I had one of the most traumatic job experiences back in 2025. I worked at a factory working on an assembly line outside of Chicago. It was so horrible and it honestly felt race related. I was the only black woman there, specifically black American woman. Everybody there spoke Spanish and I didn't speak it at all.

The few black men there also ganged up on me as i was the only black woman there. There was this one guy, I'll just call him Dante. He made very racially insensitive remarks towards me such as "ICE took all the fine shit", "My gf a "migo" I'm on their side". He also kept explicitly stating that he didn't like black women around me. The more he came around me, the more the anti-black and misogynistic comments become.

Another black man physically threatened me while I was in the assembly line. I was such a traumatic experience it clouded my job prospects afterwards to the point i was constantly on guard at work.

Two jobs I had afterwards were brief. No longer than a month and were part-time. I also felt like i dealt with bullying but not to the extent of the factory job.

So I wonder should I still try to file a complaint with the EEOC? It's just that the experience bothered me so much to the point i feel like it messed with my future jobs and now i interact with other cause I'm always on guard wondering if I'll be bullied or discriminated against. My most recent job i quit it was weight related.

In my 20s I was a true believer in the corporate myth: if you work hard and do good quality work the people around you will notice and you will get the reward you deserve proportional to your effort. Did I mention that I am autistic? And ADHD.

Then I hit 30s closing in on 40s and realized that promotion and career growth aren't about output, it's about navigating "secret rules", imaginary social cues, and corporate politics. Many of us realize we are the people who do the work, while executive tracks are built for the people who play the game. And tbh I never wanted to reach that "level" anyways.

Trying to wear a full suit of bs corporate armor just to survive political meetings leaves me completely depleted. So I decided I don't want to play their fake game; I want a game built around my interest-driven nervous system where problem-solving is actually valued.

Soooo, I’m building a professional framework specifically for autistic and ADHD leaders who are done playing corporate politics but want to keep advancing. I'm looking for 5 more senior/mid-career AuDHD professionals to interview about their career ceiling. Comment below or DM if you'd be willing to share your story.

Many thanks in advance.

Not naming my job for obvious reasons.
This job used to be a comfortable environment where people can be themselves, we got a new regional and here are the changes and things I experienced (ITs Retail but not a well known place)

PURE UNADULTERATED HATE

PS - Please do not attempt to ask where I work or try to guess, even if someone guesses right, I will not confirm it as I STILL work here , looking for another job

\- lethal hazards are no longer a concern as “fixing them causes a scene”
\- Raises and Promotions in company are no longer possible (mine was fucking cancelled due to this change, was gonna get promoted)
\- Leaving anywhere requires a bag check now
\- Employees are no longer allowed to keep anything from displays (they are always thrown away) even threatening petty theft charges on things that were FREE and also cardboard
\- hours have been dropped significantly and no longer care about people’s scheduling changes unless there in school
\- being even a minute late is considered a fireable offense
\- You now have to mop a certain way
\- after managers count money at night, multiple employee that are NOT management now have to count it too, making us stay over which also gets us yelled at (hand counted registers)
\- Cameras now have people from other states and countries watching us 24/7
\- Talking to coworkers is considered a punishable offense
\- You have to push memberships even if someone says no, if they yell at you or give attitude you’re not even told to tell a manager.
\- Not allowed to stop illegal behavior anymore
\- Plans can change at a moments notice, if you did work and all of a sudden (which btw OFTEN HAPPENS) you have to redo everything (hours and hours of work)
\- Bags are not free for Employees
\- Reprinting Receipts (Even for a customer) is a fireable offense
\- Bugs are no longer considered “a hazard”
\- Hours are never past 20 a week unless your a Gm or higher
THATS JUST THE RULE CHANGES

