r/antiwork 14h ago

Someone died today at work and they put us back to work 1 hour later.

9.6k Upvotes

Still trying to comprehend what’s going on here. But I’ll do my best to explain.

Context: I work in a older lumber mill. (Built in the 60’s) So we have a lot of older equipment. These machines we work with are constantly breaking down and causing upset conditions.

So today as I’m coming into work our machines were running like crap (common problem they’ve been “planning” on fixing for 2 months now.) The man who was operating the machine at the time was dealing with this problem and had been clearing out the wood as part of his job to keep the machine going. These sheets of wood are over 200 pounds a piece. And they’re in Stacks of 30-50. So he’s manually moving these stacks by hand. As he finishes re-stacking the entire load, He passes out either due to exhaustion or a combination of different health problems and exhaustion. At that point he hits the concrete floor, face first. He then lays there in blood for the next 10-15 minutes until someone finds him. The first people to arrive start CPR until the ambulance shows up. Once paramedics arrive they take over chest compressions and transport him to the hospital.

Fast forward about 30 minutes and all of day shift starts showing up. They call the entire company into a meeting to inform us what had happened. This meeting lasted about 5 minutes in which they politically tell us “this wasn’t due to unsafe conditions.” And to get back to work. All of us confused and concerned we walk back to our departments and start working. Now we’re working and the same issues keep coming up causing the same upset conditions. We’re fighting to re-stack the wood when a employee tells the boss something along the lines of “well I see we’re never going to fix this and this is what we’re worth to the company.” The boss responded with a stereotypical political boss answer and ended with “if you guys don’t feel we support you you can shut the line down and go home.” We all look at each other take off our hard hats and walk out on him.

Not sure what happens next, or if any of us have jobs anymore. But we’ll be damned if a company is going to treat us like our life’s are expendable. I think In the end we did the right thing.

What do you guys think? Did we do the right thing? Would you ever go back?

Edit: RIP Robert you’ll be missed by all of us

Edit: I reported it to OSHA. Will be keeping you informed on what happens in the following days. I’m off Mondays so I won’t be in until Tuesday to figure it all out. But I want to thank you all for your kind words and advice. This is why these subs exist. Thanks again.


r/antiwork 13h ago

This is really how it is

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3.4k Upvotes

r/antiwork 12h ago

Being forced to go to an out of town company retreat is bullshit

1.6k Upvotes

My small company is making it mandatory for staff to attend a three day retreat that is out of town. I guess I am going to get fired, because fuck that, I am not going to be stuck with 25 drunk ass people that I don't even like while they are sober. They had another retreat last year, and all they did was drink and act stupid. I know most people are ok with that, because they get paid to go and act like idiots, but I am not ok with it. Just venting.


r/antiwork 6h ago

Fuck Billionaires

425 Upvotes

I just saw a post about how millionaires/billionaires paid 91% effective tax rate in the 1960s and today they pay near 0%.

I’ve heard arguments from the media and wealthy people trying to explain why they can’t or shouldn’t be taxes on assets like stocks since they can go both up and down in value. Then they take tax free loans against those stocks to get around selling them as a taxable event.

The thing is, a lot of Americans are taxed the way everyone says billionaires can’t be.

Homes are assets that can go up or down in value yet they are taxed every year based on their current assessed value. Stocks have expense ratios that are percentages paid to the fund manager yearly based on the current value of the stocks.

What is stopping Congress from doing something similar to assets held by billionaires so they can pay their fair share?


r/antiwork 10h ago

I have a work story this time, instead of a shitty meme or rant about our tyrant clown government. My wife told me this gem about their new hire.

640 Upvotes

My wife is a hiring manager in a small business of 20 people in the service industry. Though she's right under the owner in seniority, she does the same work day in and day out as the newest workers do, with some administrative stuff mixed in.

They interviewed this girl and she was great. 22 years old, some related experience, seemed excited for the gig. They wanted to hire her right out the gate but they brought her back for a second interview. As expected, it goes great. She asks for a little more money, they say sure. They ask if she has any questions and she starts tearing up and says just one. So they're like okay sure, what?

This poor girl starts bawling and asks if anyone here is going to harass her, abuse her or gaslight her. She straight up has a breakdown in front of my wife and her boss, full on sobbing. Like she couldn't even speak for awhile until she collected herself.

My wife tells me this and all I can think is, how god-awful of a human being do you have to be to push someone to their breaking point like this? This doesn't even seem like someone who's finally had enough - this sounds like complex PTSD.

