Reddit user cardinalwren asked:
What's a red flag that you need to find a new job?
OK so listen, please y'all remember that there are almost always other jobs and other opportunities there if you work and plan for it. Do not sacrifice your mental health or physical safety for a job not one second longer than you absolutely must.
With that said, let's get ready to rumble...
Go Away
Ferris Buellers Day Off Smile GIFGiphy"My last job had a number of red flags. My breaking point was when I couldn't enjoy time off due to stressing out about work." - ProscuittoSuit
"This is a big one that a lot of people ignore."
"If you can't have a week off without spending it worrying about what is going on in your absence, then the job sucks - UNLESS you're the owner, in which case that's very much your responsibility to find people you can trust to run the place while you're away."
"I used to have a job where if you took a week off, you'd spend the next 2-3 weeks trying to fix the mess that you came back to."
"That is the result of a bad management structure and organization. Employees should be able to take their time off without regretting it when they come back."
"If your employer has a 'yeah you can take your time off, but you'll be making that time up when you return' sort of set up then you should get the f*ck out of there." - LetsNotBeTooHonest
"I hear that. I had my one day off yesterday. Came back in to dozens of half-finished jobs and demanding customers. My first thought was: 'I should have used my day off to shoot myself.' Yeah, that's not healthy." - MrHermeteeowish
"Had a job one where they would call me on my off time to reprimand me."
"Once called me right before a college class to accuse me of theft, only to find the money 10 minutes later exactly where I told them."
"Constant anxiety at work, constant anxiety at home. When I finally got fired I felt relief. F*ck those kinds of bosses." - Abigboi_
Hoping For The Worst
Bill Murray Sigh GIF by Groundhog DayGiphy"I used to drive to work with the not-so-suppressed feeling that I wouldn't mind being involved in an accident that resulted in my hospitalization. Perhaps a couple of broken legs and a long but achievable recovery, because then I'd get a few weeks or months off."
"At the same job I had a colleague who said he didn't bother looking when he crossed the road because it didn't matter to him."
"Somehow I didn't pick up on it at the time but that place was not good for anyone working there." - LetsNotBeTooHonest
"Yup, this one. Friend told me he realized he had to get out when he started contemplating stepping into traffic on the way to work. I decided to put more energy in my job hunt when I found myself doing the same." - ichemistried
"A different take on the same thing - my old roommate talked all the time about hating his job but mostly jokingly - but it was good money and he figured that's just how work life is."
"One day he fell down the stairs at the train station on his way to work and ended up with a pretty brutal concussion and broke his wrist.
And his literal very first thought was "at least I don't have to go to work" and that's when he realized it wasn't normal to hate your job that much." - PhiloPhocion
Shakeups
Giphy"An unusual amount of coworkers, especially higher ups, are leaving the company." - TheBassMeister
"This is a big one. I've been through a dozen or so reorganization efforts at different companies. If there's a shakeup in senior leadership, I take that as a massive red flag that I need to fire up LinkedIn or start emailing contacts about job prospects." - Kooky_Finding8516
"This is a big one. I've seen it play out in two different companies. When the senior folks are leaving it's either the culture/ownership is toxic or a major shakeup is about go down.
An extra red flag if they're leaving the industry altogether." - Desperate_Pineapple
Not A Robot
The Wave Dancing GIFGiphy"If you have PTO and sick leave but they never let you take it and make you feel bad when you do." - Spider7895
"My job has a very strict attendance policy that includes sick time. You get 3 occurrences a year which includes everything from family emergencies, bereavement, to sick time."
"Anything over the 3 occurrences and it's a write up."
"My breaking point was being harassed about a doctors note to include the first day that I was too sick to get out of bed, let alone see a doctor. When I called the nurse to have them adjust the note, I ended up bawling my eyes out because the nurse apologized to me for having to deal with management like that."
