Mold Exposure Cost Him His Overtime, Then His Employer Sent Him Back To Work Sick, So He Used A Free Afternoon To Walk Out
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Most employers nowadays reward hard work by simply piling on more of it.
A warehouse employee was moved from production to cleaning, repairs, and the baler because he never slacked off.
Then a manager’s moldy boxes ended up in the bin, and he spent four days compressing them, releasing spores right into his breathing space.
He got sick fast, and the company’s urgent care department was quick to dismiss it so he could return to work faster.
So when he raised negligence in an email, he was forced to sign a statement saying it wasn’t true.
He was left feeling unwell, undervalued, and easily replaced. So on a gorgeous fall day, he threw caution to the wind and just walked out.
Keep reading for the full story.
Just walked out of my job.
I just clocked out 3 hours before the end of my shift.
But I’ll be back tomorrow.
This workplace doesn’t mess around about attendance.
They have an attendance system in place that allows me to “use points” as I please. I worked 6 of 9 hours, so I’ll be taking 3 points, which puts me at 8.5 points.
If I reach 14 points, I’ll be automatically fired.
But today, this employee didn’t care.
But today it was worth it. It’s a beautiful fall day, and there is no better feeling than putting down my broom and leaving instead of taking a 30-minute lunch.
The employee describes their position.
I clean the warehouse.
I was promoted to this position from production because I’m a hard worker. Most of my coworkers are not hard workers. So naturally, I was offered this job so they could take advantage of my work ethic.
In reality, this employee pretty much was forced to take up any job that no one else wanted to do.
That, and the company can save money paying me an hourly wage to fix things instead of hiring an expensive handyman/plumber/electrician. Yeah, I also fix things. Unclog toilets, and the like.
Lately, this has started to impact their mental health.
My head hasn’t felt right for the past few weeks. A manager put boxes that were against a damp wall festered with mold in the bin meant for the baler. I do the baler too.
I didn’t notice the mold at first, since it was on one side. I just stacked the boxes, and the baler compressed them, pressing all that black mold and releasing the spores into my breathing space. I did this for 4 days.
Symptoms came on slowly, then all at once.
I noticed symptoms after the first 2. Brain fog. I thought I drank too much caffeine at first, because that’s what it felt like.
Then came cold symptoms, fever, fatigue, loss of appetite, rapid weight loss, memory loss, and insomnia. Oh, and trouble breathing.
Seeking medical attention didn’t really seem to help.
After the 4th day, I decided to tell HR, who, to my surprise, encouraged me to file a workers’ comp report. I did, and left for the company-suggested urgent care.
The doctor downplayed the symptoms and sent me back to work.
At the second follow-up, I showed them a photo of the mold. They said, “Oh, we’ve all had to clean up stuff like that.”
They shined a light at my throat for a total of 2 seconds and said the word “viral.” They gave me an inhaler prescription and sent me back to work.
The medical saga continued.
At the third follow-up, they gave me a steroid prescription and said it was a “coincidence” that I got a “cold” in the same time period I was crushing moldy boxes and breathing it in. They actually yelled at me and made me feel stupid when I asked questions.
They sent me back to work.
Things soon got even worse.
I lost overtime pay because of the ordeal and still feel sick. I asked my boss if I’d get the pay they promised after I left for the urgent care. They said no.
I was upset and mentioned negligence in an email. They sat me down and forced me to sign something saying it wasn’t true.
The whole situation left this employee feeling a little hopeless.
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I just feel all around underappreciated and undervalued. Used for my “work ethic” but easily replaced.
But at least it’s a beautiful fall day, and I’m not there sweeping all their dust and doing their degrading work.
Things just keep getting worse and worse for this employee.
What did Reddit have to say?
It’s time to see a doctor who actually takes patient health seriously.
This situation is worth pursuing justice over.
Sometimes taking time off is the only thing left to do.
This company clearly took advantage of this person.
This worker did everything a company could ask, and the thanks he got was a broom, a baler, and a bad cough.
Being promoted for work ethic only to be handed every dirty job in the building is a pretty clear sign of how he’s actually valued.
If his employer isn’t going to value his health, he’ll just have to do it himself.
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