The phrase “you have no power here” is often used when someone is confronting an entitled person who's trying to exert power over a person or a group of people. If you've ever worked in the service industry, then you probably know exactly what that feels like since you're basically taught to stay quiet and avoid confrontation at all costs.
But isn't it nice when you finally have the right to put an entitled egomaniac in their place? Well, if you like the taste of justice, then you're going to LOVE this Reddit thread that massively blew up. Some of these "you have no power here" moments took place at work, but others happened right in people's own homes.
Grandpa Rocks
Nothing feels worse than being talked down to, especially by your parents. This is something Reddit suer abeast0333 knew all too well. Luckily, they had their grandpa on their side.
“My parents were yelling at me and then my grandpa walks over and tells them both to sit the hell down. They both shut the hell up and sit their butts down on the couch. It was by far the most powerful thing I've ever seen him do lmao.”
Company Decisions
There’s nothing more annoying than a co-worker that tries to upstage you to make himself look better in front of the boss. No one knows this better than Reddit user kaxobixo, who had a co-worker that was totally trying to one-up him to get the company to notice him. They did, too, but not the way he wanted.
“I was working as a consultant for a company, there was a bit of a competition between me and this guy, company starts to have some financial issues so I leave and start working for a client of theirs.
Shortly after joining they bring in this guy I was competing with at my old job, he was technically my equal except now I was employed by the client and he was just a consultant.
He was trying to one-up me during meetings and my boss told him that decisions are made by the company not the consultants. It felt good.”
The Bonus
Most people, not even Reddit user Nathaniel66, would ever dream of defying the CEO of a company because they know they’ll get fired for it. But one lower-level employee in their company did and the CEO’s response was shocking.
“New CEO came to our deparment on the 1st day of his work. He didn't have a pass card yet and a lower level employee told him that he can't enter without pass card. CEO got upset and ordered a worker to let him in, but the worker insisted: show me the pass card, or you're not entering.
Few days later this worker got a bonus.”
Set Free
Living under your parents’ roof isn’t always a picnic. This was something Wolfsbane776 was well aware of because they had a controlling father. But when their dad kicked them out, the balance of power shifted in the kid’s favor.
“When my crappy father kicked me out of the house and then demanded he have access to my bank to "control my financial situation" and I got to tell him "you have no control over me anymore. You set me free when you kicked me out and now you can't do anything."”
Do Not Copy
When the secretary of a state agency tried exerting her superiority, Reddit user Arcangelathanos put her in her place. He didn’t shout or get physical with her, but he did slap her with a subpoena to get her to cooperate.
“Some secretary of some branch of a state agency would go on a power trip and stamp, "Do not copy" on things that she sent to local agencies.
Well, I work for an oversight agency and I needed a copy. Locals were terrified so I rolled my eyes and called to explain that the locals and I were basically the same entity.
Woman started to have a conniption fit, but she got real quiet when I cut her off and said, "Fine, I'll issue a subpoena. What's your name and job title?" She answered, and the sheriff served her a subpoena for what I wanted. Guess she wasn't used to that.”
Not Your House
Kids hate it when they get grounded for cussing, but Reddit user epidemica discovered that there were some serious perks to no longer living at home, like being able to say whatever she wanted.
“In my first apartment, my parents came to visit, and I said "F***!" when I hit my head on the open door of the freezer while standing up from grabbing something from the fridge.
My mother said "You can't talk like that in my hou..." and stopped midsentence.”
The Money Maker
Reddit user whyd-eyed had a rough home life, which is why they worked so hard to earn enough to get an internet connection at home. But when their dad confronted them about it, they were quick to remind them who the money maker in the family was.
“I had a rough childhood with a drug addict father. My mom struggled to make ends meet and my first job was paying for the mortgage. After several months of working (again at my first job) I finally had some money to spend on myself and decided to get a computer and a decent internet connection.
At the time the best internet I could buy as part of a dish combo package. I bought a dish and brought it home to install on the house.
During this time my dad was still living at home with us but he was hardly there and my parents had all but separated at that point. My dad promptly asked me what I was doing putting a dish on his house. I let him know that I pay the mortgage now and I make the decisions on what we do with the house.”
Overdue Books
Reddit user daecrist never forgot about the school librarian who always gave him grief about his overdue books. It was a good thing, too, because as an adult he was able to give the mean librarian a dose of her own medicine.
“I wasn’t good at returning library books when I was a kid. I got lectured by my school librarian about it a lot. Fast forward twenty years and I’m a supervisor at the local public library and my former now retired school librarian goes there.
One day I see her sneaking around the front desk instead of coming back to say hi to me and I immediately figure something’s up. I go up to say hi and she acts exasperated and tells me she was trying to avoid me because she had overdue books.
So I put on my reading glasses, pulled them down over my nose, and delivered the same lecture she’d given me countless times about being responsible and turning in books on time.”
Angry HR Lady
Some HR representatives are like wolves in sheep’s clothing, but others are straight forward and as mean as a snake. That’s exactly the kind of HR lady Reddit user Varvatos_Vex had to deal with. Fortunately, their boss was a dream boat.
“We had an HR lady who was extremely power hungry. She is walking around with the president of the company who flew in from Japan. She rushes him through the warehouse. Just spits out “oh these are the warehouse guys we don’t have to stop and talk to them.”
He stops walks over and starts talking to me about my last vacation. How buying my house went. You could just see her fuming behind him as we talked for almost 45mins. I’ve had multiple meetings with him we knew each other really well.
I don’t think he liked her and dragged it out on purpose but I was thrilled to see her just standing there bored as hell.”
The Dictators
Reddit user TigerTownTerror could have done what any daughter-in-law in her place would have done and stopped inviting her in-laws over, especially since they were acting like dictators. But she knew just what to tell them whenever they got too annoying.
“Pretty much every time my in laws come over. For over twenty years they have attempted to dictate how I should live my life, raise my kids, dress, cook, etc.
I always just nod and say, "I'll consider that", but not in a genuine way, in a condescending "damn you" way. When they press it, I simply say, "You may leave my house now".”
