Preface: this is an old story, but I still get a chuckle every time I remember it.
Got my first job at a local convenience store back around 2006 or 2007. Had been working there for a little over a year, so I knew my first raise was around the corner (an extra $.25 to add to my $5.25 an hour). Was in high school at the time, so it was a big deal for me then. Right around my year mark, another employee was hired with the same first name as me. Very common first name, so nothing unusual there. I noticed after my one year that this new guy had received a raise (he had been bragging about it to other employees). Curious as I thought that only happened after one year, I went to management to inquire about my raise and when I should see it as I had no reason to not believe I wouldn’t. After an “internal investigation” my raise was given to the new guy on accident because we shared the same first name. They then informed me they would not be giving me a raise as they could only give out one and since it was given to the new guy, they didn’t have another to give out and wouldn’t take it away from him. Whatever.
Shortly after this I put in scheduled time off for my birthday coming up as I was going out of town with friends. It was never approved or denied and I found my name on the schedule for the time I requested off. When I approached management about this, I was informed I could find someone to switch if I wanted to. So I did. I found another individual who confirmed with management to take those days and I could have the time off. On my second day out of town, I got a call from my manager. “Where was I?” I informed them of me switching with another employee, again, and told them to call that person and that I was out of town and had no way of making it back in time for my shift. I was told “we would need to discuss my second no-call, no-show (both days of my scheduled time off) and my attitude” when I returned. At this point I realized they were just wanting me to quit, but I wouldn’t make it easy on them.
They didn’t put me on the schedule my first week back. I called towards the end of the week to confirm I would be on the schedule for the following week, as apparently mgmt needed to discuss some things with me, and mgmt said I would be. One day. That was it.
I showed up on my one day that week ready to work and before I clock in, get called into mgmt office. I was terminated for my no-call, no-shows and my “attitude” when they called me into my shift.
I still love seeing the same managers in the same roles almost 20 years later never having done anything else in their lives.
TLDR; petty mgmt fired me from my first job because I called them out on their BS. They still work the same roles 20 years later and I love telling them how to pack my groceries.