"I Clocked Out For Lunch And Didn’t Come Back": People Who Quit Their Jobs On The Spot Are Sharing The Breaking Point That Led To Their Decision, And I'm On Their Side 1,000%
We asked members of the BuzzFeed Community to tell us about the toxic jobs they quit on the spot. Their stories are INFURIATING, so buckle up, folks.
Warning: Post contains mention of animal abuse.
1."My mom had a stroke, and when I told my boss I needed some time off, she responded with, 'You still have a responsibility to work.' I mailed my keys and told her where to shove it because my mom's life comes before anything. The nerve...it still makes me so angry!"
2."I worked security at night as a second job, and I had to drive around all night long, as well as doing some foot patrols. After I clocked in and took my things to the patrol car, I couldn't get the car to start. My boss asked me to use my own personal car until we got the patrol car fixed. I agreed, as long as I could use the company credit card for fuel. On payday, I noticed my check was extremely low, and when I asked my boss about it, she said I needed to pay back all charges on the credit card because I was 'not an authorized user' and it was theft. I walked out immediately."
—Anonymous
3."I worked in contract sales at a lumber supply store, and one day the general manager came into my office, leaned over, and placed both hands on my desk. He asked me what I did with the $200 worth of door locks that were missing from the inventory. He accused me of stealing them, so I quit on the spot. All of the office furniture was mine, so I proceeded to carry it out into the parking lot. I called my son to come and pick me up. The locks were in a storage closet beside my office under the stairwell — the place where they were always kept. I went to the business's competition and took $3,000,000 in contractor business with me."
—Anonymous
4."The owner of the mom-and-pop store I managed amused himself by being horrible to us all. One day, I passed by an accident on my way to work, realized it was my fiancé's car, and turned around. The medic told me he was still alive but unconscious, and they didn't know the extent of injuries yet. They told me where they were taking him, so I followed them in my car. I called the owner crying while following the ambulance, and said I wasn't coming in that day and told him why. He said if I didn't come to work the very next day, he'd 'wreck my ass as bad as my fiancé just wrecked his own ass!' Direct quote. I will remember it forever. I hung up and never went back to work."
—Anonymous
5."My final straw was during lockdown (2020–2021 specifically). I had a close family member tragically pass away due to COVID. Since we all had to remain in our 'bubbles,' we had to mourn and grieve separately. My job turned remote and required me (without pay or reimbursement for gas) to travel around the city. I had to remain alone in my own bubble so I didn't bring anything home to my family. On top of that, since I was going to different locations, I faced aggression and racism as an Asian woman."
"My mental health was deteriorating rapidly from everything going on, and when I told people at my job, I was still harshly criticized and ridiculed for my work during a meeting. This was three days after my sibling passed away. I barely ate or slept, but I JUST HAD to get the data right. It's not a life-or-death kind of job, either. Data was rounded to 100. I was mentally done with that job and looked for another the same week."
—Anonymous
6."After months of no administrative support, I walked out of a high school science class after the students simultaneously all threw pencils at me while giving class instruction. Every time I told the principal about the semester-long disrespect from students, she responded with, 'Yell at them,' 'It's a low-level course, so what do you expect?' or, 'I just don't believe that behavior would happen.' I began to gradually bring home personal items, and by the day the pencils flew, I had enough. So, I went to the office, resigned, and never looked back."
—Anonymous
7."I worked at a dog grooming place for one day. My job was to give the dogs baths and dry them, and there were about five other, older employees back there with me. I have never seen such blatant animal abuse in my life. The dogs were SCREAMING. The other employees would squirt shampoo and water straight into their eyes. The dogs were so desperate to escape the tub, they were pulling at the leashes until they literally choked. I got yelled at for not getting a Pomeranian dry enough, and the groomer took the dog herself and blasted it with hot, concentrated air. The dog obviously flipped out and started screaming and biting while trying to get away. She put the drying hose directly against the dog's skin, and the air was so hot it hurt my own hands. I quit that day and never went back."
8."I worked for a contractor who would accept payments from customers without ever following up or completing the project. I took phone calls for the contractor, and all day, I’d have people yelling at me over the phone because of my contractor's behavior. One of these customers wanted to get a lawyer involved, and after informing my boss numerous times, they went through with the lawsuit. The contractor and his mom tried to blame me for it! I quit right then and there, as I was tired of being disrespected by the customers, my coworkers, and my supervisor."
