To want to hear about your horrible bosses?

[Ezlo]

I've always got along with mine reasonably well and my standard of work has always been excellent (just been promoted for example) but my boss has started micromanaging me and demanding I do things that should be my decision (I'm of management level). If I ask him questions he can often be patronising.

The person I line manage has noticed the way he speaks to people, me included and he's making em dread work now. I used to love my job. I'm considering moving into a sideways position that's available so that I'm not micromanaged and unnecessary changes in the produce of my work is demanded by him. It's really getting me down.

I was the manager of an online shopping warehouse attached to a supermarket, so I reported at the time to the store manager. I had worked from 3am (not a typo) ~ due to finish at 12, stayed til 3 to deal with an emergency (pretty normal, looking back the hours were mad) then went home. Phone died on the way home. Recharged it to 11 missed calls, and an absolutely batshit rant against me on a group chat which included people who reported to me/peers, because there had been an IT outage in my department (completely unexpected, after I left) and was unacceptable I not immediately pick up the phone, turn round and go back (which honestly I would've done if my phone was on!) ~ he said on the message if I couldn't be bothered to check my phone then I'd just have to be there every hour my department was open - which FYI was 3am-11pm 😂

He did/demanded many insane things but that one was the worst (and what got me job hunting 😂)

I worked for a couple which later became good friends but as bosses, they were awful. I was promoted and my pay conditions changed from being pain 4-weekly to being paid monthly and I noticed on my P60 that I was several £££ short of the agreed salary. Brought it up to one of the bosses who gave me a silent treatment for a month.
Some years later we were negotiating my performance bonus which was based on business takings. She said she is going to change my targets to "being more liked by the team" instead. I asked how she proposes to outcome that in a measurable way and she gave me a silent treatment for another month. I left soon after.

Not something I personally experienced but witnessed in a job prior to that - our boss calling someone who was sick and threatening them with a termination of contract if they didn't come in to work. The person was genuinely ill, there were plenty of us to cover her workload for a day or two. As a result of this confrontation, she resigned on the spot.

Years ago at a sales job...
Manager who wouldn't provide cover during lunch break - I'd go in the kitchen area to grab my lunch (on my actual lunch break) while manager still in the office. If a client came in, manager would come over to get me, rather than deal with client himself. I smartened up after this and started spending my lunch hour away from the office.
Same manager wouldn't give me a few days annual leave when he could've easily covered, it was a personal emergency and very stressful situation for me. Next day I got a sick note for 2 weeks, suddenly he emails back asking if I'd rather take a few days annual leave...😄 I said no thanks and used up my sick note accordingly. Later was told if he'd realised how bad it was (he knew because I'd told him of course!) he would have given me time off, but apparently I hadn't "broken down" and seemed to be doing "fine" so he thought I didn't need it.

I came into work having had a miscarriage the previous day. I was still bleeding, in pain and my head was all over the place but I had 2 important meetings so I came in.

after the first meeting I was sat on my chair and suddenly felt a huge amount of pain went to the loo and was bleeding really heavily. So heavily I ended up ringing my husband to come and get me and we went to the hospital were I had a D and C. The second meeting was attended by my colleague that left them slightly short in the office but nothing that had not happened before. Everyone told me to just go.

my manager who was out of the office when it all happened rang me the next day and had a go at me for not seeing through the day and could I not have worn a thicker pad or 2 pads on top of another. I left a month later having reported a grievance to the trustees and it not being upheld because they did whatever my boss (The CEO) told them to.

So sorry, what a horrible bastard. I hope karma gets him.

@Redspottyfrog that is particularly awful. Some people don't deserve a place in humanity, let alone management.

I've had a few that were a bit scatty but basically okay, just one who was a properly dreadful person. She was very good at acting the part of the caring senior professional, mostly to get her name attached to projects and programmes that were on the wellbeing side of things. She would spend a lot of time talking about how devoted she was to it, how important it was, find ways of weaseling out of any formal supervision or evidencing of her engagement, publish articles citing everyone else's hard work, and she bullied me so quietly, thoroughly, and evilly that eventually when I went on mat leave with occupational additional pay that I was meant to pay back if I didn't return to the role, the organisation offered to write it off as a 'goodwill' gesture if I didn't return (and lodge a grievance).

Had a cardiac arrest at work. Admitted to hospital for a cardioversion. Went back to work the next day and was handed a disciplinary letter. This was my 1 and only absence. Because I had been there working for only 8 months, absence accumilated to 3 percent. Absolutely disgusting the way I was treated 😒. I left soon after.