Mall Cop
Reddit user DefinitelyNotMrSteve wasn’t a mall cop, but he wishes he had been because the real mall cop actually got to tell some customers to get the hell out after they accused a movie employee of stealing their wallet.
“I worked at a movie theatre and some customers were adamant that a staff member had stolen their wallet after they dropped it. Turns out that these people just couldn’t see and found the wallet once they actually looked for it.
They got irate with literally everyone, from the mall security to the managers to the staff. Mall security finally said “get the hell out” and the customers went “you can’t say that! This isn’t your theatre, we’re customers.” Mall security guy promptly said “this is my mall, and I can do whatever the hell I want.””
Messy Customer
Reddit user rancidquail was a busy store associate who didn’t have time to deal with one particular customer’s annoying foolishness. Fortunately, they didn’t have to as the store manager was happy to put the woman in her place.
“Not sure if it fits but during an insanely busy weekend before Christmas, a Karen was complaining to every associate about how messy our store was. The manager had relieved the girl at the fitting room and was helping to hang stuff.
Karen pulled her crap and was trying to make a point that we were messy and a horrible place to shop. At this the manager told her roughly, "Ma'am we're messy at the moment because we're a popular store.
And the biggest reason we're messy is because of woman like you who can't be bothered to pick up after themselves. It's not the associates making the mess. It's people like you. Your type have us outnumbered." First time I actually witnessed someone deflate.”
Enforcing the Law
As a bartender, Reddit user yowzersinmetrowzers isn’t legally allowed to serve anyone who looks like they’re under 21 without an ID, not even a White House staff member who's flashing her high and mighty ID badge in his face.
“Some White House lady sat at my bar and tried to get a drink without ID. She pulled out her White House ID card which had no DOB. "I work at the White House". I told her that her bosses would be very proud of me enforcing their laws when I didn't serve her a drink.”
Green Card
You never know when a ‘Karen’ will strike. Just ask Reddit user ElTacoWolf’s uncle, who was at the airport minding his own business when a ‘Karen’ demanded to see his green card. Instead he showed her something else that really shut her up.
“So my uncle is a deputy sheriff, and one time he was at an airport talking to my aunt over the phone in Spanish. Once he got done with his call some nearby Karen that overheard him went up to him and started demanding to see his green card
(Uncle has an accent too so you can tell he's wasn't born in the US). Uncle decides to mess with her and tells her he doesn't know what a green card is and has never heard of one. She gets more mad and keeps demanding to see it.
He messes with her some more then eventually he goes "Well I don't got a green card but I got this" then takes out his wallet and shows her his badge. She immediately walked away while my uncle laughed his butt off.”
Impeachment
Running a simulation of the democratic processes is a great teaching method, but not when the teacher finds himself being impeached by his students. That’s a lesson Reddit user mywifemademegetthis learned the hard way.
“I taught my 6th grade students about democratic processes, and we ran a simulation. Without fail, every one of my classes tried to impeach me.”
Not a Threat
Telling someone that you’re going to hire someone else because you don’t like the service they’re providing may get you some results or they may not. But when Reddit user cthulhus_tax_return’s client made this threat, he wasn’t shaking in his boots for a very good reason.
“When an unhappy client threatens to go hire a better lawyer. They don’t seem to get that this isn’t a threat when they aren’t paying me...”
Cannabis Hater
Some mother-in-laws are generally the worst, but Reddit user tylrmhnn really got the impression that his mother-in-law didn’t like him when she threatened to call the cops on him for possession of a controlled substance.
“My wife and I moved to WA state and my MIL tried to tell me that she was going to call the police because I had pot in the house.”
The Ex-Popular People
The “It” girls and popular jocks are always used to skating by through high school and looking down on other “lowly” students. This superiority complex follows many to university, but Reddit user Raetekusu had the last laugh when he noticed that these former popular people became ordinary after they graduated.
“At my university, it was always fun to watch the people who had been High School Popular People think that this sort of popularity would just naturally carry over and that on this campus of thousands, they'd be a big shot or something.
Was always fun to see just how many people could not care less about their attention-seeking.”
Just Say No
Reddit user mbattagl had to put up with years of emotional abuse from customers at the grocery store he worked at. But once he learned his store was closing forever, he decided it was okay to just say no and talk back to rude customers.
“I worked at a grocery store for five years putting up with crazy customers and their awful attitudes.
At the end of my tenure our store was set to be closed, and for the last month the store was sold to a liquidation company. Meaning we were no longer under our parent company's umbrella and were no longer concerned with retaining customer loyalty.
I got to tell customers "no" and respond with every bit of sarcasm and disdain to every Karen i encountered for one month until the store officially closed.”
Mean Toad Woman
Landing a new job was not a priority on Reddit user goblinmarketeer’s list, but he still had to do interviews every now and then. But it was during one particular interview that he encountered a mean toad woman and realized there was no way he was going to work for her.
“I have one that crosses with "I don't work here lady" a bit. I have a job, but I will still do interviews every couple years. this means the script is flipped a bit. They have to convince me to work there.
Anyway I got the town early so I stopped at a bakery to get something to eat. the woman went in the back to get it, and this squat toad of a woman walks in, yells at me to get her order and then yells at me again for not getting up right away to serve her.
When I point out that I do not in fact work there she goes off me about how important she is etc. We can skip the play by play. I go the interview. Head of IT and the toad woman walks in. She has this evil grin on her face. I stop everything.
I point at the toad woman and I say something like "I have seen how your managements treats people, and I have no interest in working for you" and I take my resume out his hands and walk out.
The look on her face was priceless. Oh and he had walked in with a print of a resume, so I took his copy. Felt great to do.”
Bye Mom
Reddit user bootylikepoww owes her future mother-in-law a lot because if she hadn’t been so mean to her son and locked him out, then he would have never stood up to his mom and ended up in his girlfriend's loving arms... and apartment.
“The guy that I'd gone on a few dates with introduced me to his parents, things went well, or so I thought. He drives me home, we end up talking and drinking a few beers, I didn't want him on the road with any alcohol in his system, and I enjoyed his company, so we end up hanging out until 3am.