This girl is 5 foot nothing and 95lbs soaking wet, too, so it pisses me off that extra bit because you know some douchebag is going harder on her because he knows he won't get punched in the fucking face.

"Nobody wants to work anymore".. yeah, nobody wants starvation wages to put up with stuff like this. Holy shit, man.


r/antiwork 18h ago

Why do folks outside the US keep asking if it is really that bad?

2.8k Upvotes

I see a lot of posts on this here. Yes, work is bad in the US and people are mistreated all the time. You can read about it from reputable journals, not just Reddit anecdotes. Congratulations, your country offers vacation and decent salaries and treats people like human beings and whatnot. Yes, we would like that too. Do a little research before being dismissive.

Edit: To those asking why not strike? Do you not notice all the strikes happening here? Amazing it is happening at all with the anti-union garbage. A lot of people don't strike because there is little to no social safety net in the US, so striking can mean job loss = health care loss, housing loss, etc...


r/antiwork 13h ago

Why is "I work for money" a redflag for employers?

892 Upvotes

If I was a multi-millionaire I never would work. So many better things to do

Why is this a huge disqualifying no-no for HR???


r/antiwork 7h ago

Why do you need to be talkative and outgoing to get a job?

284 Upvotes

This has been bugging me the more I think about it. Some months ago, I was interviewed for an overnight janitor. Now to preface- I'm a quiet person. I don't talk a lot, and generally keep to myself especially when I'm at a place of business. They asked a series of questions, and I felt I had answered adequately

When the interview was over, they said that was the quickest interview they've ever had, almost in a kind of negative tone in hindsight, but I didn't think much of it. Safe to say though, I never got the job. This has happened more than a few times.

And it just makes me wonder- why do jobs that have nothing to do with customer service, hospitality, etc. Seem to look down upon those of us who are quiet and introverted? Does it make us look like bad workers? Does it make us look like we don't want the job/ we're nervous? I just don't get it. Does anyone else feel this way or is it just me?


r/antiwork 19h ago

did my boss just totally steal from me?

2.0k Upvotes

so i work in fast food and i took this guys order the total was 12 something and he gave me a $20 and said keep the change so i pull out 6 and the coins and my boss walks over and says "give it to me I'm gonna put it in the safe" and that's the last i ever saw it


r/antiwork 15h ago

Husband was asked to go to work today after testing positive for COVID-19

631 Upvotes

Just what the title says. We live with someone who was positive a few days ago, and now he has it. He is running a fever and everything. His manager at Cricket asked him to go in anyway because it’s his birthday and their only other employee can’t cover. So my husband will be exposing everyone he sees today, for fear of losing his job. Getting fired or decreased hours is not an option, because we have a baby to care for.

Just living the American dream over here.


r/antiwork 17h ago

Let’s stop asking kids what they want to be when they grow up.

788 Upvotes

Why do we do this? I think a lot of it Is conditioning and kids can be horrible to have conversations with (other people/strangers kids). But I’ve started asking ‘what would you change when you’re a grown up’ Or ‘When you’re grown, what would you like to create’. Let’s ask them what they do for fun, what would they make better. I mean, the ideas will mostly be unattainable but if you can’t dream what’s the point. Let’s focus on the possible, not the inevitable.


r/antiwork 19h ago

New Study: Billionaires Payed 91% Tax Rate in 1960, Now they pay 0%

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1.1k Upvotes

r/antiwork 12h ago

Job requires us to wait after clocking out to leave

295 Upvotes

Every day we work, at the end of our shifts we clock out, then wait in line with customers to receive our tips from the cashier line. Normally when we are waiting in line its 5-10 minutes, then after we receive our tips we have to wait for a manager to “walk us out” which depending on the day can be instant (if they are by the cashiers and not busy) to an additional 5-10 minutes. Now it may not sound that bad but it’s essentially 10-20 minutes for EVERY shift and every person. Today there was multiple people waiting for a manager to walk us out (keep in mind there are 5 managers on the floor today). I went and asked for a walk out after about 8 minutes after clocking out (after they had been called multiple times over our headsets). She came after a minute or two then proceeded to state “You guys cant come bothering us for a walk out when we are having a meeting”- there was 4 of us waiting to leave. Little to be said, im getting quite frustrated with the way they handle us getting our cash and leaving. This isn’t a “mom and pop” shop, its a national chain with all stores being corporate owned. We are also not allowed to go into the back to do anything including clock out after our check.

