A 24-year-old woman recently took to Reddit to share her exhausting work experience at one of India’s top asset management (AUM) companies. In the post titled “My lead expects me to reply at 2:45 AM after a 14-hour day — I’m done,” the woman opened up about the mental toll of toxic work culture and unreasonable expectations.
The woman shared that she has been working up to 14 hours a day, and even on weekends, for the past two weeks. Despite the long hours, her on-site lead allegedly messaged her at 2:45 AM and expected an immediate response, she said.
“When I didn’t respond (because I was literally asleep), she complained to my offshore lead in such a rude way, as if being online at 3 in the morning is part of my job description,” the employee wrote. “And guess what? I was the one who had to apologise to her for it,” she continued.
The woman revealed that she had previously raised complaints, but nothing changed because of the lead’s influential position. “Every time I escalate, things just get worse. My manager? Completely useless. He just nods and agrees with whatever she says,” she added.
She went on to say that the situation has left her “mentally drained” and “constantly anxious”. Once passionate about her work, she now dreads even opening her laptop. “I’m not sure if I should just walk away or try to survive a few more months until I find something better — but this job is destroying my peace,” she wrote.
(Also Read: HR accidentally sends ‘termination notice’ to all employees, including CEO: ‘Slack went nuclear’)
Social media reactions
The post has sparked a discussion online about toxic workplaces. While some users shared similar experiences, others urged the OP to resign.
“I had the same experience with my TL. I raised complain to project manager(my TLs reporting manager). Nothing happened. I raised to immediate HR. Nothing happened. I emailed project manager with HR, TL and rest of my team in CC, saying that i will raise this issue to senior HR who handles mumbai region withing 2 days if not resolved. They took actions, asked me to stay around a month in the team and then would be asked to change team. I said i need in email or else i will raise to senior HR. They emailed saying the same. Within one month, my team was changed. And after 3 months, my TL was asked to resign,” one user shared.
“Please resign and you can get another job but you wouldn’t get another life. You had it enough.. I am sure you will get a better job in the notice period. And in notice period don’t work just prepare and focus on interviews,” commented another.
“Start looking for more opportunities, you are 24 and this is an amazing age to experiment with different jobs and also taking up your personal interests, travel to next level. Don’t waste your time especially the weekends.. !! Find a new one or if you have enough funds quit take a small break and start applying everywhere. Activate your network of friend, last colleagues, reach out to people on LinkedIn etc.. !!” suggested a third user.
(Disclaimer: This report is based on user-generated content from social media. HT.com has not independently verified the claims and does not endorse them.)