His mom starts blowing up his phone, demanding that he comes home, so he drives himself home to find that he's been locked out of his house.
His mom said that he can sleep outside, he shouldn't be spending time with someone like me (still don't know what she meant by that), and that i'm "just another stop on the train".
He tells her not to talk about me like that, to which she says "when you're under my roof, i'll say whatever i want about whoever i want!" so he picks up his phone, calls me, asks if he can stay at my place for a little while. It's been seven years, we're engaged, have a dog, a cat, and a happy life.
i also plan on throwing some subtle train themes into the wedding/celebration after the end of the plague.”
No Yelling
When Reddit user blind30’s boss raised their voice to them, they decided to express just how much they disliked being yelled at. And they did this by proving how actions can speak louder than words.
“Had an old boss who was a complete and total bastard. He was actually my boss’ boss, and wasn’t supposed to interact with us unless it was through our boss, but he just loved trying to make everyone under him squirm.
The company had forced him to go to training twice because of how he spoke to people. One day, I get a call at home from him and he just starts unloading- cursing, name-calling, insulting over some technical issue he just found out about.
After a couple of minutes, I just looked at my phone and hung up on him. The next day, I get called into a meeting with his boss, who basically wants to know who the heck I think I am hanging up on this guy. I calmly explain that no one gets to yell at me on my time, in my home, on my phone.
You have to wait for me to be on the clock to pay me for that privilege, and I’ll gladly take that money- If I’m busy being yelled at, I’m not busy with anything else. Seemed to work.”
Love Conquers All
Reddit user wine_and_book and her co-workers were totally confused when a US company took over their German company and started spouting off silly rules like no relationships among co-workers. Then, someone in the meeting finally spoke up in defiance of the new guidelines and it was epic!
“15 years ago, I worked for a company in Germany that was bought by a large US company. One of the first actions was a mandatory HR meeting. They used their US power point deck and guided us through the rules & regulations although directed by our local HR team to not do that:
Here are some of the highlights: We are not allowed to accept tickets for the Super Bowl. Utterly confusion - 90% of the people had never heard of the Super Bowl... a discussion about why we would want to watch that anyways, started.
We are not allowed to have relationship with anybody from a supplier or within the company. Uproar in the room: This is against the German constitution - what you do in your free time is none of their business. The discussion gets heated, everybody is discussing.
The Americans on the line are very confused why.... The head of QA finally gets up and shouts "If I love that woman, nobody will prevent me from dating her". People signed the sheet that they participated and read and understood the presentation "with reservations."
People start discussing where to sign up for legal expenses insurance. HR refrained from that day from having mandatory global HR meetings.
Management tried a couple of other stuff - at will employment (against the law - everybody has a contract), cutting vacation (against the law), canceling bank holidays (against the law).
Make people work on vacation days (guess what, against the law) and a couple more. It was a prime example of cultural ignorance and incredible funny...”
The Senior-Level Position
The_Atlas_Moth let her potential employers know right away that she wasn’t some inexperienced pushover who was going to accept anything less than what she applied for. So, when they tried to offer her a smaller role in the company, she put her foot down.
“A few years ago I interviewed for a job (in the US) that was labeled as a senior-level position, which is my level of experience in this field. I go through 2 phone interviews and a stellar in-person interview.
Shortly after the in-person interview, they call me and say they absolutely loved me and that I would be a great fit at the company.
However, they thought I was "a little too green" (implying I was inexperienced) for the senior-level position, but lucky for me they have an opening for the junior-level position (at a salary decrease).
I kindly told them that the reason I applied to their job posting in the first place was because it was a senior-level position and that I wasn't going to take a step backwards in my career by taking a junior-level position since I had both the appropriate experience and the work history.
I also let them know that trying to trick someone with senior-level experience into taking a junior-level position by stringing them along through interviews and a job offer was deceptive and unethical.
There was silence over the phone for a moment and then the interviewer said in an offended tone, "Well we've all had to make sacrifices for company name!" To which I replied, "You may have had to, but I don't make sacrifices for anyone." Stunned silence.
Then the interviewer, who was so appalled that they didn't know what to say, replies, "Well ... Maybe you can think about it and I'll call you tomorrow to check in ..." I said, "No thank you and please don't call me." and hung up the phone.
They do this a lot to young females like myself in a variety of industries. Don't take crap from anybody. Know your qualifications, believe in them, and tell abusers to bug right off. Your talents will be appreciated and paid for elsewhere, I promise you.”
First Class Nightmare
Reddit user doctor-rumack wasn’t high on the corporate ladder but he had certainly earned the right to fly first-class. Too bad his boss didn’t agree. Luckily, when she tried to have him booted in first class, the lead flight attendant made her feel like she belonged in third class.
“A co-worker friend of mine was flying back from a sales conference in Vegas and he was able to upgrade to a first class seat.
We had this bratty sales VP that was on the same flight - she was the snobby, entitled type with a full time nanny and giant McMansion in the suburbs, and she generally treated people who worked for her like servants.
She sees him in a first class seat as she is making her way to coach and asks him how he got that seat (he used points to upgrade). As people are getting settled in, she makes her way back up to the first class cabin and asks to speak with the lead flight attendant.
She tells him that one of her underlings is sitting in first class, and that she needs to switch with him since she's higher on the corporate ladder. The guy can't believe what he's hearing, but she won't take no for an answer.
Finally he tells her she has to go back to her seat, or she will be escorted from the plane. She made a complete jerk of herself in front of the whole first class cabin.”
Sticking To His Department
Reddit user bradland realized that he was a good sales rep at the technology department he worked in because the shift manager kept trying to push him out so he could take all the sales glory. But he stayed at his post and didn’t let himself get bullied. Eventually, the store manager came to his defense.
“When I was in high school I worked at a popular warehouse club selling computers on the weekends. I was hired by the store manager via referral of a friend. I loved computers and they thought I'd make a good salesman, so my job was to stay in the computer department and sell computers; nothing else.
Well, one of the shift managers didn't like that, and started insisting that I needed to go fold clothes for a while. As in, half my shift. I told him that the store manager had instructed me never to leave the technology department, but he insisted. This went on for several weeks.