I find my current manager intolerable and it’s actually why I am handing my notice in next week.
The job is horrendously stressful, but she is just such hard work. We have busy workloads and in every meeting she just talks and talks and talks and talks about completely irrelevant things.
During one of these rambles, she said that she didn’t believe P.Diddy was capable of rxpe because ‘he’s hot and rich - women just want money - he can rxpe me any day’. This is the content of our Wednesday afternoon meeting as a team. We were all shell shocked.
Other things include reading out messages sent between her and her boyfriend and passing notes along tables during a whole team meeting to make fun of someone’s haircut.
I honestly cannot stand her.

It was a her not a he. Not sure if that makes it worse or not

I was 23 years old - this was a very long time ago. My mum died, I took a month off of work. I am an only child and my mum was a singe parent. The team manger enjoyed micro managing. On my return, the team had been reorganised and my tasks were to deal with mail. My inbox had been organised for me. The first five items were deaths of customers.

At my annual review, the manager said ' I know your mum died this year, but isn't an excuse for your performance.' I left the room in tears, pulled myself together and went back in after 5 minutes or so to finish the meeting. She looked at me and said ' I think we'll leave it there for today, shall we.'

Dreadful woman.

I worked for a horrific boss once. She was going through a rough patch in her own life (divorce, young kids, obvious alcohol issues) and she just absolutely hated me.

Looking back it was nothing to do with me and everything to do with her. I did the right thing and walked.

She has issues!!!

Haha yes Ingrid at an insurance company I worked for. What a bitch. Always had the young ones in tears. Would give you the stink eye in the corridor or loo and look up and down at your clothes as if you were wearing a flour sack. Cancelled casual Friday because none of us knew what what casual was. She had a massive chip on her shoulder for everyone to see.

I was at the time doing a 6 person job fighting whichever fire broke out first whilst ex manager was too busy trying to shag anything moving. A sponsorship he managed and never included me in any meetings or emails caused a huge catastrophe as he used/sent me the wrong logo to use on marketing material. All material was added and printed and displayed for an event and was checked prior by him to approve before printing which was sent to him by me. Whilst he was flirting with one of the vendors at the event, all hell broke loose.

The bastard then sent me a email to berate me that it was my responsibility and it was all my fault for what had happened copying all the directors and sponsors.

I didn't reply to that email, instead packed my stuff and went home. The next morning I went back into work and sat down and wrote a long email pointing out everything how I wasn't included in any of the meetings or email chains, the file that I was sent by HIM, the marketing materials that I designed were approved by Him and how I was doing this whilst doing a 6 person job when he should have supported me instead of smoking outside all day and chatting up everyone. His incompetence shouldn't be pinned on me and attached my resignation letter that I cannot work under these circumstances and my skills and experience and mental health was being shattered by him. I sent this email as soon as he left to attend his dental appointment so he wouldn't be able to do anything about it as he was out of office with dental tools deep down his bastard mouth.

I quit my job and went into work for a better job, better pay and with a team. But obviously I was out of work for 8 months and it wasn't easy but all worth it in the end. The reference I got was from a different manager who hated this bastards guts. When I started my new job, I heard that he was fired for misconduct and ever since then he is floating between setting up companies and failing them and now sitting house partner after being rinsed by his ex wives by him cheating. He has separated from his 4th wife (vendor) and now living and doing childcare to his step kids with the ow.

My boss is great. Days off at short notice, great pay. nice car. Downside is long hours, - 7:30 - 5:30, then messages and requests come through into the evening. I am responsible for making sure the money is there to pay suppliers and have to take the flack of poor employees and complaints from customers.
The joys of being self employed

Oh and they also found out that he had been taking sneaky commissions on the side from third party agencies that he "suddenly found" after rigorous research but what he was really doing was setting up agency work for his friends/family and overpaying them from the company basically overcharging the company for these basic services and after these third party services were paid by the company, they would pay him separately off books because he set up the jobs for them. So he took a few thousand there from his printer friends, a few thousand in commissions from the web agency guys, a few thousand for the catering etc etc until he got caught. At the time I always questioned why we were working with such incompetent third party agencies and spending so much on them and how we can work find different options and even build our team which could help us grow for much cheaper,
He always declined any meeting with different agencies who wanted to work with us and who would send us amazing portfolios.

He only got caught because one of the third party agencies fell out and told his directors on what was happening lol

Had several. All women. I seem to attract them.

Worst one was a boss who appeared wholly supportive but when she ended up sick herself she sent me a four page ‘appraisal’ by email which was basically a character assassination. I ended up hyperventilating at my desk in shock. Took years to recover my destroyed self esteem.

Unbelievable, @NimbleBee I am so sorry. What did you do?

My old boss was a micromanager.

