Boss Fires Employee Via Text And Says He Won't Receive His Final Check Because The Company 'Doesn't Have The Money Yet'
The boss showed zero consideration for the employee when sending the termination text.
voronaman | Shutterstock Mass firings have become a common occurrence in today's market. Suddenly being out of a job is a hard pill to swallow, and many CEOs and company executives often don't handle delivering such heartbreaking news with empathy.
Such was the case for one worker whose text message exchange with his boss was posted to the subreddit r/antiwork. In the message, the worker received the disheartening news that he was terminated, and to add insult to injury, they weren't even going to issue him his final check.
The employee's boss fired him in a text and said he wouldn't receive his final check because the company didn't have the funds.
The Redditor who posted the text message clarified that his cousin had sent him a screenshot of it for translation because he didn't speak English. He admitted that it was hard for him to let his cousin know that his boss, the owner of a manufacturing company in California's Bay Area, was letting him go via a text message.
antiwork | Reddit
"To make matters worse, he wasn’t going to get paid his bi-weekly paycheck or any accumulated sick, vacation hours," the Redditor wrote. In the screenshot of the text message, the owner of the company started off by expressing his "sympathy" and "apologies" about having to send such a message late at night — 11 p.m., to be exact.
He claimed that while he would prefer this conversation to be in person, his schedule simply couldn't allow it.
"I have had to make a very difficult decision to lay you off from your job. We are slower than expected and we have to reduce our staff," his boss informed him.
On top of losing his job, the employee also learned that he wouldn't be receiving his final check because the company didn't have the funds to pay him. "It may take me a few weeks to get the money to pay you for your last pay period and any vacation time you have earned."
The owner of the company explained that while he takes these types of situations "seriously," the company was unable to pay him until the following week if that.
antiwork | Reddit
He apologized for the "inconvenience" that this would create for the fired employee but was working extra diligently to rectify the paycheck issue.
"I want to thank you for your contribution to our team and wish things could be different," he added.
While layoffs are sometimes out of anyone's control, there are ways to go about it that don't make an employee feel as if they're being blindsided. One of the ways to avoid that is to have a conversation like that in person, at least.
Since the company's owner couldn't meet with this employee face-to-face, he could've scheduled a Zoom call or even just a regular phone call if meeting virtually wouldn't have worked for him.
To fire someone over text and then, on top of that, break the news that not only is he being laid off, but he also won't be paid for his last pay period is just demeaning.
Business leaders seem to struggle with displaying empathy for their employees.
According to Businessolver’s sixth annual State of Workplace Empathy study, workplace empathy has improved over the past year, but gaps still exist. Results showed that 68% of CEOs admitted they fear they will be less respected if they show empathy in the workplace.
Both HR professionals and CEOs said they personally struggle with demonstrating empathy, and seven in 10 said it’s hard to consistently show empathy in their working life.
There are other examples of business leaders struggling with showing empathy. A study conducted by OnePoll on behalf of Learn to Live found that 62% of American workers worry their bosses would judge them for taking mental health days.
insta_photos | Shutterstock
And a Paychex survey of 1,000 American employees revealed that low team morale more than doubled since the pandemic; over half said team leaders do not acknowledge stress or work burnout, and only 44% of managers encourage or allow venting or talking about work frustrations, although one in three employees said this strategy was successful in bringing teams together.
The numbers don't lie, and what business leaders don't seem to understand is that empathy in the workplace truly does go a long way, and it doesn't mean that professionalism doesn't exist or shouldn't be followed.
But at the end of the day, we're all still human beings, and when it comes to sensitive issues like being laid off, there should at least be some compassion. Treating people with dignity and respect should always be the priority, and it's unfortunate that this boss failed to see that.
Nia Tipton is a Chicago-based entertainment, news, and lifestyle writer whose work delves into modern-day issues and experiences.