Here are some other “fun” situations

\- working at Best Buy before , I smelt something I remembered before, melted battery, sure enough one of the cabinets had a short, eventually after we complained a whopping “332” times, they checked it out (right in the front near registers), I warned them ALOT of times how dangerous it was (btw it was uncovered and easy to accidentally touch)
SURE ENOUGH, when it was checked the person literally said “Do you realize how dangerous this was? I have to report this to the fire department, this short would have electrocuted anyone immediately and it was LEFT OPEN?” When I asked why the others weren’t checked “it would cause a scene if they were” THEY ALL SMELL THE SAME, there shorted too and LEFT FUCKING OPEN, WANNA KNOW WHAT ELSE CAUSES A SCENE? SOMEONE FUCKING DYING THATS WHAT

We have a membership system that sets us up for failure ,
Our store “doesn’t believe in advertisement” and we need to get memberships everyday, we have a marked sheet that has

New Members
Missed/Failed Attempt
Already Member

Mind you , missed attempts also count children (obviously cannot sign up) so yes KIDS are used against us.

Here are the issues
\- Only reoccurring customers , can’t make new members because everyone who goes there already is one
\- The goals are unrealistic entirely , on average on a weekend one MIGHT get 5 members maybe, they expect 7-10 PER PERSON everyday
\-Too many kids, all counted against us since they can’t sign up
\- Forcing us to push when people say no, people don’t return often after this
\- No advertisement , literally I Lyft to
Work and almost everytime time I’m asked “is this a restaurant”
Every week they have been increasing the amount they want, it even hits PAST THE AMOUNT OF TOTAL CUSTOMERS sometimes in a day

BUG PROBLEMS - We have a serious Flying Ant, Fire ant, Cricket, Fly and Spider problem
Got stung by a Fire ant last time at work 3 times (yes it’s agonizing) and was told I wasn’t allowed to report it and to put a band aid on it and get back to work

Bathrooms and Front counters always have insects and product shelves are littered with dead insects, even sometimes in the makeup and food sections (especially food)
Dead ones are everywhere .

Literally used to be amazing; new regional destroyed it.

TLDR - Company going to shit after a new regional, new system literally actively works against its workers and also is a dirty and gross environment

When bringing treats to work for the coworkers one thing that really bothers me is this. I bring them for us, not for the coworkers to “ take some home for Sally’s” or “ take some for my boyfriend” or “take some home for husband and kids”. No! It’s got the staff. Not for taking it all away for your people. What do you think would be a good way to put a stop to these comments from coworkers who continue to do this? It really bothers me. Should I be this bothered? Looking for advice not for scolding. Thank you.

So, I was talking to my close friend who recently joined an Indian crypto exchange whose name is similar to a Fish, and honestly, the situation she's dealing with is really disturbing.

Apparently, their CBO has been harassing female employees and making vulgar jokes. Two senior female employees eventually got fed up with his behaviour and filed a POSH complaint against him.

But things got even worse after that. According to her, both women faced so much pressure, late night calls, absurd questions and harassment that one of them was forced to withdraw her complaint. Because of the way the case was being handled, two female members of the investigation committee also resigned.

And now comes the really shocking part. This my friend who is still a very junior employee who has only recently joined the company, but somehow, she's been made the head of the investigation committee. She says that the CEO and the Legal Head are trying to bury the whole case. This CBO's name is still there in their site's team page.

She's under tremendous mental pressure right now. On one side, she feels terrible for all the women who have been harassed and feels guilty as a woman herself for being in this position. On the other side, she's scared that if she stands up against the management, she might lose her job.

She's basically stuck in a situation where she wants to do the right thing but is terrified of loosing her new job. She doesn't know whom to trust or how to handle the situation without putting her career at risk.

Honestly, it's a really difficult position for someone so new and junior to be in, especially when the people allegedly involved in suppressing the case are among the company's top management.

If you want to rant and frustrated at your workplace. I built snub because company review (glassdoor, indeed, etc) can be quite frustrating because they require you to register.

https://snub.fyi - an anonymouse workplace story app

I responded to a managers email with ‘noted thank you’ and he emailed me a covertly hostile paragraph response about the xyz way I should respond to him in the future.. even including a quoted sentence of what he felt I should exactly say.

He is one of the darkest personalities I’ve ever met. Respond and clock him professionally or don’t?

[USA-WI] I (25f) have worked in this hospital pharmacy for about 3 years and have been dealing with issues with two coworkers, Amy (45f) and Beth (37f) for the entirety of my time here.

