A viral social media post highlighting extreme micromanagement and toxic work culture has sparked a massive debate online, after an employee at a digital marketing agency shared a harrowing account of corporate surveillance. The employee, who earns a monthly salary of Rs 28,000, claimed that upper management actively monitors private workplace chats and uses custom tracking software to log check-in times and bathroom breaks.
The post, titled "Got Humiliated Today, Getting Fired Tomorrow" on the Reddit community r/IndianWorkplace, quickly gained traction as users echoed their frustrations about toxic working conditions across the country.
According to the employee, the workplace tension reached a boiling point after a manager allegedly went through their Microsoft Teams chat logs. The manager confronted the employee, asking whether they came to the office for work or for fun. When the employee expressed disappointment over their privacy being violated, the manager threatened to send screenshots to the company owner to decide their fate.
Got Humiliated Today, Getting Fired Tomorrow
by u/NegotiationOk888 in IndianWorkplace
The employee revealed that the catalyst for the manager's anger was a private message sent to a colleague a week prior, in which they had complained about the lack of cleanliness and a mold infestation in the office that had resulted in an expensive medical bill.
The worker further alleged that the company's Human Resources head resigned just a week earlier because she refused to carry out snooping and unfair terminations. Following her departure, the owner reportedly developed custom HR software to track the staff's movements, including the duration of their bathroom breaks.
The post also detailed a rigid, low-benefit employment structure. For every minute an employee logs in late, they are required to redeem it as leave. The author of the post, who is the sole breadwinner for his family and cares for his wife, noted that he is often delayed by 10 minutes due to domestic responsibilities and a personal health condition, which leaves him vulnerable to penalties.
Despite going beyond his job description to redesign the company website and teach himself coding, the employee claimed he was publicly insulted by the owner, who allegedly remarked that anyone could write code using AI tools and called him lazy.
The post has drawn widespread condemnation from online users, who are calling for stricter labour regulations and urging the employee to seek better opportunities. Many users pointed out that tracking bathroom breaks is not only deeply dehumanising but also indicative of a failing management structure.
(Disclaimer: This report is based on claims made in a viral Reddit post. NDTV has not independently verified the allegations)
