My boss shamed me in front of the whole company with a brutal text – and it’s not the first time
A young employee felt humiliated after her boss sent a message to the entire company hinting at her personal health problems.
Riya* has been working as a graphic designer at a creative agency for 10 months, but her relationship with her managers has always been tense.
The 25-year-old woman from New Delhi told FEMAIL that she was used to unreasonable demands from her bosses, but the “unreasonable” message went a step too far.
“Tomorrow’s meeting is mandatory for everyone, please don’t message me on the side or in the morning. It doesn’t matter if it’s raining or you have menstrual cramps,” the founder said in the company’s group chat.
Riya has serious health issues that can sometimes affect her ability to work. She was honest about this before she was hired.
“That comment about period pain was about me,” Riya said.
‘I have really bad cramps due to thyroid problems and polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS). It’s so painful that I tell my employers before I sign a contract that it will be a problem, but my boss doesn’t believe me.’
It’s not the first time her employers have used Riya’s medical conditions against her.
A young employee felt humiliated when she checked her phone and discovered an unusual demand from her boss
Riya’s working hours are from 10am to 6pm, but is asked to stay until 8pm several times a week to complete tasks.
‘My other manager also used the fact that I was sick during my period to make me feel guilty and make me do more work and stay later the next day to make up for it.’
Riya works from 10am to 6pm, but is asked several times a week to continue working until 8pm.
“6:00 p.m. is not a hard stop,” her boss wrote her. “You [had a day] yesterday off, so it will be clear that there [extra] workload today.’
Riya said she couldn’t stay past 6pm because she had a class at 6:30pm. However, her boss said she had to finish the work after class and it had to be done before the next workday.
“She’s always so rude. She refuses to pay overtime, but expects you to start early and finish late,” the graphic designer said.
Riya revealed that her boss ignores her messages when it comes to compensation
“My boss goes crazy if you’re not available after work hours.”
But Riya admitted that her boss often ignores her messages when it comes to discussing compensation.
“She stopped responding to my messages for over a week because I had asked for compensation for work I did outside of my role at the company, work she had promised to pay me for,” she said.
“She didn’t respond until I turned in the work and then took all the credit from the client, never mind that I was ever involved.”