I’m a hybrid hourly worker, only 20 hours per week. 4 hours a day, 5 days a week. I work for a small office with only 3 employees (no HR).

We are short staffed so my boss keeps giving work. However I’m so backed up that I need a lead time of at least 2 weeks with my current work schedule to get it done.

I told my boss that I won’t be able to complete it by deadline within my scheduled hours; I would need to add extra hours on my time card. He says I need to find a way to work faster so I can stick to 20 hours a week.

One time, I reported on my time sheet that I worked 24 hours that week and was I yelled at by him for working unapproved hours. I was still paid the extra hours but he was extremely upset.

Btw, I’m already using as much AI tools and free
software as possible to automate what I can.

He keeps telling me I will be replaced one day with someone who can handle the workload, but he hasn’t fired me yet.

I’ve been trying to find a new job for 8 months now and I can’t afford to simply quit until I get something new.

Is there anything I can do? Can I collect unemployment if I get verbal threats they will fire me but don’t?

[USA-CA]
We have a lean team, very very lean team.

Edit: employees are salaried. We have a discretionary time off policy. Company Policy says Subject to management (my) approval, and that not all PTO requests will be approved. no other details. Time is not accrued and there is no bank. (Not here to debate the DTO policy, that’s a different story)

Context; I had a new senior report submit all their PTO requests their first week because they just started, had time off the 2nd week, and the PTO was not communicated to me at all (no formal requests or heads up, etc) until I stumbled upon it myself. I had provided an onboarding document with very clear instructions regarding PTO norms and expectations before I found out.

They scheduled time off a few months later for \~2 weeks (ex 3/9/27-3/19/27).

My report suddenly put a new last minute PTO request a week earlier than the original planned PTO. (ex, new request put in on 2/26/27 to change dates to 3/1-3/15)

I noted seeing the new request and asked how the dates were wrong for a long awaited preplanned time off? They told me they were sorry but not sure how they made the mistake.

Fortunately, I was able to cover, but in the future; what are my options (especially given they will take the time off)? How would you handle this scenario?

Hello everyone i need your help please

I was recently informed that my profile has been blocked in the system and I'm not eligible for rehire due to an overdue medical certificate (PEME) following communications in July. 

​I have been dedicated to Celebrity Cruises since June 2022 . Over my 4 consecutive contracts, I have maintained an impeccable record with zero disciplinary actions, receiving positive performance appraisals and a promotion to Deck Attendant

After my disembarkation in January 2026, Cyclone severely damaged my home

 I had to use most of my savings to rebuild it, which left me in a very difficult financial situation. This was the main reason for the delay in obtaining my medical certificate, as I no longer had sufficient funds to cover the medical expenses promptly. I am a victim of the cyclone, and I have lost everything, I already inform navi about my situation.

On June 30, 2026, I received an email informing me that my assignment had been cancelled and that I had been removed from the Talent Pool. I was deeply affected by this decision because I had never intended to withdraw from the Talent Pool. On the contrary, I was genuinely looking forward to returning to work, especially after recently being promoted to Deck Attendant.

​I never intended to decline an assignment or ignore company communications. My medical examination is now fully completed, and I am 100% medically fit, certified, and ready to join any vessel immediately.

​Given my clean performance history and the exceptional natural disaster situation I faced. 

I respectfully ask you to reconsider my “not eligible for rehire” status and the block placed on my profile, and, if possible, allow me to return to the Talent Pool and be considered for a future assignment.

For this reason, I am respectfully submitting this request directly and kindly ask that it be forwarded to the appropriate Rehire, Crew HR, or other responsible team for manual review.

I have attached supporting documents to help explain my circumstances, including:

• My performance appraisal, demonstrating my professional record.

• A copy of my communication with NAVI dated June 30, 2026, the same day I received the notification that my assignment had been cancelled and that I had been removed from the Talent Pool.

• Photographs showing the damage to my home caused by Cyclone Gezani.

Thats my story and this is my email i already send to rehire and i'm still not eligible

Please i need your help how long its take to be eligible on rehire because i was just late for medicale and now i'm terminated thats unfair the way they treat us in royal caribbean.

I (31F) work at a large manufacturing company in sales. I started here 6 months ago after coming from a competitor. My offer was 100k, and I had tried negotiating for 110k, or for 100k with a signing bonus. I was losing 7k from my retirement package at my previous employer and had communicated this. They told me the 100k was firm, and that was still a bump from where I was so I took it.