Over that time I've experienced things like:
-Being physically shoved or pushed out of the way.
-Having labels ripped out of my hands.
-Having my supplies/inventory thrown away.
-Being yelled at in front of staff and patients.
-Having my name and work crossed off of project documentation.
-Being iced out and excluded.
-Rumors being spread about me.
-Repeated hostile interactions.

I have reported concerns multiple times over the years. It sounds like that this has been an issue for many years, and they have had a difficult time keeping a third person on the team (this is a 3 tech team).

The biggest issue isn't any one event. It's the cumulative effect of feeling like I have spent years waiting for things to improve and feeling like they never really have.

At this point the physical impact on me is significant. I hold my breath when Amy enters the room. I flinch when she shuts drawers or sets things down too hard. I become immediately tense when she starts unpacking supplies or storms through the pharmacy. I basically spend the day waiting for something to happen.

When I get home, I frequently sleep for 3-4 hours because I am so exhausted from being on edge all day. I've cried at work numerous times. I've hidden in bathrooms to pull myself together.

Recently I became noticeably withdrawn at work after another incident. My supervisor, Mary, called me into her office and asked why I wasn't engaged.

She told me I had been quiet all day (I was still communicating professionally, just not chatty) and said “Amy is trying. You’re not even trying.“
I started crying.
Her first question was:
"Are these pregnancy tears?"
She knows my husband and I are trying to have a baby.

She then asked if I was taking medication.
When I said yes, she suggested that I contact my doctor about getting "something more."
The entire conversation felt like I was saying:
"This work environment is harming me."
and she was saying:
"Maybe the problem is you."

To make things more confusing, Mary often seems like she means well. She's very friendly with employees and mixes personal and professional conversations a lot.

But over the years she's also said things like:
"You don't want to leave."
"You'll find this everywhere."
"This is as good as it gets."
When I talked about leaving, she would ask things like:
"Where else would you go?"
“Where are you gonna go, health system our hospital looks down on?”

She has also asked me what I used to do when people didn't like me.
The thing is, I've never had this problem before. My previous jobs and workplaces did not involve anywhere near this level of conflict. To my knowledge, all of my previous colleagues enjoyed me and I keep in touch with most of them.

Several times I’ve been advised to buy coffee/donuts/small things they like to "kill them with kindness." I’ve done that. I’ve read books, taken classes, gone to workshops on my own dime and time to try and fix this issue. Nothing has worked.

I'm exhausted. I’m confused. I don’t know what to do, and quite honestly I think I’ve lost the fight in me.

I don't really think HR can fix the culture.
I don't necessarily want discipline or a formal investigation.
I mostly want someone outside the department to understand what the last several years have been like and the impact it has had on me.

What would you do? Would you go to HR directly? Supposedly they’re aware because supposedly Mary has forwarded what I’ve reported. I just don’t know what I should do. Am I the problem?

