A VP of sales at a software company wanted to know if they were the “a-hole” for firing an employee after their parents died and their work performance suffered.
Source: iStock
A “heartless” boss was decimated on Reddit after asking whether or not they were in the wrong for firing an employee a few weeks after their parents died and their performance suffered.
When it comes to workplace benefits in the U.S. vs. other countries, America lags far, far behind. Compared to third-world countries, obviously, we’ve got it pretty good, but when it comes to paid time off, parental leave, vacation time, and job security, we’re getting creamed by other industrialized nations.
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Countries like Austria, Switzerland, Germany, Norway, Finland, and Sweden have some “generous” policies when it comes to job security. There’s a healthy understanding that individuals operate better at their places of work when they aren’t constantly worried about losing their job. Employers are also held to higher standards and workplace compliance isn’t used as a tool to get rid of a worker whenever management wants to replace them with someone who’ll do the job for less money.
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This is especially true of industries that are very numbers-oriented, like the sales position this young man was working in. He was, by the boss’ admission, a great employee — so good that they were considering giving him a promotion despite the fact that he’s only 22 years old and had been with the company less than a year.
Sadly, this young man’s parents were involved in a fatal car accident. He lost both of them on the same day.
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He was given a month of paid leave time from his employer due to the accident, but when he returned to work, he wasn’t producing the same numbers as he was before. The volume of cold calls he was making dropped and he seemed “unmotivated” at work.
That’ll probably happen if you’re roughly the same age as a recent college graduate and both of your parents die suddenly.
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Apparently, the higher-ups at his job didn’t think so. They saw the 2-3 weeks that he was back after the leave as sufficient to determin the death of his folks was a huge workplace hindrance, and they couldn’t carry his dead weight any longer. So they fired him.
To no one’s (except maybe OP’s) surprise, the young man wasn’t exactly “professional” in his response to the news.
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What is surprising, however, is that the person who made this post apparently didn’t think there was anything wrong with the way their company let the young man go, until their boyfriend pointed out the heartlessness of the decision.
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Personally, I didn’t think the employee’s response was “unprofessional” or “rude” at all. I think they were merely voicing the subtext of what management’s actions communicated.
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Source: Reddit
The Boss, wanting to know whether they were an “a-hole,” took their story to a subreddit that helps with exactly this sort of thing. Lo and behold, the commenters told them exactly what they needed to hear.
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People couldn’t believe the “heartlessness” of the boss or that they and their peers actually thought firing the young man was a just decision. Others pointed out that, even if they were solely in the business of turning a profit, firing him was ultimately a terrible move because he has a proven track record of providing the numbers they’re looking for.
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Others just couldn’t get over how the callousness of the decision-making process that ultimately ended in the young employee’s unemployment.
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To the boss’s credit, they admitted the error of their ways and not only immediately reached out to the employee to apologize, but contacted a headhunter friend to help get the man a job, pronto.
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It definitely won’t erase the sting or memory of being greeted by a conference room full of people who care more about the bottom line than your own well-being. Still, at least it’s good to know that there are people who are willing to do what’s right, even if their first reaction isn’t to act humanely or with compassion.
Ben Fab has been absent from recent videos on the Fab Rats YouTube channel, leading some to wonder why he decided to leave the shop.
The Gist:
Ben Fab has been a fixture in Fab Rats videos for years.
The Fab Rats channel recently announced that Ben would be leaving the shop to spend more time with his family.
Fans of the Fab Rats will miss Ben, but seem to understand why he made this decision.
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The anchors of the Fab Rats YouTube channel have always been Paul Fab and his wife Lizzy, but another prominent member of their team was Ben, Paul’s brother, who worked at their shop with them. The Fab Rats YouTube channel is largely dedicated to videos about difficult tow jobs and rebuilds of old cars. Ben has been a huge piece of what the channel offered in recent years.
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In a video posted on Sept. 27, 2023, the Fab Rats addressed Ben’s absence from recent videos. While they didn’t go into a ton of detail, they did explain that Ben would no longer be on the Fab Rats channel because he had left the shop. Now, many want to know why Ben decided to leave the shop and the channel behind.
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Why did Ben leave Fab Rats?
At the beginning of their most recent video, Paul and Lizzy explain that Ben decided to leave Fab Rats in order to spend more time with his family. They said that while they were sad to see him go, they understood his decision, and said he still might pop up on the channel occasionally. The era of Ben appearing in videos regularly is over, though. Part of the reason is that his family lives pretty far away from where the videos are filmed.
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In a separate post on Instagram, the Fab Rats made a similar announcement addressing Ben’s absence.
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“Change can be hard and this has been one of the harder adjustments for us all,” the statement says. “We sure are going to miss having this guy in the shop but family is important and Ben’s family needed him. Lucky for us, we have Hunter and Sean around to help with all of the awesome upcoming projects.”
“Thanks to all of our amazing viewers/friends/Fab Rats family for the love and support you have given us. We appreciate you all more than you know,” the statement concluded.
It’s unclear whether there’s any tension between Ben and the rest of Fab Rats, but publicly it seems like Ben just wanted to spend less time at the shop and more time with his family, which is a choice all of us have to balance.
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The Fab Rats certainly don’t plan to slow down, though, and their statement indicates that. As the comments under the post suggest, people loved Ben and understand his decision to leave.
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“You know if you stick around long enough you always see people come and go in life. It was Randall now Ben but I’m sure it will not be the last we see either of them. We will all miss seeing you Ben, I wish you all the best!” one person wrote.
Following the news of Michael Gambon’s death, many want to learn more about the actor’s personal life, including who his wife and children were.
The Gist:
Legendary Irish stage and screen actor Michael Gambon has died at the age of 82.