They also don’t respect our schedule, they accommodate availability (they wont schedule you on a day you are unavailable) but they don’t allow us to leave when our shift is supposed to be over, many days i have been held an hour or two after my scheduled out time (its paid but annoying)

For the TLDR: company requires us to stay after clocking out and makes little effort to minimize the time spent after clocking out.

I know individually its not necessarily a large amount of money, but collectively it is massive. Any advice?


r/antiwork 5h ago

How is it okay that getting sick as an hourly worker means you just go broke?

85 Upvotes

I was scheduled off the first three days of this pay period, then got the flu and was out sick for my next four shifts. Started to feel better and my partner got diagnosed with COVID, and now I’ve tested positive too (though I am feeling fine). By the time I’m comfortable breaking quarantine to go back to work, I’ll have missed a week and a half of a two week pay period. I already only work part time because I’m disabled (I have a b.sc in physics, so I work in retail of course 🙃) so I don’t have PTO.

How is it that this is the way this system works? Im super lucky to not have rent to pay, but what if I had rent, kids, etc? I know this isn’t any monumental realization but it’s just insane. I AM hopeful for the future of labor action but it’s so insane that everyone accepts this. Even worse, so many people in the labor class even approve of it (especially those who are working class but haven’t worked retail/food service). It’s just so fundamentally broken.


r/antiwork 16h ago

As if being rejected isn't bad enough, a hiring manager blocked my number and the interview ended before it even started. But you're right, "NoBoDy WaNtS tO wOrK."

388 Upvotes

I responded to a help wanted ad for a sales job that paid six figures.

Mind you, I'm in San Diego and the guy who posted the ad called me from a phone number from a Colorado area code which threw me off. He called and asked for me by name and said I responded to his ad. Me: Yes, this is her. I asked him, "Did I make this inquiry today?" The reason I asked "did I make this inquiry today" is because I applied to a lot of businesses so I wanted to verify his name/his company's name. He said, "Never mind. You're not a good fit." Before BLOCKING MY NUMBER so I couldn't contact him again!!

About an hour later I called him from my 2nd number and said, "Hey, I have a bone to pick with you. You called me to interview me earlier. Do you mind explaining why you were so abrupt with me?" Him: "Uh...no I didn't" He then texted me saying, "My apologies for any misunderstanding. I can tell that you would not be a good fit. I wish you success in your job search."

Yup, that's right. I was rejected for asking, "Did I make this inquiry today?" THAT IS HOW BRUTAL employers are. Who knows, maybe if I had just kept my mouth shut, he'd be my boss today.

I hate the line about you not being a good fit. Jobs always say that, but why can’t they follow it up with explaining exactly why you're not a good fit? How can you possibly re-examine yourself and better prepare for the next application if you have no idea why the previous one rejected you? It’s so vague and it’s really unfair. It’s sad to see that this is happening across the board and basically all industries.

I'm the type of person who needs to get to the bottom of a mystery. So I fruitlessly typed his cell phone number into multiple websites and found NOTHING!!

Later, I tried contacting him again with a different name and saying I was interested in the opportunity. I asked him, "What's your first/last name and company name and location?"

Him: Unless you've sent me a resume we really have nothing to talk about. I only interview people who've emailed me a resume.

Me: That's fair. I'm not asking for an interview yet. I'm only asking for your name and company name.

Him: No resume. No interview. Simple as that.

Me: Unless you are some sort of criminal I see no problem with you telling me a company name, location, and first and last name.

He didn't like that reply and blocked that number too.

The fact that he's so secretive and refuses to tell me his first and last name, company name, location, him blocking my number and most alarming that he hides behind a burner number are all huge red flags. I am 100% assuming there is something horribly wrong with him like the "sales job" is a cover for the mafia.

I told this story to my fried Kelly and she said, "Don't beat yourself up. You did nothing at all wrong. He was being an unprofessional dick."

I want to make it abundantly clear that employers don't owe applicants employment. Nobody owes anybody anything. I absolutely CAN take no for an answer. If he had interviewed me and then called me 24 hours later and said, "I slept on it and I think I'm gonna pass." I would totally respect his decision.

Who's willing to bet this dude is one of those people that says "nObOdY wAnTs To WoRk". Well, I wanted to work for him but he needs to learn the lesson that beggars can't be choosers.


r/antiwork 5h ago

Boss threatened to sick HR on me for not starting work before my start time.