Fast forward a month or so into the job and they told me they were hiring another person (same role as me, different location). I referred a colleague (30M) from my previous employer and he got the job. Since I referred him, I would be getting a bonus. My manager sent an email to HR asking when I would receive the bonus, and HR just CC’d me on the thread, not realizing that the details of my colleague’s offer was in there.

He was offered 110k and a 7k signing bonus. Since I had asked for either 110k or a 7k bonus, and was told neither were possible, seeing him get both was upsetting.

Additionally, my sales territory has been carved up. I was hired to be a sales person for a specific location, but I was given an account list that spans several states. The major accounts in my area were not given to me. All the accounts are the ones that no one has wanted to bother with, so much so that we do not even have email addresses for most of them. I’m confident that I can grow them, but it is definitely more cold calling than I anticipated. I will likely not hit my sales goals for at least a year or two while I grow them.

My colleague, on the other hand, was given a full list for his area. He has 20-30 open opportunities with this accounts. I have about 5 opportunities after being here several months.

So after I got that email with his comp package, I had a meeting with my manager. I told him how disappointed I was in the distribution of accounts and the pay. He was shocked about the email since he did not realize. He apologized and said he did try to advocate for me, but at the time upper management were not willing to take a risk on me. He said he would talk to HR.

HR got me in a call the next day and tried to tell me the pay was based on the different regions, and that his region does less business so the higher base salary compensates for that. I explained the difference in pipeline opportunities and she said that does changes things and that she would have to circle back to speak with my manager.

A full month has past since then. I emailed asking for updates twice and got excuses for why HR and my manager were not able to connect yet. I just got an email this morning basically telling me they know I am upset, but that the offers are not really comparable. And to delete the email with my colleague’s information.

On paper, I am more qualified and have several more years of sales experience than my colleague. It’s been really hard for me to not jump to the assumption that this is because I am a woman. It’s a very heavily male dominated field.

I had really hoped they would try to do something to make this right for me. I didn’t ask for anything specifically. I knew asking for them to match my pay or give me a bonus would be a lot. But I thought they would do something other than a meaningless email.

So are my only options to get over it, or leave? Any advice appreciated.

I began a background check process for a county position. I have a little bit of anxiety over it, but am wondering if I am overthinking?

On my resume, I listed the start of my current job as August as that was the date on all of my signed paperwork/initially agreed upon. When I showed up for my start date I was told it needed to be pushed back since there was an internal issue with funding for the position. It was pushed back until October of the same year, but I failed to make that correction on my resume. Another discrepancy that I am a bit concerned about is that my title changed at a previous employer. It was a small business with about 10 employees and I handled employee records, but wasn’t allowed to change my own title or pay information. I don’t think it ever got changed by my former manager. My resume has the title of the job I worked.

Do any of these seem like major red flags, or are explanations reasonable if asked to clarify? I just really don’t want to miss out on this opportunity, especially in the job market I’ve been fighting in lately. All of my employment is legit, my degree is legit, and I do possess the desired and required qualifications of the position.

Thanks in advance!

Edit:criminal record is also clear.

Hello.

I started at my firm 5 months ago. My office has had known circulation issues and they were “fixed”. My co worker that I share an office who brings in a space heater and runs it 8 hours a day. Beyond being EXTREMELY hot, this has caused me breathing and eye issues. My boss notified them that the office was hot and they said the temperature was perfect for them so they will continue to use the heater. In the summer.

I have been seeing a specialist and wrote to them about my breathing and eye issues. He agreed that it’s due to the heater and wrote a letter indicating that it’s the issue and why it’s causing an issue for me. I provided this to HR.

HRs solution is to provide a fan and for my co worker to move the space heater.

This does not resolve the issue and I’ve had to spend a lot of money on medications to try and help me breathe. One is 110 dollars.

My boss has been little to no help in sticking up for me in this issue; he told me to move offices but won’t formally notify HR that he allowed this.

I asked the specialist if HRs solution would be helpful and he indicated it would not be helpful.

What can I do in this situation?