"F*ck sick shaming. I'm not a robot I'm a human being." - HappyOtato
A Very Red Flag
red flag GIF by Steve Harvey TVGiphy"When they don't have enough funds to cover payroll. That was a very red flag" - hmbrandvfvsa
"Yep! If they say 'We have to hold your paychecks for [any time whatsoever]' then they are this >< close to closing their doors."
"That's a company with so little money that they're dipping into their operating costs for cash flow (payroll being one of the biggest of these.)" - Empty-Masterpiece242
"Oh ya. Leave yesterday if that ever happens ." - Jert3
More Work
Happy Jim Carrey GIFGiphy"When they continue to pile work on you, and don't up your pay or benefits."
"The downside to actually giving half a f*ck and doing a good job often means you'll have the work of others dumped on you, cause 'you do such a good job.' " - TheGoodJudgeHolden
"The reward for good work is more work" - Juker93
"Aaaaand this is why I am searching for a new job at the moment."
"I carry the responsibility of at least 3 people and don't get paid nearly enough (about $8/hr below the low end average pay for my position) to invest in ways I can decompress when I'm not at work. Time to go." - Emilybohbemily
Bad Boss
The Golden Path Boss GIF by The Chemical BrothersGiphy"If your boss doesn't support you. If they are quick to anger and/or always assume the worst... you constantly feel like you have to defend yourself, and nothing you do is good enough."
"You probably ARE good enough; they just don't like you and it doesn't matter how hard you try. The more you work, the more you achieve, the more you are determined to change their mind, the more you are positive and resilient, the more it will just piss them off."
"You're likely smarter and more talented and they feel threatened by you." - SmellyZelly
"I just left a job like this. Everyone in the company hated the boss and he always felt he knew more about our roles than we did...he didn't, though."
"This led us to really not putting in extra effort because when we did we were told to 'stay in our lane' but if we didn't put in extra effort then we were constantly asked what we did all day and even had to track our time and how long projects took."
"Dude was crazy and a bad manager/leader/business owner. I rage quit, everyone else I worked with was actively seeking new work. I was lucky that I had something to fall back on." - DizzySecretary4711
The Best Questions To Ask During A Job Interview | George Takei’s Oh Myyy
Freeze!
freeze GIFGiphy"I work for a university and when the pandemic hit, they implemented a job freeze. Managers have to make a case for why they need someone."
"My previous department is chronically short staffed and has been holding an employee hostage because she got another position within the university. Her position has been posted twice and no one has applied for it. It's been 3 months."
"I was glad to escape, but my current department is down by half. I haven't been there long and it's been so stressful because the workload is insane and the learning curve is steep."
"I'm prone to depression and can feel myself sinking. I've been looking at jobs outside of the university but am too mentally exhausted to apply." - puffityfluffity
"Bruh. I work the Security Ops for a university. We can't keep people over 2 weeks since the higher-ups added so much to our workload cuz of a freeze."
"We haven't had a full team since last February."
"Not to mention it's a worker's market out there right now, so pay-wise we're just too much for too little pay. I'd leave too if I weren't getting free classes to finish my degree."
"I used to love this job." - MildMantis
Training Your Boss
Come On Reaction GIF by NBAGiphy"You had to train your new boss" - LegoMyAlterEgo
"I worked for a government department and took a temporary promotion in a line of business I was very good at."
"I took on a team of new staff, trained them and got them over 3 months to competency. I didn't receive a job of training or support for doing so."
"To fill my role permanently, my department recruited from a shortlist that had been in existence for 6 months. I couldn't apply, my performance wasn't considered, I was to be demoted back down against everyone's wishes."
"They brought in someone with no relevant knowledge in the line of work or management experience. I trained him up and promptly left." - Dontbesouritsanewday
Baby Breaks
its happening now lena dunham GIF by Girls on HBOGiphy"When I was pregnant I was harassed and made fun of."
"When it came time to get maternity leave, I was only given 3 weeks off. My boss said she didn't care what the law was, she was above it."
"They made sure to call me to make sure that I was coming back almost everyday. When I finally returned, I was told that I could not pump my breastmilk. My daughter was exclusively breast fed at the time."
