Work sucks enough without having to take unnecessary heat from your boss. Long hours, office politics, and an overall lack of job satisfaction all add up to weeks that seem to last forever and weekends that fly by in seconds flat.
A woman who got a flat tire on her way to work sent her general manager messages explaining why she’d be late. What she wasn’t prepared for was the manager going out of her way to prove she was lying. She shared her story with an online community.
More info: Reddit
Work is enough of a struggle, but this woman’s general manager thought she’d make it even tougher for her
Image credits: Shawn Dearn / Unsplash (not the actual photo)
The woman got a flat tire on the way to work, so she sent her general manager a text explaining her situation, but got no response
Image credits: Kenny Eliason / Pexels (not the actual photo)
The general manager called her in to a meeting with her boss the next day and blatantly accused her of lying about having a flat tire
Image credits: Tima Miroshnichenko / Pexels (not the actual photo)
Shocked to her core, the woman told her general manager that she’d be happy to send over proof that she did indeed have a flat tire
Image credit: Born-Recipe-7938
After talking with her partner about it, he said he was surprised she hadn’t quit on the spot, especially since she’d been disrespected with no apology
A snowstorm turned OP’s usual hour-long commute into a three-hour nightmare, with some drivers stuck for 15 hours. The next day, she hit something on a hilly highway, getting a flat tire. Unable to safely jack the car in icy conditions, she called roadside assistance and informed her general manager.
She sent photos: the flat tire, her tools, her location, even a selfie. With poor reception, it took an hour to send. She explained roadside assistance would replace the tire, but her general manager (GM) didn’t respond. When she finally arrived at work, the GM physically grabbed her shoulder mid-conversation and ordered her back to her desk.
The following Monday, the GM scheduled a last-minute meeting with her and her boss. She was accused of lying, with the GM claiming she’d driven out to “catch” her faking. The employee offered roadside assistance proof, which the GM demanded. Shockingly, the GM had spent nearly an hour snooping instead of working.
Later, her boss revealed the GM had even peeked inside her car for “evidence”—her work bestie even confirmed seeing it. OP had never felt so disrespected at work and considered quitting on the spot. After all, who needs enemies when your GM moonlights as an amateur private investigator on the clock?
Image credits: Getty Images / Unsplash (not the actual photo)
From what OP tells us in her post, her GM is a real piece of work, and seemingly on something of a power trip, too. Short of quitting, what can OP do to put her GM in her place? We went looking for answers.
First off, OP mentions that her GM manhandled her. According to LegalClarity, when harassment escalates to physical contact, it may result in criminal charges. Offensive touching can lead to battery charges, which hinge on the lack of consent and intent to offend, regardless of the degree of force used.
Failure to address physical harassment can expose employers to legal liability. Victims may file claims with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission or pursue lawsuits for negligence in handling harassment complaints, something OP’s boss would probably want to avoid.
Now, what about the GM’s lies? In his article for AWNA, Gary Pinchen writes that workplace investigations (usually carried out by HR) play an important role in resolving disputes. According to Pinchen, you’re entitled to procedural fairness, which entails giving an employee a fair and reasonable opportunity to respond to issues or evidence that justify punishment or termination.
While facing a false accusation at work may be upsetting, it’s critical that you stay calm, seek clarification, document everything, consult with HR, avoid gossip, stay professional, consider mediation, and seek support.
We’d say OP has a good chance of turning the tables on her GM and proving that she was the one being dishonest all along. We see a meeting with HR in her future, unless she decides to give the whole mess a skip and quit after all.
What would you do if you found yourself in OP’s shoes? Do you think she should go after her lying GM, or write the whole thing off and start looking for another job? Let us know in the comments!
In the comments, readers told the woman that they thought her general manager was trying to get her to quit and advised her to make a formal complaint as soon as possible
