A former remote employee took to Reddit to share a harrowing experience from their first job, highlighting the darker side of remote work. The post has since sparked conversations about work-life balance and the challenges of poorly structured virtual offices.
Morning Stand-Ups Turned Marathon Meetings
The employee, who began their career as a content writer, revealed that daily 9 AM stand-up calls would often last 1.5 hours. “Actual work talk took maybe 15–20 minutes. The rest was people chatting or talking just for the sake of it,” they said. The long meetings disrupted their schedule, forcing them to work until 8 or 9 PM just to finish daily tasks.
During their first monthly review, the employee requested shorter meetings. The management promised 30–35 minute sessions, but “they still ran till 10 or 10:15. Nothing really changed.” Additionally, attempts to make meetings more “personal” by asking about family and daily life made them uncomfortable, erasing the boundary between professional and personal time.
Overwork and Lack of Structure
The Redditor described the company as lacking structure, with mid-level hires and responsibilities stretching beyond their role. “I was hired as a content writer but somehow ended up adding CSS to WordPress pages and reviewing the same pages over and over again,” they said. National holidays were technically optional, but employees had to apply for leave in advance, rendering the break meaningless.
“The entire setup just wasn’t it. I lost interest and energy in doing other things. All I could talk about was work, because that’s literally all I did,” the employee added. Over time, long hours became normalized, leaving little room for life outside work.
Finding a Better Work Environment
Eventually, the employee quit and joined a new company where meetings are limited to 20 minutes and work hours are strictly followed. “My boss even tells us to sign off by 5:20 or 5:30 max because work never ends and life should be enjoyed too,” they shared.
The Reddit post concludes with a cautionary note: “Remote work can be great, but not when it’s treated like THIS. I’m genuinely grateful for that first job, though, because it taught me what a bad workplace actually looks like.”
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