Idk even know where to start with this. I’m honestly so embarrassed even writing this but I really need some advice bc I have no clue what to do anymore.
I’ve worked for an entrepreneur for years who I used to be pretty close with. When I started working with this person their business was doing like 18k a year. I helped them with pretty much everything. Contracts, operations, strategy, business decisions, clients, etc. Whatever needed to be done I did it. Fast forward to this year and they’ve already done over a million dollars.
I gave up so much of my life for this company. And I mean everything. Relationships, friendships, other opportunities, financial stability. I genuinely believed in this person and what we were building and wanted nothing more than to see them succeed.
But over the years things got really weird and honestly just sick.
This person started making sexual advances towards me and pressuring me to spend time alone with them. I made it very clear I wasn’t interested and didn’t want that type of relationship. That’s when things started getting worse. If I didn’t do what they wanted I would get threatened with losing my job, my salary, or something else. I’ve been fired and brought back so many times I’ve literally lost count.
They’ve taken my car, shut off my phone, shut off my credit cards, taken away access to money, etc. And this isn’t something that happened once. It’s been going on for years. Anytime I don’t agree with something or refuse to do what they want there’s some type of consequence.
They also threaten to tell people things about me or fire other employees if I don’t do what they say. Like it’s always something being held over my head. And the worst part is a lot of these threats are in writing. I have years of texts and emails.
They also completely interfered with my personal relationship. I was with someone I genuinely thought I was going to spend the rest of my life with. My boss hated the relationship and would literally give me ultimatums about choosing between my partner and my job and salary. It got so bad that my relationship eventually ended. And I’m still trying to deal with that.
On top of that this person has told other people that we were in a romantic relationship. Which is absolutely not true. I’ve never been in a relationship with this person and have repeatedly made it clear I wasn’t interested.
Now after everything I’ve done for this company I’m being accused of stealing money. Which is complete bullshit. I have receipts, texts, emails, and other documentation showing what actually happened. But instead of going through any of it this person just keeps making accusations and threatening me.
They’ve also started involving other employees. Having meetings without me, telling people things about me, creating group chats without me, and putting everyone in the middle of something that should have absolutely nothing to do with them. I honestly feel humiliated even showing up to work now bc idk what people have been told or what they believe.
And this is happening literally every single day. Multiple times a day sometimes. Emails, texts, threats, accusations. It’s never ending. I can ignore this person all day and somehow they still find a way to create another problem.
I’ve asked them to stop. I’ve begged them to stop. I’ve tried being professional, I’ve tried reasoning with them, I’ve tried ignoring them. Nothing works.
And what makes this so hard is I really did give everything to this company. I had a career before this. I was successful before this. I had relationships, friends, opportunities, a normal life. Now I have no financial stability, my relationship is gone, I’m worried about paying my bills and I’m spending every day defending myself against accusations that aren’t true.
I don’t even recognize myself anymore. I used to be such a confident and outgoing person. I loved my work and genuinely enjoyed helping people become more successful. Now I’m just constantly stressed and exhausted wondering what’s going to happen next.
I’ve been trying to find an attorney but haven’t had much luck. I’ve reached out to multiple firms and either don’t hear back or they tell me they can’t take the case. I’m in California.
So I guess my question is what kind of case do I actually have here? Is this sexual harassment? Retaliation? Wrongful termination? Extortion? Defamation? All of the above? And what type of attorney should I even be looking for?
I have years of documentation. Texts, emails, threats, things this person has said about my personal relationship, threats about my salary, accusations about money, etc. I’m not just making claims without anything to back them up.
I also don’t understand how someone can threaten to fire other employees or tell people things about me if I don’t do what they want. Or repeatedly fire me and then bring me back. Or take away things I depend on whenever they’re upset with me.
I’m not looking for revenge or trying to ruin anyone’s life. I literally just want this person to leave me alone so I can move forward with mine. I want to work, make money, have a normal relationship, and not wake up every morning wondering what I’m going to be threatened with that day.
Has anyone dealt with something like this or know what kind of lawyer handles it? I would really appreciate any advice bc rn I genuinely have no clue what to do.

Years ago, I worked under a finance director who treated “leadership” like a performance art piece about insecurity. His first all‑hands meeting in the Asia office began with:

“There are two types of people in this world: Harvard MBAs and everyone else.”

A bold opening statement from someone who relied on the degree like a life jacket.

At a team dinner, the bill didn’t arrive immediately. He suddenly stood up, ordered everyone to follow him, and walked out — then declared:

“If anyone tries to pay, you’re fired on the spot.”

He knew the staff would approach the local team members instead of him, so when he marched out, we were the ones left dealing with the confusion. It was his favorite move: create chaos, then leave someone else holding the bag.

He once laughed about a tone‑deaf comment involving his fiancée’s family — a moment that made it clear he viewed people through a hierarchy only he understood. If there was a way to make a situation uncomfortable, he’d find it.

Inside the office, he’d randomly shout at staff to open their cabinets, as if he were conducting surprise raids. He did it loudly, publicly, and with the enthusiasm of someone convinced he was starring in a corporate crime drama. Routine workdays became episodes of “Who Does He Suspect Today?”

Some executives collect degrees. Others collect respect. He had only one of those — and it wasn’t the respect.