• complained that staff were using the toilet "too much" during work time and should only go on their lunch break (this rule obviously did not apply to her)

• complained staff were using "too much" soap and water when washing their hands after the toilet breaks they were not supposed to be having

• complained staff were using "too much" toilet paper. Concluded staff must be stealing it. Tried to make staff request toilet paper from her on an individual basis prior to each toilet trip

• complained when staff brought their own toilet paper in as "outside paper" could damage the pipes

• complained staff were not team players for refusing to do work not in their contracts because "we're a family, we pitch in"

• I had to leave early due to a sudden death in the family. When I came back to work the next day I was pulled in for a telling off and given an informal warning as an incident had occured after I left and I should have been there to prevent it happening (the incident was totally outside of my control and my duties had been given to a different member of staff who had managed the incident correctly/properly but it was still somehow my fault)

• was not given proper instructions for many,any tasks and was then told off for not following the instructions that had not been given

• shouted at for not using a stapler correctly, told to re-staple everything

• told off collectively and individually for private conversation had during designated breaks in designated breaks areas. Conversation was not work related but was apparently "negative subjects" (colleague was having a grumble about car repairs). Manager was not in the room so must have been listening at the door to hear it

• complained too many people using the staff room at once so lunches were staggered, then complained that the staff room was in use by consecutive members of staff over too long of a period and we should try condense lunches

• banned staff from eating anywhere except the staff room

• complained staff were going to the staff room instead of working through lunch and eating at their desks

• collectively told off for the lack of "fun, relaxed atmosphere" in the staff room

• told I was not allowed to leave when got a phone call to say DC had been taken to hospital & needed surgery. Said I was leaving anyway. Got told I need to "ask very, very nicely" (beg, basically) and it would be "considered". I left anyway. When I came back I got told I was not allowed any further emergency leave at all

• leaving for work on day, was feeling a bit dodgy, threw up on the driveway. Rang in sick (as per policy for vomiting), got shouted at on the phone for not telling them until 830 even though it was impossible for me to have told them any earlier than that as I wasn't sick until 830

• got in trouble with the union, had to go on a course to learn how to not be a bitch

• complained someone had winged to the union instead of speaking to her like an adult

My ex manager was a bully. Small in stature but twisted and created division between her junior staff, lying to each, about the other. Anyone with a difference of opinion to her was bullying her..senior managers, peers, junior staff.

Because she was a small, slightly built person, people who didn't know her couldnt/wouldn't believe that she could bully us taller, bigger people.

She had issues with so many people. Management didn't do anything, despite other disciplines having to send in extra staff staff didn't have to be on their own with her as she bullied and manipulated them. She was very smart and less than subtly threatened legal action.

Every day was a mindgames, manipulations and lies. It culminated in me eventually realising I could only change things myself, so I left. It was detrimental to me to leave, although the job I found afterwards wasn't ideal I worked for another 2 years and then retired. Best thing I ever did though, was to leave.

Before I founded my own little company, my last boss thought he could pull an Elon Musk on me and get rid of me, online, in a 6-minute ambush. That didn't work. There was so much wrong about the organisation that it wasn't hard to get a good settlement but it was a truly horrible experience that did leave me pretty scarred to be honest. Especially as I'd worked bloody hard to pull something off that they hadn't been able to do in years. But once I'd served my purpose, it was an ejector seat for me.
The lesson: never feel undue loyalty to a company. God knows 99% don't care about you - and those who do care will make it pretty clear.

I had skin cancer as a young woman and was quickly booked in for an operation to remove it.

The operation ended up being bigger than I had expected and was done under GA. It took me a long time to come round and I was kept in overnight.

I was due to work a weekend a few days after the operation and had expected to be back, so I hadn’t swapped my shifts. I ended up being off for another week afterwards as the wound had opened up.

On my return, I was soundly told off for not having swapped my weekend on the grounds that “it was perfectly obvious you wouldn’t be back”. I asked why, if it was so obvious, nobody had suggested I do it. Apparently, they considered me an adult and it wasn’t their job.

I was 23 and had just been told I had cancer. It still shocks me to think about it now.

@poetryandwine thank you. It was an awful time made even worse by managers with no common sense. I Stayed took the absence warning in disciplinary was going to put a grievance in but felt to ill to.
I still had finance to pay on my car, I stayed till that was payed and found work else where, with employers that show compassion.

My parent died within a short time of each other and I was called in for an absence meeting to discuss my attendance levels. ( side note I literally had 2 weeks off for each parent). She asked if I had anything to say and I said yes write down I've no parents left to die. I was absolutely furious

When I was 17 I worked at a clothes shop while doing my A Levels. There were lots of us young girls working there as a weekend job. The manager would openly talk about her sex life in great detail and ask whether you were a virgin in front of everyone else.