—Anonymous
9."Back in 2021, I was working at a gas station. I had been there for roughly seven months. Our manager got fired, and a new one was hired. In September, my best friend's mom passed away from COVID complications. She was like a second mom to me, so it devastated me, not to mention my best friend. I requested off for a couple days to go be with my best friend and to go to the funeral. The day of the funeral, the manager started blowing up my phone asking me if I could come in, why I didn't get my shift covered, and if the funeral was more important than my job. I called the store and quit right after I read her message."
—Anonymous
10."I worked at a terrible restaurant in high school. One day, I had an argument with management over them skipping my seating section. I started to get irritated and turned to walk away, then my manager grabbed my arm, pulled me back toward them quite roughly, and said, 'Where do you think you’re going when I’m talking?' I gently pried her hand off me and said with a death glare, 'Not back to work, and don’t ever touch me again,' then I took off my smock, dropped it at her feet, and walked out. There was only one other server that day, so the manager got stuck picking up tables. That could've been avoided if she hadn’t skipped me multiple times in the first place. My boss had the audacity to call me the next day and ask why I wasn’t at work and say that he thought I would get over this 'minor incident.' I’m usually much more professional now, but in high school, I was a little less. I told him to F off and lose my number."
—Anonymous
11."I was reprimanded for not upselling a 98-year-old woman (who clearly was not in her right mind) a 'five-year plan.' I told them I was uncomfortable trying to manipulate her out of her money, and their response was, 'Your morals got in the way of our sale.' Technically, I was fired during this conversation, but if I had not been, I would have quit. Thanks for the unemployment, you dishonest, manipulative, money-hungry a-holes."
12."We were at the work Christmas party. Now, my boss had never been the nicest guy, but I always put that behind a strict work ethic. Turns out, he was just an a-hole. The party was hosted at my house, and my boss proceeded to simply go off about how awful it was, and then made very insensitive jokes about my wife’s artworks. I excused myself to go to the bathroom, but I actually went straight to the computer in the bedroom to email him my two weeks' notice."
—Anonymous
13."I worked at a pet store for one summer, and the amount of dead animals we had to deal with daily was unreal. We had a full-size freezer that we kept all the dead pets in, and after a while, I started having nightmares about them. But, that’s not why I quit. One day, a lady came in with her dog and took the dog's leash off, which is not allowed. The dog must’ve cut its foot on something because it tracked blood ALL OVER the store. The dog then proceeded to liquid poo on the ground, and when I was asked to clean it up, I literally clocked out and said I was going on break. I got back from my 15-minute lunch break and put in my two weeks' notice, then requested the next two weeks off work. LOL, never again."
—Anonymous
14."I worked at a healthcare company as a nurse coach on the phone. My immediate supervisor (team leader) was out having knee surgery. The other team leader called me in and told me I had to email her to go to the bathroom. I thought this very punitive. I was the best worker on my team, excelling in calls and client satisfaction. I cleaned out my desk immediately. I left and never looked back. I have two degrees, raised two highly-functioning children by myself (my husband left me with a 5-year-old and 2-week-old), kept a clean house and yard, and I did NOT need to ask permission to go to the bathroom during a job that was not critical. It took HR more than 30 days to contact me after I left."
—Anonymous
15."I was working for a 5-star bed and breakfast as a front desk associate. I had an excellent rapport with the guests, and I thought the owners/managers felt similarly. The owners/managers left for a very busy weekend to go camping, and I was left all alone to run the entire B&B and handle the happy hour. They had the audacity to watch me every second on their closed circuit camera and complained to me upon their return saying that I had spent too much time conversing with the guests. I ended up ending happy hour 15 minutes late. They printed out every screenshot of me for two hours and presented me with 20+ pages of photos of me helping the guests, pouring wine samples for them, finding church services for them on Sunday, getting dinner reservations for the guests, etc. I was very busy, but kept my cool and kept all the guests happy."
"The owner found little things that I did wrong — like not shutting down happy hour on time (15 minutes late) and spending too much time at the counter — yet I was helping guests with dinner reservations and wine tours. I ended up leaving 15 minutes past my shift. I had over 22 couples, which is a full house. I was even able to get the entire kitchen cleaned and cleaned everything for happy hour so the B&B looked extra nice. I was also able to prep for breakfast for the next day. We were short-staffed and very busy, but I handled it with a positive attitude and kept the guests happy.
When I came back to work on Tuesday and the owner had this thick bundle of paper with every possible screenshot of me, I was so embarrassed and thought it was so creepy. I have worked in other hotels, and I otherwise do not mind the camera on me because it's there for my protection as well! He confronted me like I had made all these mistakes. I called my husband and talked with him about the situation. I finished my shift and then verbally quit. I told the owner/manager/my boss why, and he seemed surprised. Every five to six months, he has an opening for the front desk associate role. Gosh, I wonder why?!"