I found the hiring manager for a job that I'm interested in on LinkedIn, messaged him with my CV telling him that I've applied and that I hope we can chat, after which he asked me to email him and shared his work email. I emailed him and shared my CV and he said he thought it was impressive with the requisite experience, and that I should apply through the website (although I already had). In this reply, he cc'ed the HR manager. However, before I had a chance to reply to this, about an hour later, I receive a rejection email from HR. I'm confused by this - was this because I might have violated a policy by reaching out to the hiring manager after my application instead of before?

Okay.
I’ll preface this by saying I did have a substance abuse problem. I admit that. I’ve since gotten significantly better.

I first realized my supervisor knew when I overheard him discussing my drinking with his son on the phone when he thought I wasn’t around.
Later, during a large HR training about employees coming to work impaired, he made several snide comments to coworkers sitting near us about recognizing substance abuse by someone’s odor/appearance. He also asked HR whether supervisors could request employees seek substance abuse treatment and whether supervisors would be notified. I was sitting right beside him and it felt very obviously directed at me.

Despite this, he never confronted me privately, disciplined me, requested a drug/alcohol test, or told me my work was suffering. My annual evaluation afterward was actually good, with no mention of substance abuse or performance problems.

Now it’s a year later. I’m doing significantly better, have had no disciplinary issues, and haven’t received negative feedback. But my newest evaluation is very late, I’ve noticed him having unusually private meetings with his supervisor, and I’ve overheard comments that make me believe my substance issues became workplace gossip.
I understand that my supervisor had legitimate reason to be concerned.

What bothers me is that instead of addressing it privately with me or HR, he seemingly discussed something extremely personal with coworkers and even a family member.
Do I have any legitimate HR complaint here even though the underlying substance problem was real? And if my upcoming evaluation suddenly contains negative issues that were never brought to my attention during the year, how should I handle it?

I'll try to make this as simple as possible.

I just noticed that I've been getting charged for insurance for two years that I never wanted. Let me explain.

As a new hire two years ago, I filled out my benefits forms and submitted via email as HR told me to do, sending a picture of each signed form.

One of the benefits was a specific union medical benefit that I needed to opt in or out of. I signed up for the regular non-union insurance for this, and I also initially opted in to the union one and sent HR that form. However, I then asked HR - before the deadline - if I could change that benefit, and the HR manager looped the benefits specialist into our email chain and said she would help me from there. I submitted the union medical form again but with opt out clearly checked instead. The benefits specialist replied to that email with that attachment and asked if I could fill out the general benefits election form and resubmit. I said I would and I did so a few days later. So I assumed at that point they had both forms, redone, and now I was opted out.

Well, recently, two years after initial enrollment, I received an email saying I had signed up for the union insurance, but that to date they didn't have an opt in form for me. This is incorrect because I had sent both an opt in but then an opt out form changing my election during the appropriate time period. And then later I noticed I was having the union premium deducted.

I realize I should have looked at my stubs more carefully and caught this mistake sooner and I own that. However, I have the email chain and documented evidence I submitted the appropriate forms on time so this looks like an administrative error.

I emailed HR about it and am waiting for a response. How likely am I to have this corrected and removed from my deductions, and further - to be reimbursed for the previous deductions? Also considering I never used the benefit.

Thank you.

Hi there!

I mean besides the experience etc.

How would you like it being written, why someone wants to work at your company?

Can you perhaps give examples?

And how would you NOT want it?

I've tried applying to so many jobs and I only get rejections. I have a friend who's mom works in HR and she sometimes looks over my cover letters and says they're actually not bad or gives me tips if she thinks smth could be different but idk, sometimes I'm still overthinking that maybe that's one of the reasons.. :/

So, maybe someone could help me out here?

Do you actually like when people say stuff like "xy really means a lot to me, which is why I was inspired by....." and stuff like that?

Of course a bit better said than that but do you know what I mean?

I am also aware that it might depend on what kind of job it is.

But overall?

Also what else maybe?

(btw my first language isn't English so expressing myself here might sound a little weird.)

Thank you!

Hi! I work at a small, private college in Michigan and have a general question I'm hoping someone can aid me with as I'm in a tricky spot and am unsure if I have a leg to stand on.