The store manager showed up one weekend when both the power trippin shift manager and I were working. The store manager walks up with the shift manager close behind. Store manager slaps a stack of greenbar paper (this was a while ago) down onto a shelf and points to some highlighted numbers.
He looks at the shift manager and says, "Do you see this? This is our average technology sales numbers for the weeks you are on shift. See this number over here? This is our average technology sales numbers for weeks you are not. At this point, it would be more cost effective for me to simply fire you.
What do you think of that solution?" The guy stammers and stutters like a toddler caught bullying another kid on the playground.
Fortunately, the dude wasn't fired, but the store manager made it clear that when I was on shift, I was not to leave the technology department unless I was on break or there was a fire in the store. That shift manager never said another word to me.”
Hit Me
As a kid, Reddit user 8string hated staying over at his mom’s friend's house because there was this macho man who treated him horribly there. But one day, the guy dared him to hit him in the gut and the 12-year-old didn’t hold back.
“I was about 12 years old, maybe younger. Often had been forced to stay with my Moms friends when she'd go out of town. The father was.... An abusive prick. He'd do things like make tomatoes every night for dinner knowing I absolutely hated them. For a week.
Threw me in a pool when I was small and he knew I couldn't swim. Classic 70s "macho man". He literally tortured me every chance he'd get. As an aside if you're a kid and your own mother doesn't give a crap how people treat you, it's pretty much open season. Anyway, we went out to dinner one night.
Me, my Mom, her friends and their kids. We were leaving the restaurant. I don't remember what preceded it, but he said "go ahead tough guy. hit me as hard as you can right in the gut" thinking I wouldn't do it because I was scared of him. But this was my moment and I knew it.
He was a small man, 5'6". I was at least as tall as him already. And as he gave me his crap eating grin I pulled my fist back and effing belted him in the gut with EVERY ounce of strength I could muster. He immediately doubled over. He was PISSED.
He tried to turn it around on me, but his wife shut him up instantly. "You told him to do it. If you 'weren't ready' it's your fault, not his". One of the most satisfying moments of my life. And one of the last times I had to endure mr Tough Guy.”
Internally Giggly
Most hotel employees don’t take kindly to getting the middle finger in their face, but Reddit user Drew- got the last laugh after a young woman was forced to come in and pay a fine for parking in the wrong spot.
“I work at a hotel. Its high end, so we often take the approach of just appeasing guests no matter what, so I frequently have to bite my tounge. However, we have a very desirable parking lot, and when people poach it we boot them.
I love enforcing these because I don't have to bite my tongue or apologize, as they aren't guests. My favorite one was this: Girl parks, and walks to neighbor hotel. Our gm happens to be in the lot, and says hey just fyi this is parking for x hotel, not z hotel.
She proceeds to say eff you, flips him off, and walks into neighbor hotel. Gm calls me, and tells me. I giggle, grab the boot and slap it on her car. She comes back screaming and ranting. I tell her the cost is $200. She calls the police. The police ask "is this a private lot?" Yes. Ok then pay them.
She refuses to pay and storms off. I get a call requesting the manager. I speak with them, its the girls mom. She is trying to say "oh my daughter didn't know, she was there for a job interview" yada yada.
I let her go on, and when she finally stops making excuses, I tell her that her daughter flipped off the gm, and there is no way the boot is coming off without payment. On top of that, i tell her when she pays she better not come in swearing or yelling, or the price goes up to 300.
She hangs up, the daughter comes back and silently hands me 200, with a look of rage on her face. I've never been so internally giggly before.”
No Bullying Allowed
Reddit user dendriticbranch couldn’t stand by and do nothing as a 16-year-old movie theater employee was being bullied by an irate customer. So, he stepped in and told him something that made smoke come out of both ears.
“I worked in management at a theatre for a while. If the concession counter was slammed and I was able, I’d leave my post and help them sling popcorn.
One night while helping out, a particularly belligerent man started cussing out a 16 year old girl on a cash register for being too slow, even suggesting she quit since she clearly couldn’t handle pushing buttons or scooping popcorn.
It was pretty disgusting and I felt so bad for the girl, I stepped in and told the guy that our employees have the right to refuse service to customers who harass them as part of our anti-harassment/discrimination policy, empathized that the lines were longer than usual,
And suggested he should apologize and move on. He was so mad. Left half his order on the counter and started fuming off. Anticipating his next move, I went back to my original post that night - as manager of the customer service kiosk.
Oh boy, the look on his face when he saw me. (Didn’t want a refund of his tickets though so I assume he watched the movie, without popcorn).”
You’re Fired
Reddit user Nevermind04 felt like the host of “The Apprentice,” a show that conducts a job talent search for a person to head a tycoon’s companies. And when the assistant manager he was showing around started mouthing off, he sent the guy packing.
“I worked for 8 years servicing communications equipment on-site, 5 of those years were as the department manager. When oil was found in our area, we got so busy we could barely even think.
Most of my team were pulling 12+ hour days 6 days a week and we were struggling to hire people quick enough. One day, the CEO texted and said he hired an assistant manager for me, which was something I desperately needed.
I was dirty as heck from my previous job and swung by the store to pick him up and take him to one of our sites where he would be doing paperwork. The moment he got in the truck, he immediately started talking crap.
He started telling me about how everything we were doing is messed up and the department manager was a total moron and he would have my job within a few months. I just sat and mostly listened.
He obviously didn't know anything about my industry and every time he would say something wrong, I would try to politely correct him and he'd either backtrack or insist that I was trained wrong.
When we got to the site OUT IN THE MIDDLE OF THE WEST TEXAS DESERT, he complained about the layer of dust on everything and "ordered me" to clean up the entire site. When I sat down at my desk, the guy continued to complain my ear off about everything that was wrong and chastised me for sitting down at my desk when he told me to clean up the site. So I called for a taxi, filled out a notice of termination, and handed it to him. He looked absolutely shocked. Then he defiantly protested that only CEO could fire him. I said and my name, right? He sheepishly nodded. So I stuck my hand out for a handshake and introduced myself. I can teach anyone how to service equipment, but I don't have a clue how to teach someone to not be a jerk.”
