Yahoo Lifestyle 18 Workers Who Said "Not Today, Satan!" And Left Their Brand-New Jobs The Second They Clocked How Toxic They Were
We recently covered this Reddit thread where folks shared why they stormed out of their brand-new jobs on the first day. BuzzFeed Community members then chimed in with their own related stories. Here are some of the wildest:
1."I accepted a contract-to-hire position at a book publishing house in college. The owner was a very successful author himself. I was a journalism major and thought it would be a good experience. I think they hired five people in total. I showed up on the first day, and we would meet the owner so he could go over the company, etc. Now, mind you, I had already accepted the job at an hourly wage plus commission. About 30 minutes into my orientation, the owner said everyone would start on a two-week trial period, and if you did well, you could get hired. Oh yeah, those first two weeks were unpaid. I got up and walked out. I don't know why anyone would agree to that!"
2."I got a job at 15 at a hot dog stand for the summer. I was excited! I, of course, thought I would be working the booth and interacting with all the teenagers over the summer break. On day one, I was asked to pick up all the cigarette butts out front. No gloves. They told me I could just wash my hands after. There were about 2,000 square feet of white rocks, and a third of the space was just discarded cigarettes. I tried for about an hour, then just walked home."
—Anonymous
3."After graduating from technical school with a degree in drafting, I got my first job. I was hired by a cabinet installer. On my first day, he looked over my shoulder the entire time. He told me he was a Christian and asked me if I was. He asked me personal questions, like if I had a boyfriend and how it was immoral to have relations. I was 25 and had several previous jobs and several after, but he was so creepy I finished the day and never returned. I never got paid. He insisted I had to come in person to get my check, but I refused to go back. It wasn't that much money. However, at the end of that year, he mailed my W-2 form."
—Anonymous
4."I got a server job at a now-defunct restaurant called Po' Folks. When training with another server, I learned I was supposed to say, 'What can I get you for a belly washer?' when asking customers what they wanted to drink. I noped right out of there, and they tried to say I couldn't quit because I was on the schedule."
5."I took an office job answering phones that ended up being all telemarketing. It was run by Jehovah's Witnesses who worked 24/7/365, zero days off, and ONLY had one 30-minute lunch. You weren't allowed to use the bathroom unless a supervisor gave you the OK first. Didn't last beyond the first day."
6."In high school, I got a job at a dry cleaner. The owner showed me how to clock in, and I did and followed her into the main area. She told me not to touch anything until I was trained on each piece of equipment. A few moments later, a customer came in. The owner told me to get his order. I told her I didn't know how the moving racks worked yet and asked if she could show me. She started screaming at me in front of the customer, telling me I was 'stupid' and 'useless' and to do what she told me. I went over and looked at the controls, trying to figure them out. She turned and started screaming again because I was touching a machine I had not been trained on. I was crying at this point and told her I was leaving."
"She followed me to the back, and I went to clock out. She started screaming again because I clocked in, and she never paid new people for at least a week because it was all training. I was there for not even two hours and was screamed at almost the entire time."
7."I took a temp job that was supposed to be helping to test train cars. The job entailed loading 100-pound sandbags on the train cars to simulate rider weight. Hundreds of 100-pound sandbags. I quit after the first day because I couldn't move the second day after loading hundreds of bags on the train cars."
8."I was hired at a well-known, high-end salon and day spa. While waiting for clients, I tried to get familiar with where supplies and products were kept. At first glance, the place looked nice, but up close, in cabinets and drawers, the place was so dirty! A complete disaster! I lasted three hours. I told management that the lack of cleanliness was very concerning. I couldn't see charging clients top-dollar for waxing services with stray hairs floating in dirty wax pots."
—Anonymous
9."One of my first jobs was as a nurse at a nursing home. Two hours into my shift, one of the residents in my hall fell out of bed and had a nasty bruise and lump on his head. I reported this to my supervisor so they could alert the family and send him to the ER for evaluation. She said no, they'd just watch what happens. I went to the nursing station, clocked out, left my badge, went to my car, and called 911. I waited until they got there and then left with the resident."
10."During my summer home from college, I got a job at a fast food place that was known for its cinnamon rolls. I arrived at 4 a.m. and was shown a five-minute video of someone making cinnamon rolls. Afterward, the supervisor returned, turned off the video, told me they needed 50 dozen rolls per hour and then left. The video had no measurements; it just showed someone dumping stuff in a blender. After the first hour was over, the supervisor returned and wanted to know why I hadn't produced a single cinnamon roll. I quit on the spot."