—Anonymous
16."While working at a big box store, a customer asked me to go to the backroom and get her an iPhone. After informing the customer we were out of stock and did not have any more on the way, she asked me to make her an iPhone. I informed her we were not responsible for building iPhones, as they are manufactured elsewhere. She called me a liar and stormed off. I clocked out for lunch and didn’t come back."
—Anonymous
17."The stakes were low since I had just graduated from college and was still living with my parents, but I had worked at a card store in high school and part of college. Once my college internship ended, I went back to the card store while I tried to find a job. The owner had always been cheap, but he was on another level by this point. He wanted us to turn the register tape over and use the other side (which, if you know anything abut older registers, once they unravel, they don't fit back into the machine) and hang up the paper towels we used to dry our hands in the bathroom so they could dry and be reused. I refused to do either. He was in the back once and confronted me about it. He said if I didn't like it, I could leave, so I did."
18."I was 17 and working at a pizza place. The owner was a complete POS. You know the guy who gives himself an Italian name to make it seem like the food is authentic? The guy who has his wife work 12-hour days and doesn't pay her? Yeah, that type of POS. I worked until 1:00 a.m. most nights and had to be on the bus for school at 5:00 a.m. I dealt with this for months. Here's the thing: When I was hired, I was told (we all were) that credit card tips were going to be put on our checks. They never were. After a long week, I messed up an order (rang up a lasagna instead of a spaghetti), and the owner was like, 'I'm taking it out of your check!' I responded with, 'No, take it out if my credit card tips!' He says, 'No, those aren't yours.' I quit right then and there."
"I confirmed with multiple people (accountants, tax consultants, actual restaurant owners, etc.) that they were, in fact, mine. I went in to get my final check and demanded those tips. He said no, and I threatened to report him. I got my money a week later and still reported him."
—Anonymous
19."We were in the process of switching managers, and we had our first meeting with our new manager. When I asked her for clarification on something, she told me she wouldn't be answering my questions. Then, when I looked stunned, she said if I didn't like it, I could go to HR. Within 48 hours, I had found a new job. My boss now is amazing, so it was for the best, but I hope that karma will get that woman."
20."I was working retail at the time. In short, I was called a 'Motherfu****' by a toddler. When I told his mother about what he had called me, she became irate with me for bringing it to her attention. She called my manager over to complain about me. My manager ordered me to apologize to the woman for upsetting her by telling her that her kid called me a foul name. After the woman left, my manager told me that I had to learn how to 'bend over and take it.' I walked out mid-shift and never looked back. I heard that the manager went through 'retraining,' but still has his job. SMH."
—Anonymous
21."I once was hired as an assistant general manager for a hotel. When I interviewed and when I started, I made it clear my expertise was in customer facing roles (front desk, sales & marketing, etc.), and the general manager was clear that she was an expert in housekeeping and maintenance. We had an understanding that we would focus on our areas of expertise to build things up again after the pandemic. The next day, she gave me a list of rooms to do housekeeping service for because she 'didn’t want to do them that day.' I did the rooms and left my keys on her desk before heading home, along with a note saying, 'I’m out!'"
—Anonymous
22."I was a hostess at a new restaurant. My boss’s wife was super pregnant, and he was freaking out on me. He was constantly putting managerial duties onto me; answering all the phone calls, running around to ask the tables how they were doing, checking the music, etc. My final straw was the day that he said, 'My wife is gonna go into labor any day now, and I don’t know if I can trust to leave you here if you can’t handle it.' I was 16 and was in school AND worked an internship full-time. Right then, I knew my help wasn’t needed, so I said, 'Sorry then, I guess you don’t need me.' As I walked away, his phone rang, and his wife was going into labor."
—Anonymous
23."My boss quit, and I took on his job, so I asked for a pay raise. The company refused and said they would reassess in three months. My notice period is three months. I handed in my notice the following week."
—Anonymous
24."I got scheduled five hours one week when I worked full time. They had been cutting my hours down gradually due to overstaffing. I quit via text with no notice."
25."I worked as a medical assistant for a podiatry group. The owners were shady and cheap AF — like, they used Skype instead of paying for actual phones in the offices. They also asked us to lie about patient info on registration forms, and one of the doctors was practicing with an expired license. But, the clincher was when my stepdaughter came home from a year deployment as a combat medic and they wouldn’t let me off to pick her up at the airport. I worked there for less than a year, and it was easily the worst job I’ve ever had."