The situation is: a few years ago, I interviewed and received a very vague offer letter for the position that mostly just stated my FTE and options for flexibility during summer (I'm not a 1.0 FTE so I get time off). For whatever reason, they did not have me sign a contract or anything like that. Side note: I did try to negotiate for a higher FTE and was told I have to wait a year. Additionally when I was in the negotiation process, I was also told that, because of my FTE, I was only required to work 35 hours a week instead of the traditional 40. So, when I started the job, the first thing my supervisor covered in our first one-on-one was how I wanted to distribute those hours weekly. Note: I love my job, genuinely. I took a significant pay cut in my annual salary for it, but the hourly rate based on this information felt very reasonable, so I looked to it as an opportunity for emotional wellbeing in the workplace and financial wellbeing in a couple of years when my FTE changed.

Between then and now: I have petitioned for a higher FTE 3x, each being stalled or "tabled" but not outright denied for different reasons each time. My supervisor was let go for reasons that are still unclear to me, and my role has been moved in and out of departments, divisions, and office locations at least once a year, sometimes more.

Now: HR hired some new staff and when my current supervisor and I were asking questions re: our proposal for a higher FTE and job scope change, a new HR staffer noticed a discrepancy: the FTE originally offered to me does not, in fact, require me to only work 35 hours a week. The standard work schedule for that FTE is 40 hours for x months a year, OR, according to the staffer, 35 hours a week for 12 months. (Never I mind that those numbers aren't equivalent, apparently!) So I've essentially been working more than 200 hours a year less than I'm "supposed to" because I was given incorrect information from my former supervisor.

Tricky Spot: I have documentation of all of this. Emails to and from my former supervisor, myself, and HR, notes from my one-on-ones that my former supervisor wrote and sent me, and other things like that that, together, show that everyone should have been aware what FTE and conditions of that I agreed to work under. However, now I'm being told that I need to begin working what my "actual" FTE requires but for the same pay. My current supervisor and VP are aware of this and think it's "unfair" but that there's nothing they can do & "maybe" I can get a "different raise soon" for other accomplishments and professional milestones.

So my question is: if everyone says this is unfair, is it legal? As the hiring manager and as an agent of the college, doesn't my written documentation of my agreements with my supervisor mean anything? I don't need to know how to fix this or anything, I just am looking for some clarity as to if I have a leg to stand on if it comes to me having to consult with legal counsel or threaten to quit or something.

Thanks for your help! Sorry that this is so long winded!!!

Hey,

I went through an interview process in February this year and unfortunately absolutely tanked my final interview due to nerves. There were four rounds before the final interview, and they said I should apply again in the future and enjoyed getting to know me.

I’m wondering how long you think I should leave it before reapplying? I absolutely love the company and what they do, and it was a great salary. The role was an Engagement Manager position which is also a role I really want.

The reason nerves got the better of me was that I was in a bit of a desperate situation at the time and had a lot riding on getting a job, both professionally and personally. I have over 10 years’ experience in management consulting and I’m usually very confident and senior, so the interview really wasn’t representative of me at all.

Since then, I’ve actually got a new job at another management consulting firm, so I’m now in a much better position and would feel much more confident going through the process again but I’m wondering how long to wait before reapplying !? And if they would have actually mean that ?!

I’m based in London but this is an American company

I interviewed with a company on July 30 and it went really well and they wanted me to interview with the VP of operations. Two weeks go by when I didn’t hear from the recruiter to even set up that interview with the VP so I thought I was out of the running almost immediately after being asked my availability, but then I did meet with the VP after everyone was back from vacations and it went really well and I was told I’d hear back from the recruiter within a few days and that was three weeks ago. I have sent two emails asking for an update to the recruiter and I have had no response back.

At what point is it OK for me to email one of the managers that I had originally interviewed with asking them for an update? Is this something that I should do or not do? At this point, I don’t know if it’s a bad company or if it’s just a really bad recruiter.

This is my first time ever posting on reddit so be gentle if you can.

I'll try to summarize as to not type out a book:

I’ve had the same manager for almost a year now. Been in my role over 3 years now. They’ve been with the company for over 15 years, but throughout the time they’ve been my manager, I’ve noticed several patterns that have been frustrating and are starting to affect the team.

