r/talesfromthejob

I left my last job because I was completely burned out. Honestly, I'm not built to be on the phone with clients all the time, day after day. I was honest with my manager about why I was leaving, and she seemed very supportive. She also told me to put her down as a reference for anything I applied to after that, and said that if I ever wanted to come back to the same role, the door was open. I believed her, so I listed her.

A few weeks later, I found a position that seemed like a much better fit for me. It involved much less client contact, and they were fine with adjusting the work around my availability. The person doing the hiring seemed happy to speak with me, and after the initial interview, she scheduled a second interview right away.

When I went to the follow-up interview, the vibe was completely different. The hiring manager was noticeably colder. She said she had spoken with my references and that my old manager had told her she had concerns about me because of my burnout. Honestly, I didn't know what to say, because my old manager knew exactly why I left.

I explained to the interviewer that I left because of the constant client-facing work, and that the new job wouldn't have the same issue because the client interaction would be limited. Apparently, that concern was enough to change the decision, because I didn't get the job.

I feel like I want to contact my former manager and ask her why she would offer to be a reference and then ruin my chances. I'm confused and honestly upset. If she was worried about me, she could have talked to me instead of messing with my income and future job opportunities.

There are a lot of people who don't know the difference, and put former employers as references because they think they have to, or employers who will do anything to blacklist a former employee

So, it is very important to listen to other people’s experiences and advice, whether they share them on Reddit or LinkedIn. Paying attention to all of that and reading it carefully is important before getting involved in an actual job.

A few years ago, I joined a medium-sized company to start and oversee an important project. The salary was average, and the benefits were reasonable, but the senior managers acted as if they were doing us a great favor just by being there. I stayed there for a good while, constantly under scrutiny, with no appreciation whatsoever, no promotions, and no opportunities for professional development.

Not long ago, I got a new job that offered a much better salary and benefits, and a healthier work environment. I gave them early notice before leaving, a full month's notice, just out of courtesy, knowing they wouldn't fire me immediately. I made sure to leave behind complete and very detailed documentation. Despite the constant monitoring, it became clear that no one was interested in understanding exactly what I was doing or the procedures I was following. Messages on my personal email, all questions, started appearing about a week after I left.

At first, I wasn't overly concerned and continued to support my direct manager. But it seems I opened a door I didn't intend to. Just yesterday, my old manager sent me a shared file with another question, along with instructions for me to go into the sheet and fix something because she doesn't understand anything at all.

This audacity truly shocked me, and honestly, I'm thinking of ignoring the whole thing. On top of all that, the shared file she sent to my personal email is full of confidential customer data. I thought the community here would love a story like this. Honestly, I still haven't processed what happened and I've been staring at the message for about fifteen minutes.

I want to make this very abundantly clear that this story is NSFW. There are also some extremely triggering topics. Here's a list. If any of these topics disturb you, please don't read further.

- Suicide

- Mentions of Suicide

- Cheating

- Endangering the Welfare of a Child

- Murder

- Guns

- War

- Marines or any facet of the Military

I work a corporate job. I am in charge of the credit aspect, aka making sure everyone's paying their bills. For a lot of people right now, they're going through unemployment or SSI. So, quite a few people haven't been paying their bills on time. Most of the time I'm able to get contact with them and figure out when they're going to pay. Some people we just lost along the way because they're moving, want to steal, etc. Then there's this guy. For the sake of this story, we'll call him Finch.

I've spoken to Finch over the phone before. He seemed okay. He's mentioned before that he's an ex marine, always called me by honorifics instead of my name, and was always respectful. That's why when he started not picking up that I got worried. His bill was due in the beginning of April. We had found out through the news that he was in a police standoff, arrested with a class D felony and endangering the welfare of a child, and released on his own recognizance. We did wellness checks nearly everyday to the residence with no results. I heard nothing from him until last Saturday, it now being midway through May.

I sometimes try sending out an email as a last resort, and on Saturday I was feeling kind of hopeless, so I sent them out to quite a few customers. Surprisingly it reached him and he called in.

He was eerily happy over the phone. Last time I heard his voice he sounded tired, but he seemed overjoyed. Almost manic. He told me that he'd been in a police standoff back in March, told me his charges, then went on to say where he's been since then. He told me that the reason everything happened is because he found his wife on the couch with another man. Her legs on his shoulders in front of their 10 month and 6 year old kids. He had grabbed a shotgun and shot at her as she got into the car and drove away. He eneded up trying to flee the scene, but cops got there first. Once he was let out, he wasn't allowed back on the property, so he kept trying to commit... He told me all the ways he'd try to do it. Pills, knives, and ropes. Each instance in excruciatingly painful detail. Finch described living in the motel he was in. How he's been beating people up just for the fun of it. How he's been in and out of psychiatric hospitals for weeks now.

I tried my best not to get sick to my stomach or say something triggering. But Finch didn't care in the slightest. He started going on a rant about how he would have never done this if it wasn't for her. How women are the reason men murder. That if women weren't so damn tempting that he'd be a better man. Finch tried assuring me that I was "probably one of the good ones" but I was already purely grossed out and uneasy.

