When our supervisors and managers implement new policies at work, we are usually expected to smile and begin following the rules without asking any questions. Management assumes they know best, so why would they listen to their simple employees, right? Well, as one company recently found out, sometimes having workers blindly follow rules can lead to a huge mess, or a massive loss in profits.
Below, you’ll find a story that Reddit user Tbross11 recently shared on the Malicious Compliance subreddit detailing how he cost his company hundreds of thousands of dollars by simply obeying the rules. Enjoy reading this tale, as well as some of the replies the post received, and then feel free to share your own thoughts in the comments below. Have you ever taught your managers a lesson by maliciously complying to their policies? If so, we'd love to hear about it, and then if you’re interested in reading another Bored Panda article featuring an employee following company policy to the detriment of their boss, look no further than right here.
This employee caused a huge loss in profits at his company, simply by following a strict "no overtime" policy enacted by management
Image credits: Glenn Carstens-Peters (not the actual photo)
Image credits: Jordan Harrison (not the actual photo)
Image credits: tbross11
Most of us don’t want to work overtime if we don’t have to. 40 hours a week is plenty, and we want to be able to enjoy our personal lives, nurture our relationships and spend quality time with our families. But overtime is typically not a regular component of most of our jobs; it’s a tool that can be used when necessary and allows workers to earn at least 50% more during those hours. According to the Society for Human Resource Management, the four main reasons for using overtime are to have 24/7 coverage of a position, to account for workload fluctuations, staff variations and labor market considerations.
In general, however, overtime has a negative connotation. As Timely notes on their site, there are various problems that can arise with employees having to work overtime including: having an overstretched workforce, poor project estimation or time management, unrealistic client expectations, communication breakdown, and toxic company culture. In the case of this story on Reddit, management was not trying to take advantage of their employees by forcing them to work overtime, which can easily become an issue in many workplaces, but they were still treating their employees poorly.
By forcing a small number of employees to complete a great amount of work all within a strict window of time, these supervisors were adding stress and impossible expectations to their workers’ shifts. In this case, working overtime would have actually been beneficial. I’m sure the staff members would not have wanted to be away from their families any longer than necessary, but a few hours of overtime here and there, where you get to earn “time and a half” or “double time” can be a great perk. Plus, this allows employees to complete their tasks to the best of their abilities, rather than leaving their colleagues and supervisors scrambling when their job is left unfinished at the end of the day.
Managers have to understand exactly what their employees are capable of completing during their working hours, and if overtime is necessary to keep the ship up and running smoothly, they must be willing to compensate their employees accordingly. I’m sure TBross11’s supervisors learned their lesson and are rethinking their “no overtime” policy now, but the whole issue could have been prevented in the first place. We would love to hear your thoughts on this situation down below, and if you have ever maliciously complied to your employers’ requests, feel free to share those stories with your fellow pandas as well.
Many readers responded calling out the worker's incompetent managers, while some even shared similar stories of their own
In cases where management fails to consider the broader implications of policy changes, the consequences can be financially disastrous, as seen in a similar cost-cutting attempt by another company.
When decisions like eliminating overtime or removing essential resources are made without foresight, it often leads to unexpected expenses and operational inefficiencies.