May 27, 2026 at 2:22 pm

The Ultimate Kitchen Karma: Power-Tripping Manager Yells At Worker About Phone Rules, Accidentally Sabotaging Her Own Busiest Lunch Rush

by Heather Hall

Man standing behind a counter baking pizzas

Pexels/Reddit

Some managers get so caught up in power trips that they forget employees can follow the rules too.

This deli worker spent the day buried in nonstop pizza orders during a huge rush at the grocery store. While trying not to burn pizzas, he pulled out his phone to make sure Siri actually started a timer for the oven.

That’s when his manager suddenly snapped at him for being on his phone and reminded him about “company policy.”

The problem is that company policy also said he deserved a full uninterrupted break, and he almost never took them.

So this time, he decided to take one.

Read on to see what happened next.

Shirley Temple will have her revenge on Scottsdale

I work in the deli for Arizona’s town of Grover.

We just had a rough inspection, causing our deli manager, let’s call her Shirley, to have a wild hair up her butt, giving everyone in the deli a hard time every step of the way. There are so many steps, it’s getting annoying.

It’s insanely busy because of a unique combination of the TPC Waste Management Open Golf thing and our app offering free pizzas to about five percent of the app users.

The pizza timer was an issue.

I make the pizza, and up until recently, I had a tendency to burn a lot of them for two reasons: one it’s extremely busy (and therefore easy to lose track). And two, our timer for the oven being a little turn manual alarm that isn’t as loud as you would think.

It’s also near impossible to turn the dial for it to eight minutes forty five seconds. I had to start it at nine minutes and wait for fifteen seconds.

Anyway, I make three pizzas, put them in the oven, and say, “Hey Siri, set a timer for eight minutes 45 seconds.”

I don’t hear confirmation on the phone in my pocket, so I pull out my phone to confirm and lo-and-behold, I have to manually set the timer on my phone.

Then, the manager said the word ‘break.’

That very second, Shirley Temple saunters in and says, “Look at your phone on your BREAK!!! Company policyyyyy!”

I swear she curtsied after this.

This woman is off her rocker  screaming at me in a way I’d have to change the font size to demonstrate. Then right after, hits the emergency brakes and turns on her sweet voice. Katie kaboom 2.0.

The word BREAK echoed through my soul like Marcia Brady getting hit by a football.

That gave him a great idea.

I’m thinking BREAK?!

Oh yeah, I forgot to mention that a) I never take breaks and b) the policy is that on a four hour shift or longer I get twenty uninterrupted minutes for break.

So, I get an idea.

I say, “Hey, thanks for reminding me! I never take my breaks. I’ve been here five hours so I better skedaddle. Company policy :). Oh and btw you have a pizza or three ready in OH (exaggeratedly looks at phone) about six minutes forty five seconds. See you in 20. “

He enjoyed his time, and got back to work.

I could only imagine what her face looked like, but I truly didn’t care.

I enjoyed my Ultra Zero Peechy Keen Monster in peechy peace while playing monopoly GO. Now and forever, I’m going to make this break thing a habit.

I could see a flurry of deli arms flying around from my table by the soda machine. I’d get the occasional glare from a customer in the line that is now backed up to almost where I am. All I can do is shrug my shoulders as if to say, “Company Policy.”

Good for him! Sometimes, all you have to do is walk away for a few minutes.

If you enjoyed this story, check out this post about an employee who was facing serious accusations before retirement, but luckily had security footage that proved his innocence.

Let’s see what the people over at Reddit think about the whole thing.

Here’s a good thought.

Burned Pizza 3 The Ultimate Kitchen Karma: Power Tripping Manager Yells At Worker About Phone Rules, Accidentally Sabotaging Her Own Busiest Lunch Rush

Yes, let’s hope he does.

Burned Pizza 2 The Ultimate Kitchen Karma: Power Tripping Manager Yells At Worker About Phone Rules, Accidentally Sabotaging Her Own Busiest Lunch Rush

For some people, it is hard.

Burned Pizza 1 The Ultimate Kitchen Karma: Power Tripping Manager Yells At Worker About Phone Rules, Accidentally Sabotaging Her Own Busiest Lunch Rush

According to this comment, he’s been nice giving away his time.

Burned Pizza The Ultimate Kitchen Karma: Power Tripping Manager Yells At Worker About Phone Rules, Accidentally Sabotaging Her Own Busiest Lunch Rush

Good managers know timing matters.

This employee spent the whole shift trying to keep up during a massive rush, and instead of recognizing that, the manager chose the worst possible moment to start yelling about policy over a phone timer.

People work a lot harder for managers who lead by example instead of constantly looking for problems.

So, let this be a lesson for her.

Heather Hall | Contributing Writer, Life & Drama

Heather Hall is a contributing writer for TwistedSifter specializing in internet culture, workplace conflict, and viral customer service stories. With over a decade of editorial experience in digital publishing, Heather excels at curating trending online discussions and providing insightful commentary on the daily dramas that capture the internet's attention.

Since beginning her career in 2011, she has developed deep expertise in SEO-driven digital content, having written for a wide array of publications covering lifestyle, business, and travel. At TwistedSifter, Heather focuses on synthesizing complex social media threads into engaging, highly readable narratives that highlight the human element of viral news.

When she isn’t analyzing the latest internet discourse, Heather is a dedicated mother of three sons who takes family gaming nights entirely too seriously—whether she is dominating in Mario Kart, exploring The Legend of Zelda, or jumping into Roblox.

Connect with Heather on Facebook and LinkedIn.