26."I worked for a charity shop chain for six years. Where to start? There was obvious favoritism toward people, unfair quotas, and comparing the work of people who had all been at the store different lengths of time. When I grasped how far behind things were, I repeatedly told my bosses that with the amount of new work that needed to be done, I wasn't going to be able to catch up, especially since I was new. The compliance boss DID help to some extent, but the sales boss only gave me tips on how to cut corners and did nothing else to provide support. Fun fact: If I cut corners on something and got busted for it in an audit, it meant possible JAIL and HUGE fines for me! To make matters even worse, the sales boss's idea of 'motivating' me was to tell me repeatedly that we could NOT afford to fail the audit again this year, and that if we DID, it would mean me getting fired!"
"After about six to eight months of this, I had made some progress, but I had been blunt each time I was asked if we were going to pass the audit. I told them I didn't think we would. I should also note, not only was I working a 40-hour week plus nights and weekends, but I was having stress-related anxiety attacks and getting skin rashes. Then came the inevitable morning that the auditor showed up (they do not announce when they are coming). I got a call to come in early so I could respond to the auditor's requests for records and answer their questions. I said okay, then hung-up and thought about it. After considering the ordeal I had already been going through, I imagined exactly how horrific the audit itself would be, and topped that off with the likelihood that I would be the scapegoat and get fired. I saw no reason to subject myself to any further torture. I called my sales boss back to tell him I would NOT be coming in early. In fact, I told him, I will not be coming in ever again, and wished them luck with the audit.
I never followed up on the outcome of audit, but I'm sure they failed, and I'm sure they got fined. Or, maybe they used me quitting as an excuse that got them some kind of leniency. Thankfully, I did not suffer any blowback from whatever the audit occasioned. Being a very conscientious person, I felt a little guilty about leaving that way, but they literally brought it on themselves, and I will never forget the relief of knowing all that was behind me and how awesome it felt to stand up for myself!"
—Anonymous
27."I was doing work that was spread out among two to three people in other divisions. Every time I would bring this up to my boss and ask for us to take some time to re-evaluate my workload, she would always blow me off and tell me to figure it out. I went home every night and cried from frustration. The final straw was during a meeting where she began openly criticizing me in front of my coworkers and the VP of our division, including questioning my intelligence. I knew then and there that I had no desire to stay. I wrote my three-sentence resignation letter that night, cleaned out my cubicle the next morning, and called my boss when I got back home to let her know that it was my last day. She seemed genuinely shocked, and then had the audacity to tell me that she was sad to see me go. Whatever. In the end, it worked out because I got a job that I love, and most importantly, a boss who values me."
—Anonymous
28."A small business owner needed help with bookkeeping. It was 12 hours a week and good money. I had to share his desk and computer, so I usually worked while he was at another location. He was very behind on filing, so I spent the first few weeks organizing and filing stacks of papers. On the fifth week, once everything was organized, he decided to have me work on his store inventory sheets and find the price we paid from the vendor. He pulled out a binder from a shelf to show me what it should look like when it was done, then LEFT to go to the other office. I worked on it as best I could for the time I was there, but I had a bunch of questions. When he came back to lock his office at the end of my time, he was NOT very pleased with my progress. Mind you, he was 18 months behind!! What did he expect me to get done in three hours? At 7:30 that night, he called to yell at me for leaving the binder out on the desk. I went in and quit the next day."
—Anonymous
29.Finally: "I worked at a pizza restaurant for almost four years. I started as a host and worked my way to back-of-house and front-of-house supervisor. I quickly became one of the senior people there. I went on maternity leave, and when I came back, we had a new GM. Before I get into what made me quit, I should tell you, our shifts never ended at a specific time. It just depended on how busy or slow we were and how quickly we got our tasks done. However, we would always be able to generally gauge what time we would be able to leave, give or take. Nothing too extreme. Well, when I came back, this new GM had the audacity to make a game out of this. His new method for excusing employees for the end of shift was 'Guess a number between 1–100, and whoever guesses closest gets to go home first,' and then sequential order of guesses would determine who left next."
"As a new mom who was back to working full-time, I was NOT happy with this. My time had been trivialized down to this a-hole's game. There were other parents who were employees, too, who did not take to this method. He was young and in college and had no grasp of what family responsibilities were, and certainly did not respect them. So, after years of my hard work and effort to become a manager at this place, I quit. I got a new job immediately."
—Anonymous
Have you ever quit a toxic job on the spot? What was your final straw?? Tell us in the comments! 👀
Note: Submissions have been edited for length and/or clarity.
