC company for 15 years and saw it expand from virtually nothing to a business that employed over 100 other technicians. Unfortunately, the dynamics within the company changed a bit after it was sold to a larger monopoly. Now, the technician's typical five weeks of vacation time were reduced to two weeks, and seniority didn't really matter at all anymore. Despite these changes, the technici…

Starting to work at a new company is a leap of faith. We all want to have the best job possible, with a great salary, tons of perks, good coworkers, benefits, and a nice work-life balance. There's no such thing as a perfect job — you might have a great salary, but your boss is always breathing down your neck. Or maybe you have a lot of vacation time to use, but you work 80 hour weeks most of the time. It's a trade off, and it's all about finding an environment you can thrive in. These folks bel…

It doesn't matter what your line of work is. It doesn't matter if you work in an office, in a restaurant, in a warehouse, or remotely. Chances are you have dealt with an unruly and/or bizarre coworker. Perhaps in the moment, your experience with this person was a cringeworthy one. Perhaps it did not end well for you or for them. However, provided that you came out unscathed, you probably are grateful to have the story. Some of these coworkers range from the unethical to the strange. For instanc…

We're pretty sure toxic bosses are not allowed to do this anymore… This boss decided it was appropriate to fire his hourly employee on the same day that the employee filed for more state-protected paternity leave, a privilege that his boss doesn't normally grant to his other employees as well. First of all, let's start by acknowledging that granting maternity and paternity leave should not be seen as a privilege in anyone's else, nor should workers be rewarded for not taking their full time off…

We often talk about how HR is not your friend here on FAIL Blog. That being said, there are always good apples everywhere, and you know with certainty that some of these HR professionals have seen some wild stuff. It could be during the hiring process, when HR employees and hiring managers end up hearing some pretty ridiculous demands or inappropriate remarks from potential job candidates. It could be a crazy story from a boss or CEO, who has pretty backward standards when it comes to workplace…

In every work environment, there tends to be a work mom, someone who isn't necessarily in charge but serves as an emotional support figure. However, apparently, not all work moms are universally supportive… In this instance, we have a work mom who may have started out that way but perhaps due to cultural differences or simply due to a false sense of superiority, she started to manipulate those around her with incessant insults and unkind comments. At first, the Redditor who shared this story th…

Can you imagine getting on this guy's bad side? This Redditor was working as a warehouse associate at a non-profit and helped employ his friend Jim, who was having a host of job problems (meaning he was a difficult employee who would move from job to job frequently). However, OP made sure that Jim would adjust well to the workflow and work dynamics at the warehouse, despite the annoying behavior of two other coworkers and the negligent behavior of their boss. OP, Jim, and a third friend of thei…

Some of us are people pleasers and could never imagine causing drama on our last day at a job, but others feel that they have nothing left to lose. Honestly, power to these individuals. I could never motivate myself to be that savage, even if I were completely in the right. I've been candid about the experience as a whole, certainly. If I have an exit interview, I do believe that affords employees on their way out with a healthy opportunity to professionally discuss the issues within their plac…

The most infuriating part of this story is how common this phenomenon seems to be among other servers. Several folks in the comments section of this Reddit thread pointed out that they too would be forced to pay up if any of their customers dined and dashed at a restaurant. Not only is this completely unfair, but this kind of policy is certainly not going to create a sense of loyalty among the restaurant staff. The underlying concept here is that it's the server's fault for allowing customers t…

When you're pushed too far, sometimes you just can't take the heat anymore. These workers know the feeling all too well, and they shared the moments that were the final straw before they quit their job on the spot. As much as you try to vet a company before you join, you just don't know what your job will really be like. You can keep an eye out for red flags during the interview process, but you won't really know what it's like until you spend a few weeks emailing with your boss or calling clie…

There are some people in this world who would save themselves a whole lot of embarrassment if they just didn't have phones. Today, we're talking about the technologically incompetent folks who accidentally send the wrong message to the wrong person. These are the people who accidentally spoil surprises or reveal their true feelings to the very person they are insulting. We feel that this is a relatively common phenomenon that we can discuss freely and openly, especially considering that yours t…

What do you do when your manager is a thieving fraudster, and their boss refuses to listen because, on paper, your manager is getting good results? This is something you'll likely come across during the long course of your career, and you might be dismayed to find yourself powerless in the position. Heck, most bosses will be willing to look the other way for someone who is performing high in whatever KPI upper management is currently prioritizing… Just as long as things look good and people are…

Sometimes, bosses become so reliant on their employees' contributions that they don't even recognize how hopeless they'd be without them. This boss clearly became threatened by how much extra work her employee was taking on regularly, so the two had a meeting where the boss told the employee not to take on any manager's responsibilities. Normally, this would actually be great advice. There is no need for an employee to work that hard and not get paid extra for it. However, that's not exactly wh…

If only there was some way that I could get more work from my employees without having to pay them for it… A thought that every employer has apparently had at some point during the operation of their business. Of course, the simplest solution to getting more work done without increasing costs would be just to find some way to get your employees to work more hours without paying them. After all, more hours equals more productivity… If only those pesky employees didn't expect to be paid! While yo…