'Pack Up Your S**t': Boss Fires Employee Who Put in Two Weeks' Notice in Viral Post
A former employee took to Reddit to share their recent experience with a now-former boss after handing in their two weeks' notice.
The Redditor posted to the subreddit r/antiwork from the username _distortedmorals in a post that has now been voted on over 17,000 times. The post explained that upon finding out they'd got a new job that would offer more money and a shorter commute they knew it was time to give in their two-weeks notice.
At the end of what would be their final shift, the Redditor shared the news with their boss which went less than smoothly.
"After a few minutes of silence, he states 'I fell[sic] like you're stabbing me in the back right now,'" the Redditor wrote.
The Redditor said they felt the response was "hypocritical" given that two weeks prior, when they had to call out sick for exhibiting COVID symptoms, the boss was interviewing other people to fill the position.
"He asked where I was going and I told him 'it's none of your business, just know I'm only leaving because I received a better offer and this place offers actual benefits unlike here,'" the Redditor wrote. "He became visibly upset with that reply and said 'I don't need your two week notice, you're fired. Turn in your work phone and keys. Pack up your [s**t].'"
Commenters on the thread suggested that the Redditor should apply for unemployment benefits so that while they would not receive a paycheck from their old employer they'd have an income of some kind until the new job picked up.
One commenter, _distortedmorals, explained in an edit to the post that they have a work permit through the DACA program so they are "not eligible for unemployment benefits."
According to a document published to the website of U.S. Congressman Joe Neguse of Colorado—where the Redditor claims to reside—DACA recipients are in fact eligible to apply for unemployment.
"Anyone with a valid work authorization or a form of lawful presence, including DACA, is eligible for unemployment compensation, if you are unemployed through no fault of your own, and able, available, and actively seeking new work," says the document from congressman's site.
Unemployment assistance, or unemployment insurance, gives individuals who have lost their jobs at no fault of their own a way to continue to receive an income while searching for another job.
Tens of millions of people filed for employment assistance during the coronavirus pandemic. A June 2020 report from the Pew Research Center said that in three months of the COVID pandemic, unemployment rose higher than in two years of the Great Recession. Numbers rose from 6.2 million in February to 20.5 million in May 2020.
At the end of their original post, the Redditor ended with a note to anyone who might stumble upon it: "Don't let anyone make you feel guilty for accepting a better job offer. You have the right to do what's best for you, not someone else's business."
Newsweek contacted _distortedmorals for comment.
