Employee Says He Was Suddenly Fired After Being Told By HR That He Was 'Too Organized' For The Company
Many companies would rather have an employee with a personality that fits their work culture, no matter how good their skillset may be.
Gorodenkoff / Shutterstock After being at their company for over a year, an employee was abruptly let go for something that seemed to be out of their control.
Posting to Reddit's "r/antiwork" subreddit — an online forum where users can share their job/work-related struggles — the former employee at a tech company explained that while at work one day, he was called into a meeting with the HR department and received some news that only confused him.
He says he was fired by HR for being 'too organized' and no longer being a good fit for the company.
In his Reddit post, he shared that for the last year and a half, he'd been working for a relatively new tech company. While at work, he was called to speak with the HR director, which he claimed was something that appeared "out of the blue."
When the employee was called into the meeting, the HR director began to tell him that he was making "too much noise" at the company and began listing off two separate examples.
When recalling the examples given by the director, the employee wrote, "I once pushed back against three days of vacation [that were] denied [which] I had requested months in advance because my parents are traveling across the world to visit me in a few months."
"And because I sent an email to HR on behalf of my department (of 6 people) because we didn't understand the results of our performance evaluations."
After listing off all the times that the employee, essentially, bothered the HR department to the point they felt he was no longer a good fit for the company, they proceeded to fire him, explaining that he was just "too organized" for them to keep him on as a worker.
"She also told me that she was extremely sorry to see me go and that I have excellent qualities and will go very far," he continued. He was also given the HR director's personal phone number before he left and was even told that if he ever needed a recommendation, she would be happy to give it.
"I am obviously hurt and worried about the future, but I am just trying to make sense of this. It truly sounded like she was against the decision but just following orders," he pointed out.
RELATED: Company Warns People Not To Apply If They Want An 'Easy Job' & Won't Work For 10 Hours A Day
Photo: Reddit
In many companies, employees' personalities are often looked at more than the skills they bring to the job.
According to a study from digital education company Hyper Island titled “Tomorrow’s Most Wanted," via Agency Spy, of 500 leaders and employers surveyed, 78% cited “personality” as the most desirable quality in employees, followed in importance by “cultural alignment,” and then finally “skill-set.”
When asked what specific personality traits were desirable in a prospective employee, 14% of respondents listed drive as the number one, followed by creativity (12% of respondents) and having an open mind (11%).
RELATED: Worker Exposes Colleague Who Tried To Pass Off His Work As Her Own In Front Of Their CEO
In the comments section of the employee's Reddit post, many people offered their opinions on why he was suddenly fired for simply speaking out against certain things.
"You’re not too organized, you’re too outspoken. You’re not afraid to call their BS and demand clarification. I’d be willing to bet that they’re afraid of a union," one Reddit user suggested.
Another user agreed, pointing out that their HR director didn't seem to care about him as an employee, or viewed him as an asset to the company. "You were fired for going against the status quo."
"Their sole job is to get you to think this is a sympathetic situation and their hands are tied. Basically to keep you from rocking the boat any further."
A third user inferred, "You showed the bosses that you won't roll over and you care about your colleagues. That could lead to the start of a union. They decided to delay that headache as long as they can."
Nia Tipton is a writer living in Brooklyn. She covers pop culture, social justice issues, and trending topics.