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Managers always want to demand the impossible and just expect you to figure it out.

What would you do if your manager said that you needed to finish projects faster, but without billing for more hours?

That is what the developer in this story was told, so he explained that this was impossible without cutting corners, so his manager fired him. Now this guy just watches the company keep posting that job opening that they have been unable to fill.

It is good that he stood up for himself and was very clear about what was possible in his role, even if it got him fired. Read through the full story and see what you think about it below.

I think my malicious compliance got me fired.

About 2 years ago I was working a government contract. The duties I was asked to perform were extremely specific and explicit.

Some managers are never happy.

I knew exactly what I needed to do. It was basically source code maintenance, but every job had a list of tests and other requirements that needed to be checked before you handed in your work.

I would do all the things I needed to for one job and turn it in. My supervisor would say, “hey this is great work, but… this took longer than I would have expected. See if you can get the next one done faster.”

This isn’t rocket science, sir.

So, I would get into work a little sooner, take a shorter lunch, and stay a little later (it’s flexible hours. You work as long as you want under 40 hrs a week and get paid for whatever you did).

I would try to work faster too. So, when my next job gets done sooner than before, my supervisor is happy, but wants to know what’s up with the increase in hours.

There is no way he is going to skip anything on the list.

Well, I had to do the same amount of work in a shorter time. So, I put in more hours. Unhappy that he’s paying me more for doing more work faster, he says, “You know, you could work a lot quicker if you don’t spend so much time on all the little stuff. Just do the important things and let the small stuff slide.”

So, I asked him to name which of the things on the list he gave me I should skip. He couldn’t give me an answer. I asked “Would I be responsible if work that I completed failed because I didn’t check the ‘small stuff’ ?” He said yes. “And I would lose my security clearance and ability to work for [this department of the government]?” Oh yes, I would.

How disappointing.

So, I said, “Then I have no choice but to keep giving you my best, do I?”

A week after another round of this, I was fired with no explanation and no information about if I could work there again. I still want to work there again because it was fun and important work.

That manager will never admit he was wrong.

I enjoyed what I was doing. I shared a little office with three nice people my age. I had a cactus on my desk. It was a little home.

At least I have the satisfaction of seeing them recruit on my college campus and keep posting the same hiring ad for the last two years, seemingly without success. 😂

This guy will land on his feet.

I think they should have kept me. It was an odd skill set they needed, one I happen to have. I miss that job. 😔

Anyway, I guess I could have kept the job if I was willing to gamble my reputation and eligibility for government work but… It didn’t seem worth it.

I’ll let them cut corners and I’ll find another job. Maybe something safety-critical. I bet they won’t let me cut corners. 🤔😊

Management often doesn’t think through the consequences of their actions. They just fire someone and assume that it will work out, but that is rarely what happens.

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Check out what the people in the comments have to say about this story.

This person hates people like that manager.

He should have documented exactly what happened.

Here is an industry where safety is paramount.

If you enjoyed this story, check out this post about a customer who wants to argue about an item they chose not being on sale.

This commenter hates managers like that.

His boss asked for the impossible, so now he has the impossible task of hiring someone for this job. The sad part of this story is that the boss will likely never even realize that he messed up.

Some people just think that they can demand anything from employees, no matter how ridiculous.

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Author

Michael Levanduski