The baddest of the bad bosses

August 21, 2007

One of the worst bosses in the country could be looking over your shoulder right now.

The unnamed scoundrel is somewhere in Maryland, according to the just-completed “My Bad Boss Contest” from Working America, an affiliate of the AFL-CIO.

“A Miscarriage of Justice” tells the story of a Maryland woman who lost her pregnancy, took a week off from work and returned to increased hours and zero sympathy.

“I come back to work to a boss whose entire demeanor has changed. He actually says to me, with a sneer, ‘Well, I hope you had some good time off.” Yeah, miscarriages are great, man. Can’t wait to do it again sometime. Can you believe that?”

All that’s missing is a pale horse and three equally unpleasant buddies.

The story doesn’t get any better from there. And it was only one of the six semi-finalists. Imagine how bad the others must be.

Rallying against workplace Napoleons seems to be a popular subject at the moment. The Wall Street Journal ran a column Tuesday on the difficulty of navigating the bitter demeanors of coworkers with even the smallest bit of power. Several states are even considering legislation that would let employees sue for “an abusive work environment,” according to the Los Angeles Times. (Free registration)

The Times piece raises an interesting question: are bosses really getting worse, or are today’s employees simply less tolerant of abuse? Let us know what you think.

And maybe you’re sitting there wishing you’d known about the “My Bad Boss Contest.” If so, here’s the perfect place for an anonymous rant, though please omit names of bosses and places of work. And if any of the posted stories seem familiar, now would be a good time to run, because that boss looking over your shoulder is probably about to explode.

-JOE BACCHUS, Daily Record Web Specialist

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