Worst Parents Ever
Reddit user ilhamalfatihah16’s grandparents treated his parents so badly that it created a huge rift in the family and neither side reached out to talk until tragedy struck. The ironic thing was that it was his mom, who his grandparents berated, that convinced his dad to talk to his parents once again.
“When I was still a child I saw how abusive my grandparents were to my parents when they used to stay in their house during their early years of marriage when they were broke.
They are forced to accept the abuse and swallow their pride knowing that they're still indebted to them and had nowhere to go. Once they have enough money to leave my grandparents they moved to a small rented house.
My grandparents came for an unannounced visit and berate my dad for living in such a shanty house and how ungrateful he was for leaving their home. My dad was silent until they start blaming my mother for being a wife that brought "bad luck" to my dad and how she "poisons" him into moving to a new home. My dad weren't having any of their bile anymore and kicked them out.
They stop talking until my grandfather was dying of leukemia. My mom was the one who persuaded my dad to see him before he passed.”
Demoted
Reddit user greasedlightning343 had a horrible boss, but there wasn’t much she could do about it as she was a cashier at the time. But when she ascended to the assistant manager position and he got demoted, she was finally able to show him who the boss was.
“I worked at a Walmart as a cashier, and the assistant manager there was a jerk, he would insult everybody working there and forced us sometimes to do work above our pay grade.
6 months later me and him got transferred to another Walmart that was just built and they needed to pick a manager and assistant manager. some random got manager but I got assistant manager (I guess all the complaints on the assistant manager basically gave him a demotion) so one day he was ordering the other cashiers around then I pulled him to the side and told him that if he kept pulling the same crap around he would be out of here. I haven't heard anything from him since.”
I Don’t Live Here Anymore
Some moms are loving and nurturing. Reddit user rou_te’s mom was neither of those things. But that’s okay because karma eventually got her when her daughter was older and no longer living at home.
“My mother made my childhood hell (unpredictable moods, every second weekend would be family drama weekend with day long tirades about how everyone hates her and we are horrible to her and surely we are so vile and want her to leave; yelling and abuse got so bad I got panic attacks and nothing was done about it, random beating, crying, insults, very controlling, went through my letters and diary, called me a prostitute or dumb as a cow when I came home 15 minutes too late, the works)
After what seemed like ages of struggling, I finally managed to move out at age 21, to an address within the same city. Her whining continued. Why would I not give her keys to my apartment? Why did I not phone in every day? Where was I, who was I with, what was I doing at every time of the day? I must hate her! I must be looking forward to dancing on her grave!
I tried to not react and give her more ammunition, but when she ended up asking at some point "Why are you not coming by and visiting us every day??", I finally replied "because I don't live here anymore", and THANK GOD it shut her up.”
Not in Command
Working at a flight service station was stressful for Reddit user Marilius, especially when a jerk on a power trip tried to exert control of an emergency situation. But even though they heard him knocking they refused to let him into the station.
“I worked at the flight service station in Yellowknife, Canada. There we have a control tower and FSS. Tower had the radios at that time of day. Pilot reports smoke in the cockpit, declares an emergency. He was ~20 minutes out, and there's nowhere else to land, so he just continuing to come here. In the interim, emerg procedures put in place, Airport Firefighters are out in force. EMS is on standby, the town firehall comes out. And out comes captain jackass from the cops. BANGING on my door.
"HI IM HERE TO TAKE CONTROL!"
..... of what?
"THE SITUATION, IM IN COMMAND."
... ok, well, tower has the radios right now, so theyre the ones dealing with the emergency.
"THEN IM GOING UPSTAIRS TO TAKE CONTROL"
Alrighty, you do that. He starts to head up the additional floors to the control tower. Thing is, tower's door, like mine, is locked and can only be opened with our keys or from the inside. I call upstairs and relay there's a cop coming "to take control" Naturally they do not let him in. There's really nothing he could possibly do except make noise and be in the way. Not long after he stomps back down and I hear him radio some nonsense about "who do they think they are? IM IN COMMAND!"”
Impersonating a Veteran
Reddit user nowforever13 encountered a moody veteran working at Lowes who thought he was a know it all. But his dad, who had gone with him, was a vet, and he figured out that the Lowes’ employee didn’t know much about anything related to hardware and was lying about having served in Vietnam.
“sort of a you have no power here moment... but funny none the less.
My dad and I went to lowes one time, and the guy helping us had on a veteran hat and a few pins kept trying to insinuate we didnt know what we were talking about, and that we didnt need what we were there for, and kept trying to argue about everything. so my dad asked what service he was in trying to break ice, and the dude said he was in team 6 1970-1974 in Vietnam, and trained in Great lakes. which was the wrong answer.
So my dad asked if he meant seal team 1 or 2. the man recognizing my dads service ring immediately buffed up on my dad and got tomato faced red and tried to assert dominance as a superior. So my dad immediately called the guy on his shtick for stolen valor explained why he was full of crap and threatened to turn him in for it and get his management involved.
i havent seen that guy in town in a while.”
Tore Him a New One
Reddit user s14sher knew that joining the army wouldn’t be easy. There are endless people who yell demands and bark orders at every time of day. But he certainly wasn’t expecting to get any lip from a city police lieutenant. Luckily, the sergeant major stepped in and tore him a new one.
“I joined the Army Reserve in 1983, in between my junior and senior year in high school. Going to drill one weekend and we were doing war games with another reserve unit.
They mailed everyone a letter with the challenge and response to be let in to the unit. As a lowly private, I was standing guard at the entrance and had to say the challenge.
Everything's going good until a city police car pulls up and the cop is a new lieutenant. I give the challenge and he just looks at me. I say it again and he said to just let him in because he didn't know it. He starts getting belligerent and I ask him to turn off the car and step out.
He gets out and starts yelling at me. The Sergeant Major heard the commotion and comes over and tears the young lieutenant a new one.
It was very satisfying to watch and I learned that day that even though a 2nd lieutenant outranks a sergeant major, it really doesn't matter because the sergeant major had been in for 20 years and didn't put up with any crap.”