"I was told it was my duty to answer the phones and that pumping should be done on a lunch break. I ended up soaking clothes and bras and losing my milk supply."
"Thank god I no longer work that job, it was highly toxic and the women were just nasty and catty. Heaven forbid you wore the wrong outfit or wrong brand of clothing." - Tapdncn4lyfe2
Money Is The Whole Point
Pay Me Kim Kardashian GIF by GQGiphy"Not making any money."
"I'm a newly licensed Realtor. I know they say the first year is hard as is and add in this market to be extra difficult... But I haven't made any money since April (been licensed since September)."
"I still don't think I've even made profit yet. All the fees to join Realtor associations and get access to the MLS. Not to mention showing clients houses and then they get frustrated that their offer isn't getting accepted."
"That's so much wasted time and gas that I get zero compensation for. I don't want to be a quitter but I feel like it's all uphill." - Madam-Savage
A Whole List
Billy Ray Cyrus Scroll GIF by 2020 MTV Video Music AwardsGiphy"I recently left a job I was in for six years. To summarize, these were my red flags:"
- "Hours were awful due to rapid growth of the company coupled with the inability to hire and keep experienced people. This piled more work into less and less people. I'd regularly work 12 hour days during most weeks, as well as longer during busy season (January through may). I'd have to work Sunday on my own time because I'd get so distracted with daily meetings during the week it was impossible to get actual work done."
- "None or the firm's systems worked, despite hiring an entire group to manage them. This led to a lot of manual workarounds that caused more inefficiencies"
- "Management expected perfection despite ridiculous workloads, tight timing, and very low staff. You'd have billion dollar funds being sent back down the review queue for $1 rounding variances. To people with a no financial background, that's absurd and a complete waste of time."
- "Management was manipulative. They would always phrase things in a way that made it sound like everything was your fault. It's your fault something didn't get done on time, not the fact that you have the workload of 6 people and the systems don't work. Then it would hit your performance."
"So yeah, if you experience any of the above please leave. I'm a few months out of that job now and couldn't be happier. Don't stay in a job that makes you miserable." - CalmDecision9770
Turnovers - But Not The Pastry Kind
Over It Starz GIF by Run The WorldGiphy"When people don't last past the 6 month mark. The department that I work in at my hospital has a high turnover rate of nurses and medical assistants."
"This is mostly due to the fact that management has never changed and there is a lot of catering to doctors that have been there for 20+ years and want to make them happy by continuing doing archaic practices that are no longer used."
"This is a cancer center. So many patients fall through the cracks or have died because of how awful management is." - depressed_popoto
The Old Timers
raise get GIFGiphy"People have been working there for 10+ years and never got a raise. That's a sign to run." - TheGrizzlyNinja
"When the longest employed person who worked at a company that has been around for a while, has only been present in the company for 2 years or less."
"Usually it means that there is a high turnover rate and the the entire culture is crappy, if the longest lasting employees have a short time of being there." - radiantheron8679
About The Title
No Thank You GIF by Karen CivilGiphy"My previous job offered me a promotion (higher authority level, more responsibility etc.)"
"When I asked about the pay increase they looked at me as if I was insane and said 'a promotion shouldn't be about a raise it's more about the title' … f*ck a title, if there's more work and more responsibility there should be more money."
"I noped outta there soon after." - ekay333
75%
I Like Yes GIF by Saturday Night LiveGiphy"When work is on your mind 75% of the time even when you aren't there, but it's out of dread and not because it's your passion."
"Goal: find a job you think about 75% of the time because it is your passion." - cosmic_pharaoh
The Biggest Sign
Say Word Lol GIF by Desus & MeroGiphy"If you opened this thread hoping to find an excuse to leave your current job" - OpaqueDreamer
Honest question... how many of you just realized you need a new job?
If you or someone you know is struggling, you can contact the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-TALK (8255).
To find help outside the United States, the International Association for Suicide Prevention has resources available at https://www.iasp.info/resources/Crisis_Centres/