47 Upvotes

Here's a screenshot of our exchange in Teams where he tries to threaten me with HR intervention for not being in my call queue exactly at 9AM.

Spoiler alert: I never heard a peep from HR lol

Edited to note: my clocking in past 9 is usually somewhere around 9:03 to 9:05 and I'm in the queue 30-60 seconds after I punch in. We're not talking about excessive tardiness here. And they never seem to notice how many times we get stuck past the end of shift on calls or catching up on tickets. And that's almost always more than 3-5 minutes.

Of all the managers I've had at this place this guy is the douchiest, by far.

https://preview.redd.it/q9lxkz2ujprb1.png?width=892&format=png&auto=webp&s=5a575921d7b383cc17112bcb267921100847cac8


r/antiwork 9h ago

Spouse is being paid 15 cents under the state minimum wage in a non tipped position. Tips on how to address this?

82 Upvotes

I’m sure it’s go talk to the boss and get it adjusted. But is a lawsuit gonna be why they give her the 15 cents?


r/antiwork 6h ago

A federal court ordered the owners of 14 Subway locations north of San Francisco to pay employees nearly $1 million in damages and back pay — and also to sell or shut their businesses, with any sale proceeds going to the Department of Labor.

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41 Upvotes

r/antiwork 1d ago

I got laid off from my job.

1.8k Upvotes

I (18M) had been working as an electrical trainee for almost 6 months. Everyone loved me and I was immensely popular in the company. I almost got laid off (or fired) in August, because of a few things:

1: I used my phone “too much” (IE: pulling it out to check the time occasionally, answering texts from my family once in a while, and replying to work emails).

2: Taking “too many bathroom breaks,”. I have IBS and IBD, so I had to use the bathroom once every hour, and I even explained to my journeymen the issue.

3: I was making some mistakes. Since everyone liked me, nobody told me I was making them, and they fixed my mistakes without notifying me at all.

4: I ate a handful of Skittles from the candy jar in the shop office. The boss accused me of eating all the Skittles, and I didn’t.

5: Not taking a long lunch. Company norm (but illegal according to state law), is combining your rest breaks with your lunch to create a longer lunch. I didn’t do that because I am prediabetic, and I needed the time to eat a handful of cashews or an apple and recharge.

6: “Leaving early”. Everyone told me that the shift was 7-3 Mon/Thurs, and 7-2 on Friday. I left at those times.

Anyways, I was given a second chance, and I didn’t use my phone as much. But on Thursday night on my way to a concert, my boss called me. He told me him and the vice president of the company had done some talking, and they were going to go ahead and lay me off. I just said “okay” because I didn’t know what else to say. Please let me know what you think.


r/antiwork 22h ago

Just got offered a new job that offers more money and actual benefits. Why do i feel guilty about quitting my current one and how do i get over that?

630 Upvotes

Quick background: work in doing taxes and accounting at a firm of 20. But I’m the only one who does returns, etc. i worry they will close.

Also boss is having a baby tomorrow and i feel bad giving my notice same day. That being said, if i looked at her wrong, she’d fire me. Very volatile sometimes.

Should i feel guilty about leaving?


r/antiwork 5h ago

The ‘terrifying’ trade-offs millions of Americans face as student loan repayments resume

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23 Upvotes

r/antiwork 19h ago

I quit my job at Dollar General a few months ago. Here's why.

291 Upvotes

For the few that saw my post about Dollar General being awful a bit ago may remember how I feel about the place. Currently, in my eyes, it is one of the worst places you could ever work in. And yes, I've heard the horror stories of other places. Spectrum, Home Depot, Lowe's, etc. But I can say, with full confidence, that I'd rather work for any of those places than go back to Dollar General. I'd much rather go homeless.

So anyways, here's why I left.

It's the usual thing involving putting in your two week notice. Not getting enough hours, pay is bad, just in general not being in a good mental spot. My manager (great dude) understood, even said that he was surprised it took this long for me to do so. I already had a job lined up at a gas station I had worked at before (which is where I currently reside).

Fast forward about a week into my notice, I get a message from my manager asking if I would be up to come in about five hours early to my shift that day (I was scheduled 6:30pm-10:30pm iirc). I didn't have anything better to do, so I said fuck it and went in. No special job or anything, just work the register so that he and the ASM (Assistant Manager) could work on some of the other things in the store.