Have a Nice Flight
When an accident at a small airport caused mayhem and foolishness, a Texas Department of Public Safety officer tried to shut down the whole airport and ground Reddit user AjaxBU, who was a flight instructor. But the DPS officer was hopping mad when the airport manager gave the instructor the go ahead.
“Watching a few Texas DPS Officers realize they couldn't shut down a whole airport.
I was working as a flight instructor at a small airport on a Saturday afternoon. We had one plane that had an issue on takeoff and veered off the runway, it cartwheeled and totaled the airplane but fortunately the pilot was not serious injured. I had a student who was next in line for takeoff when it happened, he called me from his phone as it happened.
I hopped in the airport car with one of the rampers and drove out to the plane with a radio to inform inbound planes to use the other runway (we had no control tower). On the way to the runway I called the airport manager who drove to the airport and on his way he made a phone call to officially close that runway.
About 30 minutes later a metric ton of DPS officers showed up and immediately tried to close the whole airport, treating it like a giant crime scene. They were carelessley driving around the airport like they owned the place, ignoring the planes that were moving around, and crossing our only open runway without regard to inbound traffic.
A mechanic and I tried to tell them to be careful and they got mad at us. One of them told me they were "locking it down" a couple times, meaning the whole airport. Now I was a broke flight instructor and I had a flight that afternoon that was ultimately going to help pay for me to eat that week.
The airport manager was a short stereotypical country guy, also former Navy. He was not intimidated at all by the cops trying to close his airport. When he showed up I was about to go out with a student who was preflighting for a cross-country. There were about 5 cops in the lobby, me with my flight bag, the airport manager, and a mechanic.
One of the cops saw my flight bag and said "I don't know why you have that or why he's out at the plane, you aren't going anywhere", the moment he finished his sentence the airport manager said "it's one runway that's closed, the airport is still open." This angered the cops.
I was about to head out the door, and one of the officers said he was driving out to the disabled plane. Idky, the pilot had been gone for about an hour. The mechanic said "you need to be careful" and the cop quickly retorted "AND WHY THE HELL IS THAT?" and he said "because this is still an airport, and the first thing that hits you is going to be a propeller" a few seconds later a plane took off as one of the cars was approaching the runway intersection ironing in that point.
I walked out, and as I was hopping in the plane with my student the same cop came up to me and said "you aren't going anywhere, we're locking this down!" I looked at the airport manager who followed all of us out to the ramp, he said "have a nice flight AjaxBU!"
You could see these cops just fuming that they didn't have the authority to close down an entire airport because one plane went off the runway. The airport had two runways, where the disabled plane was located was probably a mile or so away from the open runway. Why they were making a big fuss, I don't know. The occupant was relatively uninjured, his wife was the worst thing he had to deal with that day, he told her he wasn't going to fly.
We had a good flight, and I got to eat dinner that week.”
Culture Shock
Most people assume that doctors know everything but Reddit user texasbornandraised95 discovered that wasn’t the case when one of them demanded that a test on a fungal culture they sent out be sped up.
“I was working a lab assistant shift (I'm a tech) receiving specimens and such, when a doctor phoned the lab. He was very upset that there was a test that was taking far too long in his opinion. I said okay, let's look at it, and asked what the test was. A fungal culture...
A fungal culture takes at least two weeks to see if anything grows. The patient was in the ER. I politely told him the test was a send out and they generally take about about two weeks or longer depending on the fungus.
He got all huffy and asked why it took so long and is there a way to speed up the process since he wants to discharge the patient. I chuckled a little because this is a common problem with cultures, we're literally waiting for stuff to grow, we can't just make them grow faster. I told him we don't have magical wands that make fungus grow really fast.
He then asked for a lab tech because I was just a lab assistant. I then let him know I was in fact a lab tech with experience in microbiology and I can tell him from first hand experience that fungal cultures are some of the slowest cultures, right up there was AFBs, and assured him that if anything comes of it, we'll let ER know.
He didn't really like that, but said fine and hung up.”
Account Cancelled
Reddit user zerbey’s online newspaper service had plenty of subscribers. So neither he nor the newspaper editor sweated too much when a disgruntled customer threatened to cancel their subscription.
“That would be a customer we had named Nick. I'll leave his last name out to protect the stupid. He would e-mail us and always cc [email protected] and most of his e-mails were things like "NOTHING FREAKING WORKS". None of the national newspapers responded, I imagine some underling just rolled his eyes and deleted them. Finally, he said, fix this in 5 minutes or I cancel.
My manager says "let me see that e-mail". He responded "Thank you, I cancelled your account. We don't want customers like you anyway. If you want to contact the media, that's your call, I'll happily provide the months of threatening e-mails you sent to my staff".
He gave us months of headaches over a £45/quarter account. We definitely didn't need him.”
The Podiatrist
If there’s one thing one can’t have enough of during an accident, it’s doctors, which is why Reddit user medicff was so happy when another doctor was at the scene willing to help a family in a car crash. But when he asked her what kind of doctor she was, the answer left him shook.
“Oooo I have a good one! I was responding to a call with our volunteer fire dept a couple years ago. I was west of town and a vehicle rolled halfway between where I was and the fire hall. So I called the responding people and said I’ll meet you there.
It was a single vehicle that rolled and they were all immigrants from the Pakistan/Afghanistan region. Before I got there, a doctor from the same region had stopped to lend a hand. She was from the similar region as those involved in the crash and I had assumed she was the eighth person in the van. She started to try to order me around and tell me I only needed to know certain information about the patient she was with.
It went something like this. Dr: “She has midline neck pain and sore ribs.” Me: “Okay, and crepitus or deformity to the.....” Dr: “That’s all you need to know!” Me: “Uhhh wha?” Dr: “I am a doctor and that’s all you need to know!” That’s when I figured maybe I should ask what kind of doctor, in case this is some whackadoo who just claims to be a doctor like we’ve had happen before.
She tells me she’s a podiatrist. I gave her my best look of trying to be nice but their feet are fine right now. When doctors or nurses show up on scene, they ultimately can trump EMS. But they have to actually do the work and sign off as having taken patient control. As soon as I asked her to sign the paperwork and ride with us to the hospital she realized she was out of her knowledge area and disappeared.”
