14 Poor Souls Who Were Excited To Start Their New Job, Only To Realize They Needed To Quit Immediately

Sometimes, a job sounds great on paper, but once you actually start, it might not be what you thought. People on Reddit who quit their jobs on the first day shared the moment they knew they needed to quit — it happens sometimes. Here is what some shared:

1."I worked in a hotel for a day. No one told me where anything was. I got chewed out for it. Guests enjoying their meals told me to pay no mind/that I was doing a good job, and that my boss was a jerk. I told the manager I was quitting and wouldn't do the next shift. I arrived the next day, returning a work uniform, and my supervisor approached me and yelled at me for being late. I told her I already quit, but if I was working, technically, I was five hours early for my shift. Absolute nutcases."

A modern office desk with a clipboard and pen, positioned in front of large windows showing an outdoor urban scene. Sunflowers and books are on the desk
Bongkarnthanyakij / Getty Images

2."I used to work at a craft store as a cashier but quit when I moved. I returned a couple of years later to make some extra cash, but this time in the framing department. During the interview, they swore up and down that I would only ever be a backup cashier because I said I refused to have full cashier shifts. The first shift after the interview is listed as framing, but I’m put on cash and told that most of my shifts would be cash since they’d found someone else for framing. I spent the next six hours giving everyone who came to my register 20% off of everything and never returned."

u/Katy-L-Wood

3."I applied for a job at my longtime favorite restaurant (I celebrated my birthday there every year). The owner asked me to come in for basically a tryout, and as I communicated, I was looking at other job possibilities. I came in, and they just stuck me on dishwashing for an hour, no biggie. Then their dishwasher didn't show up, so the kitchen manager asked me to stay one for their lunch rush, saying I'd get paid for the hours. The kitchen staff was nice, so I was happy to help, even though I figured I'd be taking a different job. I filled out a time card at the end of the shift and told the manager I probably wouldn't be back; he understood and thanked me for the help."

A commercial kitchen with multiple stainless steel appliances and cooking stations. A chef is working in the background

4."I took a summer job at a textile plant, and the trainer said, 'Forget about taking a break if you want to stay caught up.'

u/p38-lightning

5."My very first job was at a little drive-in restaurant close to my high school. I showed up to work the first day, the lady said I had to pay her $50 for training. She showed me around the place and said that my pay would be $4.50/hour as a carhop (this was in 2010), and all the tips I made went into a bucket with all the other girls’ tips. At the end of the night, she counted up tips, kept 20% for herself, and split the rest up evenly among EVERY employee. Also, part of our job was we had to spend four hours cleaning her house one day a week. It seemed super shady. I literally left after listening to her go over all these rules. My dad was pissed until I explained, and another girl confirmed, and my dad agreed I did the right thing."

u/tlr92

6."When I was 20 or so I got hired to be a temporary floor member for Forever21 during the holiday season. My training started a week before Black Friday so the store was already kind of in chaos. On my first day of training, I walked in, and the floor manager gave all the new hires a tour, showing us the facility and layout of the store. After this, I was assigned to a veteran floor member to shadow and get an idea of what my job was and what my duties would be. As soon as I was assigned, the manager dipped never to be seen again. An hour and a half into my shift, my shadowee got an emergency family call and had to take off for a week. When this happened, I found anotheer floor manager and explained the situation, and asked them who else I should shadow. The manager's response was, 'Just do what you can by yourself. You’ll be fine; everyone else is busy.' I figured I’ll try."

The image shows the entrance of a Forever 21 retail store in a shopping mall. The storefront displays clothing and mannequins through the glass windows

7."I interviewed for a 'professional marketing assistant' and got the job immediately. I was under the impression that I would be an assistant to the man I was interviewed by. When I showed up for my first day, the same waiting room I was in the previous day was FULL of people. I quickly learned that we were all hired and that I would be a door-to-door salesperson selling some pretty useless shit. I spent my entire day inside a Starbucks applying for other jobs, went home, and got paid, but I never returned."

u/unelune

8."‘Salesman’ for Kirby vacuums. The first sale call was to a single elderly woman supporting her son in the hospital (they got us in the door by offering a free carpet cleaning as a demonstration). The supervisor training me pushed me to make the sale until this old woman was in tears. Just as she was about to sign the paperwork I asked if she actually wanted to vacuum and she said it was lovely but she couldn’t afford it. I took the paperwork away from her and said not to worry. Outside I told the supervisor I quit to which he replied I would’ve been fired anyway. No love lost. I hung around for half an hour playing on my phone to ensure the supervisor left because he was a real piece of work."

A person wearing blue socks vacuuming a wooden floor with a canister vacuum
Johner Images / Getty Images/Johner RF

9."I once went for a job interview as a security guard. A man and a woman asked me my name, asked me how strong I was, and then hired me and asked me to start immediately. That started alarm bells ringing. Two questions in an interview, and I am employed and working with no discussion about anything else."

Warehouse aisle with tall shelves filled with boxes, pallets, and packages, representing storage and logistics in a work and money context

10."I technically quit before my first day. I got hired at a well-known gift store. I was hired with the understanding that I would work Saturdays, Sundays, and a grand total of eight hours a week (so two 4-hour shifts). Also, at minimum wage. Not a problem with me, done that before, I would just pick up a part time job for rest of the week. Nope, apparently, that wasn't allowed. The manager thought that was horrible and 'disrespectful' to her. I should only work for them, and only them, and I should have better control over my money if I can't survive on $64 a week before taxes. I didn't show up after that. She called, pissed off that I wouldn't show up to such an opportunity."

u/Hall5885

11."I answered an ad for a babysitting job. I was already working casually, but it was sporadic, so I thought some after-hours babysitting would welcome extra cash. The couple were both in the military and proceeded to tell me that I would be staying in the spare room and looking after their 6-month-old child around the clock, as well as doing the housework. I would have one day off every two weeks. They said it was cash in hand, so I could sign onto the dole (unemployment benefit) to make up the rest of the money. I left on the spot. They wanted a live-in housemaid and nanny, not a babysitter, and they were not able to pay for one. Why they thought it was up to me to collect the dole to subsidize them illegally, I don't know."

u/battleangelred

12."It was a waitress gig for a local restaurant. I finished my first day, then was told that training would continue for six weeks. While I was in training, all of the tips I got had to be given to my trainer. I was being paid less than $2 an hour. I called the next day and said it wasn't gonna work out."

Close-up of a server holding a black check presenter at a restaurant
Ftiare / Getty Images/iStockphoto

13."It was my first day at Five Guys. It was around 10:30 PM, and they told me it was time to clock out despite not having finished closing. I then worked until almost midnight. I did not return."

u/thelonecedar

14."Young and naïve right out of college, I took a 'marketing' job. My interview was great, nothing shady seemed to be going on, and there were no immediate red flags. After four hours of training, my first day consisted of going door to door in a suburban town, trying to sell cable to older people. We were told to dress for business, so I’m hiking around for miles in my best skirt, suit jacket, and heels. Hours were from '9-5' but we didn’t get back to the business until well after 10 p.m. Not to mention, the person I was shadowing could make a sale to an older gentleman who seemed to have memory issues. I noped the fuck right out of there."

u/Facetiously_Serious

Did you ever quit a job as quickly as you started? If so, share it with me in the comments below!