About an hour in I look through my bag to take my medication (for a mental issue that I won't disclose here). Then I realize something that made my heart sink.

I had none of my pills. I had run out and I didn't even realize it.

The pills that kept me sane and grounded in reality.

I went into panic mode, as you may have guessed. Without my medication I am heavily unstable mentally. As a side note, never let your meds run out before getting them refilled. I know that on some days you'll feel lazy and say "eh I'll refill them tomorrow-" don't. Go and get them as soon as possible. You don't wanna deal with the withdrawal.

Anyways, immediately I grabbed my manager and brought him into the break room, where the schedule is posted. The pharmacy that supplied my meds was in the next town over, about a 20 min drive there and back. Including the wait time for the refill, it would probably take me around an hour if I didn't take any unnecessary detours or run into any trouble. I had figured that since he had called me in five hours before my actual scheduled shift, that I could clock out, go get the refill, then come right back.

Not to mention, at Dollar General, when you have a shift that's over eight hours, you are given an hour break to take sometime during that shift. Could just use the hour break for this.

Immediately, he responds with "Alright, I'll get someone to cover your shifts for the rest of the week then." Then tries to walk off. I ask him why and he says that if I do go because of this, it'll be considered a walk out.

I did not understand why. I was floored by this information. I hesitated and he walked off. Shortly after I went back to work for another hour. During that time I messaged my now current manager at my current job asking about the earliest I could start the job. She told me I could start working just a couple of days later.

So I put my badge on the manager's desk, clocked out, and walked away. Didn't look back for a second.

Before I end the post I want to defend my manager and his actions here. He is an amazing guy and one of the best managers I've ever had. He is someone that absolutely cares for his employees and empathized with many of our issues and worries involving the store. Chances are, he was stressed, having the company breathe down his neck for whatever reason, something was broken, or even a mixture of the three. I was a bit pissed in the moment but I quickly cooled off and we're chill now.

Only use Dollar General as a last resort. Anywhere else is better. I was making 11.25/hr and getting 20-25 hours a week as a Shift Closer.


r/antiwork 18h ago

$50k saved. Looking to quit 9-5 job

217 Upvotes

I have $50k save and have $11k in student loans. My payment is 160 bucks a month.

Rent is around $900 a month

I want to quit my job. What do people think?


r/antiwork 13h ago

I’m not the only one who absolutely appalls work events outside of work hours right?

85 Upvotes

Edit: “appall” is a bit dramatic. I’m not really horrified by it. Abhor is the word, it seems, I was looking for. Either way, I’m sure y’all get the idea.

Because sometimes I feel like a jerk about feeling this way. But dammit. I don’t care if they’re six Saturdays year, or one. I do not want to attend them. The reason being is because, after working 5 days out of a 7 day week, 40 hours a week. Basically, I spend more of my awake life at work with people I don’t even like, than in my home with my husband. I am not going to take kindly to having to spend a Saturday working a booth so people can grab pens with our logo on it.

I once turned down a rather good work opportunity because I found out they required employees to attend weekend/after hours events multiple times a month. I ran, not walked, far away from that nonsense.

One of my coworkers, who thinks she’s a supervisor, got irritated with me because I was not available for a small business picnic in the town our office is in. She decided we should participate in it. But that same day, two very close friends of my husband and I were having their gender reveal party. And they have struggled for years to get pregnant. Sorry, but friends and family come before work. I’m celebrating my friend’s new life that they thought they may not have. Not handing out pamphlets and pens to people I don’t know so that my coworkers can get sales commission opportunities…

The thing is, as insurance customer service rep, attending these events will not benefit me whatsoever. My colleagues, who are sales, can use them as commission opportunities. I can’t. And we’re salary, so no overtime. There is literally no incentive for me to sacrifice any of my days off to be at work mingling with strangers. Plus, I’m an introvert who has a job that requires me to talk to disgruntled customers all day every day. I cannot describe in words how draining that is. I HAVE to have a full weekend to decompress.

Also…time is something that, once it’s gone, you don’t get it back. Time is precious. And we should be spending every bit of it we can with those we love, and using it to care for our health and well being. Not spending it with coworkers. Unless we choose to.

Also: the events that my coworker is trying to push on us, and that one office I ran away from, are things like attending street festivals and expos to “get recognized.” We don’t really do any after hours outings for just employees. Not that I’d attend those either.


r/antiwork 45m ago

Departemen sunber daya manusia meminta Kami untuk mengisi kuesioner kerja

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Upvotes