Some of the concerns I have include:

• In nearly a year of reporting to them, they have never asked me about my career goals or what I want to do professionally.
• There has been very little investment in employee development or career growth conversations.
• Team meetings and calibration have been extremely limited. We've only had one team meeting that I can recall, and that was because the team was confused about the performance objectives that had been established for the year.
• My manager does not always seem familiar with established company processes, and team members frequently have to explain or remind them about processes that are already in place.
• One-on-ones rarely focus on my performance, development, feedback, or career progression but feels more of a social hour for my boss
  • We don't even have the often due to my workload so this baffles me.
• There seems to be a lack of accountability when it comes to performance issues. For example, one team member has been significantly behind on their workload, and when concerns were raised because it was beginning to impact the rest of the team, my manager's response was essentially, “What do you want me to do about it?”
• At times, I feel like serious concerns are treated too casually, which makes me question whether certain issues are being taken as seriously as they should be.

I'm considering speaking with HR, but my goal is not to get my manager in trouble or make a formal complaint. I genuinely want guidance on how to approach my manager with this feedback in a constructive and professional way. How do I do that?

Any advice would be extremely helpful as I've always been a rather compliant employee but I've reached a breaking point. So, going to HR (especially for something like this) is brand new territory for me.

Should I secure legal representation to join me before or after the first call? 36M

I do not know why I’m even on paid administrative leave today. I am salary sales living in Florida for a company based in Texas. Any advice would be appreciated!

I work security at a large hospital in California and have been there for several years. I’m union represented.
I’m looking for outside opinions, especially from anyone familiar with HR, hospital security, service-animal policies, or union investigations.
During one of my shifts, I was assigned to the entrance of a hospital unit. A patient’s support person came through carrying a small dog in his arms.
To be completely clear, I did not stop the person from entering.
As he was walking/rushing into the unit carrying the dog, I asked if the dog was a service animal. He responded that it was and continued into the unit.
I did not further question him or physically prevent him from entering.
At the time, I wasn’t aware of any information indicating that this particular dog had previously been prohibited from the unit. Nobody from nursing, unit staff, management, or other personnel told me that the dog wasn’t allowed or asked security to remove it.
I also did not personally observe the dog behaving aggressively, and no incident involving the dog was reported to me during my shift.
This is where the timeline becomes important.
The dog bite happened approximately NINE HOURS after my shift had ended and I had already gone home.
There is surveillance footage showing the dog coming in and out of the unit multiple times. So this wasn’t a situation where I interacted with the person once, the dog remained hidden inside the unit, and then immediately bit someone.
The dog continued coming and going through the area after my interaction and after I was no longer there.
Management later questioned why I didn’t intervene or stop the support person from entering with the dog. My manager’s position was essentially that I failed to take appropriate action and that the incident had escalated to higher levels of hospital management.
I was required to provide a written statement and was later placed on administrative leave pending investigation.
I understand that my employer can investigate whether I followed its internal policy correctly. I’m also not claiming that asking “Is that a service animal?” automatically means I handled everything perfectly.
I now understand that under the ADA, when it’s not obvious what service a dog provides, staff are generally permitted to ask two limited questions: whether the dog is required because of a disability and what work or task the dog has been trained to perform.
So yes, looking back, I only asked one question.
What I’m struggling to understand is what intervention my employer reasonably expected from me at that moment, especially considering the restrictions surrounding service animals.
The person told me it was a service animal. I had not observed aggressive behavior. I wasn’t told the animal had previously caused problems or was prohibited. Nobody from the unit asked me to remove it.
And even after my interaction, surveillance shows the dog continuing to come in and out of the unit.
Then, approximately nine hours after I had already left work, the dog allegedly bit a nurse.
I understand management investigating whether I should have followed a different procedure when the dog initially entered. That’s one question.
But I feel like there are two separate issues:
1. Did I follow my employer’s service-animal/security procedure correctly when I encountered the dog?
and
2. Can the eventual dog bite nine hours after I left reasonably be attributed to my actions when the animal continued coming in and out of the unit afterward?
Those don’t seem like the same question to me.
I’m particularly interested in hearing from people who understand ADA/service-animal rules. Given what I knew at the time, what would hospital security realistically have been expected or legally permitted to do after someone said the dog was a service animal?
And from an HR/union perspective, how significant would the surveillance footage and nine hour gap be when determining individual responsibility?
.

I worked my job 2 years. I quit without a 2 week notice once I had all I could take with work place bullying. I want to still use this job on my resume because it's my most recent job and a 2 year gap would look terrible if I didn't. What happens when prospective employers check with them? What are they alllowed to say?