Not for That Price
A customer assumed that because Reddit user Hopefulkitty worked at a hardware store that they would be looking for a side job. But the opportunity wasn’t worth all the manipulative belittlement they got to get them to accept.
“A few years ago a guy stopped me in the hardware store and asked if I was a painter. I looked down at my painters whites and said, yeah I do historical restoration work. He asked how much I charge per hour, and when I told him, he immediately told me I was too expensive and dropped my rate by 25%. I had already given him my number, but he kept belittling me, and saying I wasn't worth it. I just told him that I already had a full time job, and this would be in my off hours, so it needed to be worth my while.
He finally let me leave the store, then called me 3 or 4 times, each time hemming and hawing over if he wanted to actually use me or not, he's got a bunch of properties, it would be a sweet gig, but not at those prices. And I just kept telling him that's fine, don't use me if you don't want to. Eventually I recognized his number and stopped picking up.
He really thought he had some sort of power over me, and I'd jump at the opportunity. Luckily I didn't have to take the work, I was making good enough money as it was. He would have nitpicked absolutely everything, and probably not paid me at the end anyway. But he was so certain he'd have power in the situation, that he didn't seem able to comprehend me not wanting to barter with him.”
No More Drinking
As an employee at a hotel bar, Reddit user CurlyWhirlyHedgehog was used to dealing with drunk customers who waved their wands around demanding service. But one drunk hotel guest learned that when the staff says no more drinking, they mean it!
“One of my jobs is in a hotel/restaurant/bar. A guest came into the bar after having been refused service at our sister hotel down the road. He was very drunk and had been rude, abusive and threatening to the staff.
He insisted we serve him as he was a guest, but we’d already been phoned by our sister hotel so they could let us know what the situation was. We refused, but offered him some water and suggested he go up to his room.
He then went on about how he had nearly bought our hotel and that he was practically our boss so we should serve him or he’d have us fired. We refused.
He told us he was a very rich man and would tip us hundreds of pounds if we served him. We refused. He was getting abusive at this point, so we again suggested he have some water and head up to his room.
He went on to tell us that his brother was the mayor so we should serve him. We refused and told him he should go on up to his room yet again.
He then said he was going to the pub across the street but all the pubs/restaurants in our town have a barred from one barred from them all policy. We telephoned the other pubs to inform them of the situation. Many of them got back to us and said they had been offered money, been threatened with losing their jobs and also told the story of the mayor. All of the pubs stuck to their guns and refused to serve him.
Eventually, he came back to the hotel and went to his room.”
Stand Up
Most kids have no choice but to take it when their parents yell at them because they’re grownups and a lot taller than they are. But when Reddit user jsabo experienced a massive growth spurt and became the tallest in the family, he found that standing up to him literally ended the yelling.
“My dad is 6'3". I'm 6'10". Sometime in my early teens, I shot past him.
Dad was a yeller. Not doing what he thought I should be? No discussion, just yell. But I realized at some point that he wouldn't yell at me if he had to look up while he was doing it.
I don't remember what our last argument was about, I just remember that I'd sort of caught on at this point. So I'm in my room in front of the computer, Dad comes in and starts yelling at me. I eventually stand up and start yelling back. Dad makes an excuse to leave.
Dad comes back about a half hour later and starts yelling again, but at this point, it's all I can do to not just laugh. I know that the instant I stand up, the argument will end.
It actually wound up being really good for our relationship, because Dad realized that he actually had to make valid points, rather than just going into former drill sergeant mode.”
Former Boss
Reddit user voice_of_craisin couldn’t believe it when an employee’s former boss accused them of trying to poach one of their consultants. Then things got even weirder when that former boss showed up and demanded that the former employee complete an unfinished project. But what happened next was hilarious.
“One of my new employees came from a competitor who is, shall we say, not as put together as we are. Her former boss had actually called me to yell at me about "poaching" his consultants. Which, in and of itself, is weird enough. However, a few weeks after she started the dude rolled up to our office. He had apparently been calling her to get her to finish an analysis for him and she just ghosted him.
I went to the lobby to see what the heck he was doing here. He started in on me again and then she happened to walk by. I didn't fully understand the conversation but at one point he literally "demanded" she do this analysis. She just said, "or what?" and waited a few beats before turning on her heels and walking away. I did the ol' hand on his back point to the door universal symbol for "leave or a large security man will make you leave." Never heard from him again.”
Rebel Subway Employee
They say the customer is always right, which is why a lot of fast food employees have to take it when a customer is rude. But Reddit user Bradddtheimpaler got the all clear from his boss to treat mean customers however he wanted, and that’s exactly what he did.
“I used to work at a few Subways. Thing is, the owner inherited them when she already had a busy and lucrative career elsewhere. She mainly held on to them to employ immigrant family members, I think. One time, she was in the back when she heard me interact with an angry customer. Afterward, she came out and said, “You know you don’t have to take crap like that. I trust you, you can use your judgment and just toss anybody out who talks to you like that.”
After that I wouldn’t take any crap from anybody. Slightest hint of backtalk to your Sandwich Artist, and you were out on your butt, still hungry. It was so much fun.
“Let me speak to your manager.”
“No. Get out.”
“I’m going to call and complain.”
“OoOoOoOoOh I’m terrified. Go nuts, but you can’t call from in here, because you’re trespassing now.”
The sheer indignance of an entitled customer when you don’t bow and scrape before them is really something to behold.”
Not Paid Enough for Opinions
Being told that one doesn’t get paid enough to have an opinion is one of the most demeaning things a boss can tell their employee. But Reddit user croix_v bided his time. Then one day, when the boss asked him for some much needed opinion, he threw it back in his face.
“My job right before my current one.
Property manager - the owner was an absolute prick. He was heartless and rude and racist and I loathed him. I hated every day going into that job but I needed the money. I was applying daily to my dream company in hopes that eventually I’d be accepted.
In the meantime, every time I complained or mentioned something to my supervisor I was told to shut up and get on with it. “He was paying me too much to have opinions”
Three years after, we were a small office and the receptionist and assistant prop managers had quit. I finally got accepted into my dream company and happily put in my two week notice.
