Want this job? Work for 16 hours or get fired. Employee's viral post sparks outrage on Reddit

In a revealing post on Reddit’s antiwork community, an employee shared how he lost his job simply for refusing to stretch beyond his scheduled hours. The post detailed an incident that unfolded earlier in the week when management instructed workers to perform additional cleaning duties at a paper mill due to an upcoming visit from the company’s CEO. The employee in question had already been assigned a 12-hour shift and fulfilled those duties. However, once the clock hit 12 hours, he left as scheduled—especially since his replacement, assigned an unreasonable 24-hour shift, didn’t arrive.

Despite informing both the current team and the incoming shift about his departure, the employee was later summoned to Human Resources. There, he was told he was being let go for allegedly abandoning his job. The decision was shocking to him, especially since he had completed the hours he was supposed to work. Fortunately, he mentioned that he already had another job lined up starting the following month and wasn’t overly concerned about the dismissal, though he found the manner of termination quite strange and unjust.

"Earlier this week our bosses told us we needed to clean the paper mill because our CEO was visiting. I was not scheduled 16 hrs, I was scheduled 12. So after 12 hrs came, I left! My relief didn't show up (because they scheduled him for 24 hrs) I told everyone I was leaving as well as the next shift and they called me in today to HR and said I was being terminated for "job abandonment," he wrote.

Online Support and Outrage

The post attracted strong reactions from other Reddit users, many of whom expressed anger at the employer’s actions. Several advised him to apply for unemployment benefits, stating that he had every right to do so since he worked his full shift. One user noted that if he could document the hours he was scheduled and prove the reason for termination, he might have grounds to file a case for retaliation.

Others took aim at the company’s management, questioning the leadership’s competence in assigning inhumane work hours. Some even encouraged the employee to publicly criticize the employer on their social media platforms to bring attention to the exploitative behavior.

One individual shared a similar experience, explaining that challenging such treatment through official unemployment channels could not only benefit the worker but also have consequences for the employer. If enough claims are made, the company’s unemployment insurance rates could increase—offering a small form of justice in a system that often favors corporate interests.

This incident stands as another reminder of the growing tension between overworked employees and employers who demand too much. While this worker landed on his feet, his story has become a symbol of how unjust scheduling and misuse of power continue to plague many workplaces.