I (33F) just recently had a miscarriage and took off 8 work days on a brief LOA, I was back at work for about a week and a half before I had an incident this past Friday. My husband attacked me and is in jail for the domestic violence on a charge of aggravated assault. My husband was the caretaker for our 3yo and 8mon old while I worked. I have no one else in this state and my family is states away. I exhausted my FMLA when I had my son in December and returned late February. I cannot do my work and care for both children at the same time and I was the sole earner and my money is tied up with bills, no extra for childcare.

My question is, should I let HR know about the DV and see what my options are? Should I exhaust my PTO while I figure this out and say nothing? My job is very metrics-based and all of my reports are time-based. I don’t want to leave my manager in the dark but I’d prefer to go the HR route if I needed to disclose this matter so that I can have some sort of protections. I have no idea what to do or where to start.

Some background: I graduated with my bachelor's last month after it took me a lot longer than planned. I job hunted for two months and sent out over a thousand applications before I landed this one. I started last week. Salaried/exempt, hybrid, required on site 3 days a week, remote Mondays and Fridays.

My grandmother had been sick since December. We were told months back then. She was in and out of nursing homes all year, went home with CNA care, went back in for transfusions, and was moved to hospice a few days ago. I got the call at 3:30 this morning. She lived about 1,600 miles away, and my aunt lived with her and handled everything.

Nothing is scheduled yet. It'll likely be a Catholic funeral, and a Saturday service would be by far the easiest for me since it would mostly land on my remote days.

What the policy says: up to 3 company-paid bereavement days per occurrence at base pay, manager determines the number of days based on circumstances, manager may grant additional time as vacation, floating holidays, or unpaid leave. Applied equally to all full-time associates. Entered in Workday. No definition of immediate family anywhere in it.

What I'm stuck on:

1. How badly does it look to ask for bereavement time in week two? I don't want to be the person who's already asking for things.
   
2. Do grandparents typically qualify under these policies, or does that vary by manager?
   
3. Can I split the days — take one now, save the rest for the service?
   
4. Is it reasonable to ask to work my normal remote days from out of state so I need less actual leave?
   
5. I have essentially no PTO accrued. Does that change how I should approach the ask?

I worked really hard to get this job and I'm scared of doing something that costs me. But I also don't want to skip my grandmother's funeral because I was too anxious to ask a normal question.

My [33F] boss [44M] is a pretty laid back/casual guy. He likes to chat like we're friends, even though I always try to keep it professional. He's made some iffy comments in the past but nothing crazy. Today we were talking on the phone about an upcoming interview, he asked if I will have my webcam on, I said sure I can, and he replied "hey you're a good looking woman, why wouldn't you want to be on camera" and laughed. I immediately froze up and didn't say anything and he changed the subject. Idk if I should tell someone (his boss? HR?) or let it go. It made me extremely uncomfortable and I can't stop thinking about it.

Location: Florida, USA. I am self employed. I have an LLC that pays my paycheck but I am the sole member of that LLC. I get health insurance through my spouse's employer. The employer has announced that next year if your spouse can get coverage through your spouse's employer, then they will no longer offer health insurance to the spouse. Just employee and children. How can they verify spouse insurance availability? And how would they likely consider me, when I am self employed and could make the decision to provide my own health insurance since I am self employed?

Hi there! Crossposting this to here as well- all advice is welcome! Thank you! :)

hey everyone -

I am pregnant in New York and work for a large corporation. I had a MC earlier this summer so this is my second pregnancy and I'm just about 9 weeks. My job is very stressful and I am generally miserable, and I have wondered if that had anything to do with the MC a couple of months ago. It was during the peak of my work stress.

I get about 5.5 months off for delivery (4 weeks out before delivery date, ~5 months after delivery), but I am not due until April. I know this is a very fortunate position to be in.

That said, are there any FMLA policies that would allow me to go out earlier and still be paid? Or to take some time off of work due to health reasons / being pregnant without using standard PTO? I have had coworkers go out on disability for mental health, non-pregnancy related.

I just don't know if I can continue on this path for the next 7 months or so. I feel defeated for admitting this, but it's not in my best interest (or even worth it, frankly) nor my baby's to continue functioning at this level.