While elevators are commonplace in our day and age, they can be somewhat scary. You won’t see folks with a fear of enclosed spaces using them all that often. Or at all. And you won’t see folks with anxiety using them. The kind that makes you reluctant to enter one if your bladder is at least 1% full.
Well, there’s another category of folks somewhere between these two who are most likely also not all that keen on enclosed pieces of mobile architecture in multi-story buildings. And that is sucky managers who abuse their subordinates and then push themselves into a(n) (elevator) corner with their attitude.
Incidentally, this is a malicious compliance story, so you can guess who got the rough end of the stick. But do read on, as the story is extremely entertaining and even more satisfying.
More Info: Reddit
Working in retail has never been easy, and even if you do find a venue that feels good, there's gonna be something that ruins the deal—like a crummy manager
Image source: makelessnoise (not the actual photo)
A Redditor by the nickname of u/QuixiQuirk, with whom Bored Panda got in touch, not too long ago visited the r/MaliciousCompliance subreddit with a very maliciously compliant story of epic proportions. Mostly epic because it got flagged with the XL flare, but also epic in the sense that there were multiple reasons for OP to be maliciously compliant.
The story goes that OP worked in a video rental and game store, mostly manning the cash register and helping customers. This was back in the '90s, by the way—the golden age of video rentals and video games.
This Redditor recently shared how their manager pushed herself into a corner by being straight up mean to her subordinates and they simply chose to (maliciously) follow orders
Image source: QuixiQuirk
Anywho, the job was great, but one particular individual there was not. She, unfortunately, was a manager there, and OP introduced her as Amanda. You see, she was on the older side and not all that satisfied with life. Because of this, she was bent on making everyone else’s lives as miserable as hers, so everyone suffered. Customers too.
The story goes that OP had a manager named Amanda who had no interest in doing any work as she was there because family and she was awful to people
Image source: QuixiQuirk
What is worse, she was there because of good ol’ nepotism: she was the owner’s daughter-in-law, and, according to OP, even the owner wanted to have nothing to do with her. But, luckily, she spent most of her working hours pent up in the back room, watching television or talking on the phone, a.k.a. too busy to irritate anyone.
There were a couple of instances when Amanda went nuclear with her rage and OP simply took a deep breath and decided to do as they were told
Image source: QuixiQuirk
Image source: Casa Rosada (not the actual photo)
Well, OP recalled several particular events where they had a conflict with Amanda. The first time was when OP was on the phone, discussing late fees with a client. Since the phone was apparently Amanda’s territory, she caused a scene about OP using the phone—one that was so vocal, everyone in the story and even the person on the phone were terrified—leading to OP getting banned from using the phone.
The second incident was when OP needed to use the bathroom. Amanda cued crazy mode again and went ballistic on the bathroom door. This, in turn, led to OP being told to never leave the floor while on the clock. At this point, Amanda just keeps feeding the malicious compliance machine.
There were two particular instances that served as the setup for the malicious compliance, namely not being allowed to use the phone or to leave the floor
Image source: QuixiQuirk
Well, just like OP had hoped, the day came when Amanda would get her just deserts in the form of “well, you said so yourself.” At this point, it had been months of torture inflicted upon OP (and other employees). But the stars aligned and the universe finally gave OP an opportunity for revenge in the form of malicious compliance.
Maintenance had just finished their work for the day on an elevator in the building. While they did let OP know that the work was not finished, hence nobody was to use the elevator, they did not really do anything else to make sure folks would not accidentally stumble into the elevator. The power was on and everything.
So, when Amanda got into a bit of a trouble, OP was powerless to help her as the two things they could have done they were not allowed to
Image source: QuixiQuirk
Image source: Liza Summer (not the actual photo)
In comes Amanda. Of course she takes the elevator. OP doesn’t even realize it until it’s too late. It ascends halfway and then stops. Straight in the middle between two floors. Not enough to squeeze out on either the top or the bottom. Well, dang.
Cue malicious compliance.
“The moment I realized that Amanda was stuck, I felt like the kid who found the keys to the candy store. I was excited but I was also worried that I was going to get into trouble for it,” OP told Bored Panda about the immediate feeling they had as soon as they understood what was going on. “I was kind of surprised that I didn't ever get so much as a mild scolding. That kind of shows how obnoxious she was.”
Image source: QuixiQuirk
OP hears their name from the malfunctioned ascension box. A cry for help. Alas, OP can’t do anything about it. Why? Well they’re banned from leaving the floor. They can only catch Amanda’s very swear-laden voice from around the corner.
Well, then could they perhaps call for help? Maintenance or even the store owner? Nope. Phone’s off limits. And OP sure as heck won’t risk going through the shout-fest that was Amanda’s nuclear meltdown while OP was consulting a client previously.
OP's back-and-forth with Amanda led to them getting fired, which they maliciously complied with as well
Image source: QuixiQuirk
Image source: Alan Levine (not the actual photo)
OP had just about had enough of pushing Amanda’s buttons by simply following her strict orders, and was about to stop, but then Amanda said the two words every victim of corporate abuse with a thirst for maliciously compliant revenge wants to hear—“you’re fired”.
Fired? Great, packing my stuff and leaving immediately, BYE! This is the tactic OP assumed, leaving Amanda stuck in the elevator until the next shift arrived in a couple of hours. They left as a thunderstorm of swearwords was just in full climax, hanging the “We’re Closed” sign on the door and going to Ken, the store owner.
Well, turns out, she couldn't fire them, but that didn't stop them from closing the store and leaving
Image source: QuixiQuirk
Speaking of Ken, he was surprised to see OP at his door. They explained the situation—turns out Amanda couldn’t fire OP—and then Ken thought to himself that he’d best go there and help her. And then he looked at his dirty hands—he was gardening—and then, oh so mischievously, decided that he’d best finish up his work, then wash and then probably go see if Amanda was OK.
“I saw lots of suggestions in the comments of people offering suggestions to have one-upped [the malicious compliance] but at the time, everything just sort of aligned and I don't think there's anything else I could have done to have made it any worse. I don't think I would have wanted to make it any worse, I think being trapped for 5 hours seemed a pretty fair trade off for her attitude over the months I had to deal with her,” noted OP
What made the story even better was the the store owner's very cheeky approval of OP's actions
Image source: QuixiQuirk
And yes, all in all, Amanda had been stuck in the elevator, deprived of her lavatorial privileges for 5 hours. Maintenance came in soon after one of OP’s colleagues came in for their shift. Needless to say, Amanda didn’t work there any more after the incident.
Folks online thoroughly enjoyed the story. Not only was the story itself a treat, but some praised OP’s storytelling skills. Many started pointing out the parts they liked the most, with some sharing their own stories. And, of course, there had to be that one person who said “you literally left her hanging”. [slow clap] Bravo, sir.
Needless to say, Amanda didn't want to work there any more following the incident
Image source: QuixiQuirk
Lastly, given their experience, we asked OP if they had any advice on dealing with difficult managers, and they had this to say: “really the only thing I could suggest is to know your rights as an employee in your country or state and don't be afraid to look for someone who will treat you right. As I've seen it said repeatedly, people rarely quit jobs, they quit managers.”
Oh, and a huge thanks to OP’s friend who suggested they post this story on Reddit in the first place. And speaking of Reddit, it got 17,000 upvotes and over 150 Reddit awards. You can check out the post in context right here, but before you go, do your own malicious compliance, why not share your thoughts about the story in the comment section below!