—Anonymous
11."As an 18-year-old, I started a job as a roller skating waitress at Sonic Burger in TX. They asked me to change into a low-cut blouse and short shorts, but I refused as the other waitresses were not wearing that attire. So, instead, they gave me a scrub brush and told me to scrub out the dumpster in the back of the store. I said no thank you and walked out."
—Anonymous
12."I (F23) am a certified personal trainer (ACE) and was hired at a franchised gym that offered personal training as a perk. On day one, the franchisee/manager told me I needed to dress sexier to get the 'rich clients.' He also literally called 'dibs' whenever a female client under 40 came in. Finally, he showed people dangerous and incorrect ways to exercise. He laughed at me for not knowing my stuff when I brought it up and stepped in to demonstrate the correct method. I peaced out right away and called the franchisers about his horrible and dangerous behavior."
—Anonymous
13."I once applied for a position at UPS. On my first day, I was tasked to work in a trailer with no air and no available water, and I was expected to move efficiently without much of a bathroom break. I remember being told I could go home not even two hours in because it was my first day, and I never returned. They also charged $276 on your first paycheck to join the Teamsters Union, which I declined, but it made no difference. Needless to say, warehouses suck."
—Anonymous
14."I was hired to check IDs at the entrance of a bar. At the end of the night, I was told I had to clean the restrooms. The men's urinal was particularly disgusting, with cigarette butts, bottle caps, and other junk. I quit when I found a hole in the thick gloves they gave me to wear while cleaning."
—Anonymous
15."I got a job at Taco Bell when I was 18. As a promotional deal for my dad's girlfriend, she got $100 for every person she sent their way. I was there for 11 minutes; I still have the $7.00 check proving the total amount of minutes worked. I couldn't make it past the training video. I tell people it's because I saw my new boss touch everything with the same pair of gloves, starting with the trashcan (who needs to grab the whole can?), then dirty sink water, and then all the food items. I overheard the 40-year-old women complaining about having to kick their high boyfriends out of their trailer houses."
"I had a shocking moment of clarity, and it was the most intense feeling of 'you do not want this for your life.' I walked straight out without saying a single word. I'm not better than anybody, and I haven't done great, wonderful things with my life 10 years later, but I sure as hell ain’t working at Taco Bell either."
—Anonymous
16."I worked for an LVMH hotel (Cheval Blanc) right after the COVID-19 peak, and one of my coworkers was on leave because they tested positive. The general manager came to the office annoyed by her absence, saying, 'My husband and I both got COVID, and we were fine. People should stop exaggerating,' then looked to another colleague who came to work with a high fever and had been coughing while working. They caught the GM's attention, who said, 'Happy to see your hard work. To thank you, I will treat the entire department to breakfast at the restaurant.' I asked colleagues about the situation, and they said, 'Oh, during the peak season, we were all coughing and pretty sure we had COVID, but they forbid us from getting tested because that was our busy season.'"
"Those people were working in housekeeping and food and beverage, contaminating guests for money. I resigned on the spot. They told me they invested in me by hiring me, to which I responded that the notice period was not only for them to see if I fit the job but also for us as employees to know if the company was good enough to work for, which was absolutely not the case."
—Anonymous
17."Where I used to live, there was a very popular cafe that had been around for about 40 years until the original owners retired and sold it. I took a kitchen job there under the new management. It was a mess. They had too many people in the kitchen, and I had nothing to do, so they sent me to help the waitresses with side work. One of them was complaining the entire time about how much the place sucked. She ended up getting salty with the new owner and walking out. I lasted a few days before I realized the job was not tenable. I'd worked in kitchens before, but this was so poorly run that I didn't think it would stay open much longer."
"An old job offered me a temp gig covering someone's maternity leave, so on the third day, I told the kitchen manager that I needed to quit because I found something else. He told me to go tell the owner. The owner did not even know who I was. Several months later, the restaurant closed for good. Now, it's a parking lot."
18.And: "In high school, I got a job for a lawn service company, making cold calls to customers asking if they wanted to sign up for lawn services (landscaping, mowing, etc). Our manager gave us a stack of phone numbers and names and had us call during dinner (when he said people would usually be home). I must have called over 100 names without one sign-up. I was mostly cursed and yelled at for calling during dinner and had many hang-ups. Not one of us 'sales reps' made a sale. My manager then yelled at us for not pushing hard enough. I decided being cursed and yelled at for $8/hour wasn't worth it. I said I was going to the bathroom and didn't return."
Have you ever quit a crappy job within the first day, week, or pay period? What made you walk out? Tell us in the comments or share anonymously using this form.
Note: Submissions have been edited for length and/or clarity.