Finch, of course, not being able to read the room or honestly frankly not caring, went on to talk about when he went to Iraq. He described how he was commanded to kill women, children, and families. He went into extensive detail on how he murdered them in cold blood and how he enjoyed it. How he'd do it again in a heartbeat.

Finally, he told me we could go onto the residence to retrieve what he hasn't paid for and gave me the landlords name so we could have a witness. Before Finch hung up, he told me he was going to try to commit again. My coworkers who were overhearing the whole thing told me that he was probably just crazy and saying things, but I've heard mania before. He's obviously unwell. I've been thinking about this since it's happened and I can't get it out of my head.

Hi, I worked at this terrible pharmacy in Palm Harbor, FL for about a month. They're called E-Rx Hub. Here's the copy/pasted review I left on Indeed. Complaints are in no specific order.

When I was hired the owner told me I was going to be full time. Toward the end I was lucky to get 20-30 hours per week. I am an adult who has bills to pay, not some college kid doing this as a side gig.
They advertise themselves as a compounding pharmacy but their clean rooms aren't even set up yet and they outsource everything.
I was told that mistakes are completely unacceptable during my first week after being trained for 10 minutes by someone who had been there a week. I was also told in front of everyone that I cannot be making mistakes at all and when I was clearly embarrassed and about to have a panic attack the owner said she was just doing it for accountability. But the girl who has been there for many months sends out the wrong medication to a patient and nobody says anything. I also explained multiple times that them playing loud music was distracting me which was leading to the mistakes. They pretended to turn the music down for a day then it went right back up.
I caught a discrepancy with one of the clinics that were sending prescriptions over incorrectly and was told I was wrong multiple times and it only got fixed when the pharmacist refused to fill the prescriptions.
The owner tried to argue with the same pharmacist that we should be sending out NAD vials that were close to expiring.
There was a terrible bug infestation that took days to fix and then the dead bugs were just left everywhere.
There's a bathroom with no locks on it so anyone can just walk in on you.
They used an air freshener that messed with my asthma and did nothing when I told them it was bothering me.
The owner does nothing to verify credentials. There was a girl whose license was expired that worked there for multiple days. The only reason she was fired is because she admitted her license lapsed. They didn't make me print my license for a month and just took my word for it that I was licensed.
I didn't get paid for my first 2 days where I worked 4 hours each day.
The FedEx account was never paid so the shipping department had days they just couldn't do their job.
The manager who opens the building is up to 30 minutes late most days.
There's pill dust all over the counters that gets on their syringe packaging supplies because there's no set area for filling.
You can have food and drink in the direct filling area. They told me small snacks only but I'd come in and there would be mcdonalds containers in the garbage in the main room.
One time the trash in the break room was overflowing for multiple days before someone finally took it out.
The owner expected me to go to advertising events and call clinics to do marketing when that's not in my job title.
There were days where all I did for 8 hours was put syringes in bags. When I asked if I could help fill I was told that syringe kits were just as important. Meanwhile the manager who is not a licensed tech was helping fill.
There was no sharps container (at least not one openly displayed) until I brought up the fact that we needed one when I found a broken syringe/needle. When I found said syringe I made a joke about worker's comp and was told by an employee "we don't have that here."
They are constantly running out of medications causing the filler to sit there twiddling her thumbs all day waiting for them to be delivered.
I was told they were "working on" getting insurance and PTO benefits set up. That did not happen.

For reference i work at a local market and this guys had been coming for about four weeks. Each time he would talk to me and I was polite but just in the same way I am to any other customer. This week though he had come back multiple times in the day and the third time he said ”I have a question for you. Are you seeing anyone?” I was super uncomfortable and so lied saying “Yeah I have a girlfriend.” Then he ran away.
Thing is. He is 24 and I am allllllloooootttttttt younger than that and I look my age (I even had pigtails in last week.) Do you guys think it was an innocent mistake? What should I do if he comes back? I‘m a bit scared and just feel kind of violated in a way.

I started working at a certain establishment as a busser in August of 2025. I was getting paid 10 an hour plus tips. Every payday (biweekly pay check) I was getting my tips on time however sometime starting in October we stopped getting our tip money. This lasted until February. Around late January we were told we would finally be given our tips! I was super excited considering the total amount of tips I had accumulated to was exactly 709 dollars. I had asked the manager if I could get the money on February 4th considering it would be my birthday and he agreed. On February 1st the manager had stolen everyone’s tips. He left a note on the counter near the register saying “I’m sorry” along with the keys to the building. The owner of the store was aware of this and did nothing. He said the money is considered “lost” and we aren’t getting it. I’m only speaking up about this now since I got silently fired from this job. The new manager slowly took me off the schedule due to high labor hours and to how slow it was at my location. Last week I only worked about 10 hours, and now this week I’m entirely off the schedule. At this point in time I’m no longer a busser, but a shift lead. We are required to work weekends. I truly hate this company with my entire being.

