He Was Forced To Work In Brutally Hot Conditions, So He Left Work Early When He Started To Feel Sick

Matthew Gilligan

4 months ago

Shutterstock/Reddit

Ahhhh, I remember being 18-years-old.

You have the world by the cajones and you think a lot of life’s rules don’t apply to you.

But they do!

And this kid might’ve gotten himself into trouble when he didn’t handle a work situation in the best way.

Read his story and see what you think.

AITA for leaving work early without telling anyone because it was over 130°F where I work?

“I (18M) am currently interning at a very prestigious nursery in the Midwest.

It’s a really big deal for me because the company has government connections, and having this on my resume basically guarantees me future job opportunities.

There’s a problem.

But here is the issue.

My boss (lets call him MB) has been out of town on vacation for the past week. Normally, he’s the one who works alongside me and checks in.

But because he is gone his boss (WB), who works out of a completely different office across the state from where I’m stationed, has been “supervising” me remotely using the security cameras in the greenhouses.

The greenhouse I work in is about a mile away from mine and my bosses office building, and since MB is gone, I haven’t had access to the air-conditioned office at all.

I’ve been stuck at the greenhouses the entire time in the heat.

He’s been sweating it out!

Now, the weather has been brutal lately, with highs around 100–105°F.

Inside the greenhouse, it’s even worse. There’s no fan, no AC, and barely any ventilation.

The only way I can cool it down is by opening the roll-up walls about 3 feet, but that doesn’t do much.

Even with shade cloth, the temperature inside reached over 130°F today.

I was working in those conditions for 6 hours straight before I started feeling lightheaded and got a headache.

He needed to take a break.

Since I couldn’t cool off and had nowhere to rest (again, I had no access to the office), I made the decision to leave about 2 hours early.

I didn’t notify WB because I knew she’d be upset, and I don’t have any sick leave to use anyway.

About 30 minutes after I got home, WB checked the security cameras, saw I was gone, and called me.

She asked where I was, and I told her I had gone home because I wasn’t going to keep working in a greenhouse that was 130°F.

She told me that if I didn’t return immediately and finish out the day, I’d be suspended with no pay for a week.

Problem is, I live about 30 minutes away and can’t work past 5 p.m (it was already 4:30), so there wouldn’t have been enough time to drive back and get anything done.

So here is where I might be the *******.

I told her that even if I could make it back in I wouldn’t go back in because it was just too hot there and that if she wants to make sure the plants in there are fine she should come out of her nice AC’d office and try working in there when it is as hot as it is.

She then told me her intern isn’t having any problem with the heat (she only has one greenhouse to take care of and it actually has ventilation unlike the 6 I have to take care of).

So I just gave up on the conversation said I was sorry and hung up.

So now I might be suspended, and I’m worried it’ll ruin my reputation at this company.

I get that I probably should’ve told someone, but I also think I shouldn’t be expected to work in dangerous conditions with no break and no access to AC.

AITA for going home early without telling my boss?”