50 Examples Of Horrible Bosses Saying Unhinged Things

“You need to choose between work and your family”.


Ok. Bye.

Told me that my raise was not in the budget, and that "lazy i.t." are paid enough, and we play video games all day.

He gave himself and all managers a raise a month later.

I found a better job, left, gave my two weeks and because he was cheap with i.t. lost his website, and took him a year to hire or keep anyone long enough. His company lost millions in online sales.

His company never recovered and went under.

"Can't you just be late to your other job? You have responsibilities here."

Yes, and those responsibilities end when my shift does. *You* have a responsibility to make sure the shift is adequately staffed, but I don't see you doing that.

I'm nearly 37 weeks pregnant, extremely tired, extremely uncomfortable and sore.. my boss told me to act like I want to be at work, to put on a game face and smile more.
I let the intrusive thoughts win and I lost my s**t.

Independent contractor here we renew our contracts at the beginning of each year. Was recently told to sign the contract and return it on the spot, that it should only take 10 seconds. That I have no need to read it...... Like what? Yes, I'm gonna read it.

TL;DR: Unfairly/Illegally dismissed. I sued, was gaslit and decided to turn whistleblower. Winner winner, chicken dinner.


"Your performance review was excellent, however I hate to say this but we're letting you go."

*hands me my excellent performance review letter & the dismissal letter which states my poor performance*

I thanked him, thought about it a bit over the weekend. Decided to sue them and called the company's legal rep to let them know (dumb I know).

Ex-boss called me in for a private meeting with himself and the HR director a few days after that call.

So I agreed & recorded them pretty much saying, "We're a multinational company with unlimited resources, you're just one person."

"You can't afford the legal costs."

"Just take the severance check and walk away."

That made me snap.

Went to the labor ministry's legal people, let them hear my recording(s) and showed them the damning emails I had collected over the years. Their legal team ended up representing me, pro bono.


At one point about a month or so into the case, I got a call from someone in the company who threatened to make me 'homeless'. I sent the same emails to a union the next day.

Eventually we settled out of court. But the ministry & union continued and threw the book at the company.

“We couldn’t have asked for anything more from you as an employee, but this jobs going to Taylor because he’s more of a go getter.”

I told this a*****e okay, I’ll go get another job elsewhere then and quit immediately. Exceptionally satisfying and the place has been going down in flames since I left.

Working 24 hour shifts on an ambulance. We used to get run to the ground often. On one occasion, we were running calls non stop from 8 am to midnight without a break. I called dispatch to ask for a break to get some food (there were other ambulances in service so a 20 min food break was reasonable). My boss happened to be dispatching and he denied my request and said “this is what you signed up for. Just run the calls or you’ll be written up for insubordination.” Mind you, I’ve been doing this for 5 years at that time. That’s when I realized that private ambulance sucked. I was also his “Top EMT,” and for him to say that, was the final nail in the coffin. I got a job with a hospital shortly after working as a tech. Best decision I’ve ever made.

“Your pay comes out of my pocket. You do what I say. I’m god here” he got fired lol.

I am a manager and she is my direct boss. She told me to tell a new hire “we don’t discuss wages here”. While I understand her thinking, I find making this statement and request to be wildly inappropriate.

My old boss had the nerve to tell me I needed to stop making plans on my days off so he could have me come in to work.

I was working at the Publix deli, had just started in the kitchen literally 2 days before Super Bowl, I told my manager “hey I’m gonna need some help in the kitchen in Super Bowl day or switch me with someone that has more experience” she never did. (Mind you my other manager, on such busy days would put two of the best in the kitchen together)
Day came, I went in with my redbull in hand trying to do as good as possible but I burnt myself a couple of times and I was starting to get too overwhelmed. I asked her for help and she said “you should’ve tried harder” I quit right there on the spot, bought a carton of eggs and egged the f**k out of her car.

He once told me “just do it and don’t ask questions” when i was trying to clarify something important... like dude, i’m trying not to mess it up.

My dad passed away. He had been sick, but it was still unexpected. My mom and I had long before booked a 4 week holiday, which now happened to be 1,5 months after his passing. It was perfect timing, because I was taking it all pretty badly. When I returned, I had a pretty rough time. I still showed up to work, all my coworkers were very appreciative and understanding.
Except for my boss. After my first week back, he planned a meeting in which he told me: "I really hope all that stuff with your dad finally got sorted, so you can focus on work again."
I found another job and left 4 months later.

"It's not overtime, it's extra time."

Oh yeah, reminding me that I don't get time-and-a-half is a great way to make me feel better about working extra hours.

Off the clock, on my unpaid break, I would often drive to the bank in a fairly busy shopping square about a mile away from my work. The day I had had enough and quit, an elderly woman had gently backed into me not looking while reversing out of a parking space while I was in a standstill line to turn out of the parking lot on my unpaid break. There was no damage but I was furious because I'd just gotten my car back from the body shop a few days prior and it was expensive! I didn't confront the older lady and I wasn't late getting back from my break but ranted about the situation and her lack of awareness to my coworkers when I returned and clocked back in.

My boss then popped her head around her office door and stated, "oh, no one is allowed to leave the property on break anymore, I got an email this morning from corporate that they changed the policy. It's a safety risk and things like that can make you late getting back to work too."

I demanded to see where the policy was changed and she said she would show me before I left work but she had to answer 'an important phone call' so couldn't show me right then.

A few hours later another manager told me as I was getting ready to clock out that my boss had already left for the day. I told her to consider that my final shift as they cannot dictate what I do, if I leave the property, on unpaid time. If they weren't paying me, it's my personal time. Not company time.

I never went back.

We were doing a performance review and I got a bad mark because I was “late” on an annual project. I told my boss the project was extended two months because we added a bunch of additional parameters at the last minute and showed him the emails stating the new deadline.

He said regardless i missed the initial deadline. I was done because I felt they just need something to give me a mid review.

One of my first jobs at a gas station. Had been there a few months when almost everyone up and quit and the manager was out on sick leave.

For 3 months we had 3 employees, including myself, running a gas station open from 5 AM to 11 PM with only an assistant manager.

It was hell, and it seemed like corporate just could not give a s**t. Then one day the district manager comes in and I've got Metallica playing on my phone connected to the stereo. Does this man thank us for our extremely hard work keeping this f*****g store from collapsing? Does he reassure us that help is coming or that we'll at least have a f*****g manager soon?

No, he looks at me and told us no music but the radio, turn that off. Then goes into the office and shut the door.

I swear to god my heartbeat jumped to 150 and just walked out. The drive home was such a f*****g freeing feeling.

Years ago, ok, a couple of decades ago now.... After several years of 1% and 2% raises that were not keeping up with COL but we're necessary "because the company is struggling." I found another job and gave my 2 week notice. Later that afternoon my manager pulled me into his office and offered me 15% to stay. That MF had the budget all along. I left.

"It seems to me that you just come in here, do what you're asked to, and leave. There's no "extra" in you."
Like dude, this is literally just a job, it's in the description to do what you have to, and that's it. You give me money, I give you my time.