There is so much more to the story but honestly I’m not sure if anyone is gonna read this so I’m leaving things out. Also I’m not a strong writer so I’m sorry for any typos, grammatical errors, or anything in general.

I’m 29 and live in New Jersey. I worked at a dispensary for almost 9 months before the company went insolvent. During that entire time, I had no disciplinary issues, loved my coworkers, loved the work, and genuinely cared about the industry.

After that place closed, I got hired at another dispensary in my county that’s very successful. The GM loved my interview and hired me basically on the spot.

For my first four days there, I was repeatedly told I was doing well and “killing it.” Nobody mentioned any performance concerns to me at all. I was learning the systems, trying to adapt to a new environment, and doing my best to take initiative.

On day five, the GM told me we needed to talk after my shift. She asked me how I thought my first week went, and I said I thought I was adjusting and doing okay overall.

Then she accused me of having an attitude with a Black customer and “snatching” money from her hand at the register. I genuinely do not remember this interaction. If I came across rude in any way, it was not intentional and absolutely not racially motivated. I would never intentionally disrespect a customer.

After that, the conversation became extremely hostile. She cursed at me repeatedly and said things like:

“We don’t f***ing need you here. You need us.”***
***“If you don’t like it, there’s the f***ing door.”

She also brought up my friend — someone I had recommended for a job there — and implied that because of my “performance issues,” she might not hire her anymore, even though she had already been promised the position.

I went home shaken up and called the owner. I apologized for any mistakes I made while also explaining that I felt the way I was spoken to was verbally abusive and inappropriate. He told me he’d talk to her and that she was probably just “a little rough” on me.

The next day, I came in for my shift and passed the GM in the parking lot. She said hello in a very antagonistic tone, and I froze up because I was anxious. I’m neurodivergent and I don’t handle confrontation well.

I told her calmly that the way she spoke to me the previous day really hurt me and made me uncomfortable. She immediately cut me off and said:

“You can go to the owner all you want. He trusts me, not you.”

I told her I didn’t feel comfortable speaking with her privately anymore because of how aggressive she had been.

At that point, she started yelling in the parking lot that I was racist.

My 70-year-old mother happened to be there because she had given me a ride. She defended me and said I was not racist. The GM then started screaming at my mother too, saying things like:

“Yes he is. You taught him to be that way.”

Then she stormed into the store saying she was going to fire me.

She came into the break room and told me to go home because I was no longer needed. I snapped and called her a bully and one of the most unprofessional people I’d ever worked with.

What happened next honestly felt surreal. She screamed at my mother to “get the f\*\*\* out” of the store and yelled things like “hit me, b\*\*\*\*” at a 70-year-old woman while employees had to separate them.

She also told me:

“F\*\*\* you.”
“You suck as a person.”
“Your whole family sucks.”
“You’ll never work in this industry again.”

I have spent years involved in social justice causes and anti-racism work, so being publicly labeled a racist over an interaction I don’t even remember has honestly devastated me.

This entire situation has completely wrecked my mental health. I had over six months sober from alcohol and relapsed after this happened. I feel humiliated, isolated, and honestly traumatized by the whole thing.

I don’t even know why I’m posting this. I think I just needed to tell somebody because I genuinely don’t know what to do now. I feel humiliated and hurt. Mainly for my poor mother who never hurt anyone and was in the wrong place at the wrong time.

Was at a startup open mic at IKP Eden, Koramangala. One founder gets up and starts talking about an app called Lirel.ai.

His line: “Proximity is a currency. Most people don’t realise they’re sitting on top of it and doing nothing with it.” 💸📍

Basic idea: you’re surrounded by founders, freelancers, and professionals every day at cafés and coworking spaces. You just don’t know who they are. Lirel.ai shows you who’s around you professionally, right now, in your zone.

Not another LinkedIn clone. It’s proximity first and the right people are already near you, you just can’t see them yet.

I tried it on my iPhone and it seems Android is on the way. Anyone tried it? 📲

Years ago I worked as a mover. Actually one of the best jobs I've ever had, and did it for 4 years. Anyway, we were on a job and the customer asked us to bring a wood desk to the alley for disposal. As I was moving it down the stairs I could hear things moving around in the drawers. When we got to the alley I opened the top drawer and there were pencils, pens, the usual office stuff. But under a notepad was a large wad of cash. I can't remember how much it was exactly, but it was over $500. Being the non-scumbag human that I am, I brought it to the customer. They barely showed any emotion and said "oh thanks." Fast forward to the end of a long day (they had a huge house), we do the paperwork and receive our tip of 1 cheap bottle of water each. Cash tips were a common occurrence at this job and even though the more wealthy people didn't usually tip, I was appaled they tipped so poorly considering I just saved them $500+. It was a pretty disheartening experience to say the least. Part of me wishes I would have just pocketed the cash, but I wouldn't be surprised if they planted it there to see what we'd do.

From that day on I always stop to check dressers and desks people are throwing out because you never know.