In desperation, he offered me more money, a higher position, better benefits (which were laughable). When I said no, he asked why. I have never felt more gleeful than the moment of when I said “I don’t know, I’m not paid to have opinions here.”
That was a year ago and even now the look on his stupid old face gives me joy to this day."
8-Hour Shift
One Reddit user got paid for an 8-hour shift to service a technical issue that a client was having. But they were so darn efficient that they finished in under an hour. But when the client refused to let them leave until they finished their shift, the guy put him in his place.
“IT services for a client of mine. They paid for me to come to their office and address a problem. 8 hrs minimum time. The issue was resolved in about 45 minutes, they'd set up something incorrectly and it was pretty obvious once I got into the system.
I was packing up to leave and the client stopped me.
"What are you doing?"
"The system is fixed so I'm headed out back to my office."
"No, I paid for 8 hours, you'll do your 8 hours. If I tell you to wash my car for 8 hours that's what you'll be doing."
"Right...so anyway, I'm leaving. I'll notify the office to send you the invoice and in all likelihood we'll no longer be working with you and withdrawing your lease on our equipment."”
Catering Company Owner
This didn’t happen to Reddit user VictorBlimpmuscle, but he was a witness to it. A rude lady at a wedding reception told the bartender that she wanted an adult to make her drink because she felt that he was too slow. Then he told her something that left every alcohol craving brain cell in her body screaming with fear.
“In college I worked for a small catering company that was started by a guy who was barely much older than college age himself, no more than early 30’s. All of us that worked for him were college age or just over as well, so it was a young looking crew in general.
One day we were working an outdoor black-tie wedding reception for over 300 people, and it was a scorcher out too temperature-wise. So not only was it hot out and we’re all in tuxes serving a crap-ton of people, the family of the bride who are funding this affair are some of the rudest and most-demanding people imaginable, so it was not the most fun gig in general.
Well, one of the aunts on the bride’s turned out to be the rudest of the bunch and kept trying to pull the “I’m related to the bride so give me give me give me”-act (even though she wasn’t even in the darn wedding party), and was just making the lives of any one of us who came in contact with her even more of a living hell than what we were experiencing, including the owner of the company, who was lead bartender at the main bar.
Now that point is key because, by some grace of whatever higher power/force/fate/kismet or whatever you call it, I was also working that same bar, which gave me the opportunity to bear witness to the most beautifully constructed instance of comeuppance to which I had ever seen to that point, and don’t expect to ever see it bettered again:
the nightmare witch aunt is in young bossman’s bar line, and loudly complaining the whole time how long it’s taking, and she shouldn’t even have to be waiting in a line anyway because she’s whatever-the-bride’s name’s aunt, blah-blah-blah, just making a huge stink.
When she got up to the head of the line to place her order, she said something along the lines of how slow and ineffectual he was, to which he responded something along the lines of “we’re going as the fast as we can, here’s your drink, have a nice evening” (through gritted teeth I’m sure), which led her into the following diatribe:
“That’s because you’re nothing but a bunch of dumb kids - don’t you have any adults back there working this wedding? I want to talk to your manager or the owner or someone who’s an adult who can get you out of here and get the job done right.” To which a huge crap-eating grin washed over his face as he replied, “Hi! My name is (his name). I am the owner of this catering company, please note that if you would like for me to go, then this reception will have no food or beverages or bar service.”
I swear you could almost hear a hype crew descending from the heavens shouting “OHHHHHHH!!!” after he said it. It was a moment of transcendence I don’t think I’ll ever experience again. Plus, the witchy aunt didn’t bother us again the rest of the night.”
Soaking Dad
When Reddit user pumpkinspicepiggy’s father ran into his daughter’s house, he assumed she would never soak him with the hose in retaliation for a prank he pulled on her. But he soon learned that he no longer had the power in this family. His daughter did.
“This is a bit silly, but gave me a great feeling of satisfaction. Due to the bad economy and poor money management, my parents have moved into the spare room of the house my husband and I bought a year ago. Things are mostly smooth, tho I’m not the closest to them for several reasons I won’t go into here.
The other evening I was out gardening (because it’s hot during the day and we have the luck of having a streetlight right next to our front yard, keeping it pretty well illuminated even after sundown, I mostly garden at night), and I thought I had gotten the hose twisted, as it kept getting stuck.
This went on for a bit, when I realized that it wasn’t stuck, but being pulled. I looked into the dim area just past the illumination of the street light and spied my father, crouched over and tugging the hose. Well I did the only reasonable thing to do, and I sprayed him. He yelled and ran inside with me chasing.
Once he got inside he made a face and goes “You can’t get me now! I’m inside!!” In that father-to-daughter-don’t-you-make-a-mess tone of voice.
I readied my hose, looked him in the eye and said, “It’s my house.” And just let loose with the hose. He was soaked. Worth cleaning up the mess for that moment of true fear in his eyes.”
Banned for Life
Restaurant employees don’t have it easy. Long hours. Lousy pay. Mean customers. This was something Reddit user Sarchasm-Spelunker was used to. But there was one difficult customer that they refused to give a refund to no matter how bad she tried to get it.
“When I was working customer service for a restaurant delivery service (not unlike Door Dash) I had a customer send in a complaint about hair in their food. The hair was sitting on top of the food. I check their account, and they had ONE order on their account, which is a red flag.
I check their phone number and find multiple accounts, each other 1-2 orders, ALL of them complaining about hair in the food. I deny a refund because the customer has actually used the same identical photo for the last order since they ordered the same thing. The customer tries to argue with me, threaten to never use the service again, typical stuff that they always say.
Eventually the customer gives up and ends the call, then immediately tries again. I get the support request. See who it is, then deny the refund again. She ends the call, then tries again. The person behind me gets the call. I tap the person on the shoulder and show them what I pulled up on my screen and that person denies the refund.
The next day she calls back and tries again and is outside of the refund window, so the customer demands to speak to a supervisor.
The supervisor bans her from the service for multiple fraudulent refund requests.”