Michael has been married to his wife Anne, for more than 60 years, but he also had at least one girlfriend outside his marriage that produced two children who were born in 2007 and 2009.
Michael had three children in total, including an older child that he had with Anne.
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On Sept. 28, 2023, news broke that actor Michael Gambon, who is best known for taking over the role of Dumbledore in most of the Harry Potterfilms, had died at the age of 82. Following the news of his death, many offered their thoughts on his legacy as an actor and the many huge roles he played.
At the same time, some people also wanted to learn more about Michael’s personal life, including who his wife was and whether he had any children. Although he wasn’t one of the more sensational celebrities in Hollywood history, here’s everything we know about Michael’s family.
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Source: Getty Images
Who was Michael Gambon’s wife?
Michael married his wife Anne Miller in 1962 when he was 22 years old. Anne is a mathematician, and as a result, the two were very private about their relationship. In fact, if Michael was asked about his wife in interviews, he would sometimes pretend that he didn’t have one. The two appear to have still been married at the time of Michael’s death, although their marriage had gotten more complicated in recent years.
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In 2001, while filming Gosford Park, Michael brought a woman named Philippa Hart to set and introduced her as his girlfriend. The news that Michael was cheating on Anne became official in 2002, and he moved out of the home that they shared. Michael and Philippa had reportedly begun dating in 2000 while working on the Channel 4 series Longitude together. The two have been together ever since.
Did Michael Gambon have any kids?
Michael had one child with Anne named Fergus who eventually became a ceramics expert and started appearing regularly on Antiques Roadshow. After becoming estranged from Anne, Michael had two children with Philippa. Their first child together was born in 2007, and was named Tom, and their second was born in 2009 and named Will.
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What was Michael Gambon’s cause of death?
The news of Michael’s death was first announced on Sept. 28 in a brief statement from his family.
“Michael died peacefully in hospital with his wife, Anne, and son Fergus at his bedside, following a bout of pneumonia,” the statement explained, which suggests that pneumonia was the ultimate cause of death.
Michael first made his breakthrough as a British stage actor in the 1970s and had a long career in the theater in addition to his more high profile film and TV work. Although many Americans will only know him as the more controversial performer to play Dumbledore, his career contained much more than that single performance.
‘The Masked Singer’ Season 10 reveals: a handy list of everyone who has been unmasked so far on the most recent season of our favorite singing show.
Source: FOX
Spoiler alert: This article contains spoilers for Season 10 of The Masked Singer.
Season 10 of The Masked Singer kicked off on Sept. 26, 2023, and with it came new masks. As creative and over-the-top as the costumes are, the identities of the celebrities underneath will remain a mystery until they’re eliminated and unmasked.
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We’re keeping a running list of all the reveals this season. Be sure to check back after each episode to see who has been unmasked!
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Anonymouse — Demi Lovato
Source: FOX
Anonymouse was revealed as part of the Season 10 kickoff special on Sept. 10, 2023. She sang Heart’s “What About Love” and gave several clues, including the fact that she’s been on “one special list times 100,” she started her career young, and had some connection to Nick Jonas.
Nicole Scherzinger was able to put the clues together and correctly guess that Anonymouse was Demi Lovato.
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Rubber Ducky — Anthony Anderson
Source: FOX
Rubber Ducky was revealed during the official Season 10 premiere on Sept. 27, 2023. He sang “Come on Eileen” by Dexys Midnight Runners and gave several clues, including the fact that his “family is full of stars,” he tried stand-up comedy, and had some connection to Leonardo DiCaprio.
Ken Jeong was able to put the clues together and correctly guess that Rubber Ducky was Anthony Anderson.
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S’More — Not Unmasked Yet!
Source: FOX
We don’t know who S’more is yet, but we’re keeping track of the clues and guesses for you. Check back when S’more is eliminated!
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Cow — Not Unmasked Yet!
Source: FOX
We don’t know who Cow is yet, but we’re keeping track of the clues and guesses for you. Check back when Cow is eliminated!
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Gazelle — Not Unmasked Yet!
Source: FOX
We don’t know who Gazelle is yet, but we’re keeping track of the clues and guesses for you. Check back when Gazelle is eliminated!
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Diver — Not Unmasked Yet!
Source: FOX
We don’t know who Diver is yet, but we’re keeping track of the clues and guesses for you. Check back when Diver is eliminated!
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Tiki — Not Unmasked Yet!
Source: FOX
We don’t know who Tiki is yet, but we’re keeping track of the clues and guesses for you. Check back when Tiki is eliminated!
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Candelabra — Not Unmasked Yet!
Source: FOX
We don’t know who Candelabra is yet, but we’re keeping track of the clues and guesses for you. Check back when Candelabra is eliminated!
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Husky — Not Unmasked Yet!
Source: FOX
We don’t know who Husky is yet, but we’re keeping track of the clues and guesses for you. Check back when Husky is eliminated!
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Royal Hen — Not Unmasked Yet!
Source: FOX
We don’t know who Royal Hen is yet, but we’re keeping track of the clues and guesses for you. Check back when Royal Hen is eliminated!
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Anteater — Not Unmasked Yet!
Source: FOX
We don’t know who Anteater is yet, but we’re keeping track of the clues and guesses for you. Check back when Anteater is eliminated!
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Hibiscus — Not Unmasked Yet!
Source: FOX
We don’t know who Hibiscus is yet, but we’re keeping track of the clues and guesses for you. Check back when Hibiscus is eliminated!
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Donut — Not Unmasked Yet!
Source: FOX
We don’t know who Donut is yet, but we’re keeping track of the clues and guesses for you. Check back when Donut is eliminated!
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Hawk — Not Unmasked Yet!
Source: FOX
We don’t know who Hawk is yet, but we’re keeping track of the clues and guesses for you. Check back when Hawk is eliminated!
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