I'd like to start out by saying that I love my job. I'm an engineer by training, and solving problems and feeling helpful are how I stay motivated at work. This job was everything I wanted and a perfect match for my skills. There was just one problem: my manager.
You see, I got this job while the previous hiring manager was on his way out, and I spent the first 2 months basically having no oversight, until they hired someone new. “Brandon” is a through and through corporate creature who doesn't see employees as people, just as company assets that are to be exploited for as much profit as possible and discarded as soon as priorities change. He is also extremely cruel.
Brandon and I got off on the wrong foot after I made a very expensive mistake shortly after he arrived. Things just went downhill from there after he said things like “you made an incompetent mistake, and it makes me question whether you have the attention to detail to be an engineer,” and “I don't know how to stop you from misrepresenting what I say, maybe I just need to use smaller words,” and “Salaried employees have no hours. You work 40 hours minimum, with no maximum.” There is much more, but you get the picture.
After a horrendous performance review where I was berated for an hour and a half because “what you're doing is fine, it's how you're doing it that's the problem” but given no concrete actions to improve this feedback, I began looking for a different job. Shortly after I began, a headhunter recruited me for a different chemical company for a job in another part of the country. After a whirlwind week of interviews, I got the job.
I served Brandon a paper that simply said “This is my 2 weeks notice, I'm leaving on this date.” and he responded with “Ok… Thanks.” While many people have been shocked at this response, I felt it was the best I could hope for, I was just glad I didn't get any more abuse.
I thought I'd feel excited when I finally put in my notice, but I mainly just felt sad. I really like nearly everyone I work with except Brandon, and I really tried to give him a chance to improve or at least manage his attitude, but nothing worked. I'm now faced with the fact that I was pushed out of a job I loved and, by all accounts except his, was really good at, just because of his attitude and poor treatment. I now have to uproot my family to move us across the country, sell the house we just bought, and maybe even repay nearly $20,000 in relocation expenses just to get away from him.
Logically I know that I'm doing what I have to do, but explaining to everyone at work that I'm leaving and why has been exhausting and sad. I will miss a lot of my coworkers and I don't feel that I've won some great victory by quitting, I just feel kind of lost.
tl;dr: I quit my job this week to get away from my horrible manager. New job is across the country, and I just feel sad about how things played out.
If you made it this far, thank you. Not sure what I'm hoping to achieve by posting this, I just wanted to tell someone about my experience.