The company demanded our team work overtime to meet a deadline, causing everyone to forget to clock out. I went to HR, who told me to talk to the boss. I went to the boss, who told me to “learn my lesson.” Seriously? The company makes money, the client gets their project on time. And I, just a lowly worker, pull an all-nighter, damage my health, and lose my monthly attendance bonus? Am I some kind of doormat? I quit! I hate working on projects for Indian clients. The Indians messed up the timeline, demanding our security platform – originally scheduled to launch in two weeks – go live 10 days early. In just 5 days, we have to complete performance optimization, bug fixes, security audits, OS compatibility testing, comprehensive testing, gather user feedback and make improvements. I’m exhausted. I feel like jumping out the office window. At 3 AM, to meet the deadline, all 12 members of the “Cloud Shadow Intelligent Security Defense Platform” project team are still working in the office. Everyone knows we’re on a tight schedule, so no one has gone home. As the project lead, I’m truly grateful for everyone’s dedication. But little did we know, our conscientiousness in staying to work overtime without leaving the office even once would backfire. It caused our entire team to be marked as leaving early the previous day for not clocking out, and absent today for not clocking in. When Emma came to me with the attendance records, I thought it was a minor issue that could be easily fixed by talking to HR. After all, the office security footage would prove we all stayed in the office working overtime. Even the usual slackers cut down on their bathroom breaks. I immediately grabbed my phone and headed to HR, planning to sort it out and get some fresh air. My fingers were practically turning to stone from coding for so long. Entering the HR office, I found three women chatting away. One was showing off her new manicure, another complaining about her mischievous kid, and the third laughing hysterically at some TV show. I felt a pang of envy. When would I get to enjoy such a relaxed workday, gossiping during office hours? Seeing me, the happy atmosphere in the office instantly evaporated. The three women froze, clearly not expecting anyone to come to HR so early. They silently returned to their desks. I wondered if I’d come at a bad time and ruined their fun. The woman closest to the door, with an elaborate updo and full makeup, was the manicure lady. She rolled her eyes, glanced at me, and asked coldly: “What do you want?” I showed her my attendance record: “Can you remove these early departure and absence records? Our project team got notified yesterday that we need to launch the platform 10 days early. Everyone stayed late last night, so we didn’t…” “Hold on,” Manicure Lady raised her left hand, her right hand tapping away at the keyboard. My unfinished sentence got stuck in my throat. I could only wait silently. Manicure Lady’s brow furrowed, then relaxed, then looked suspicious: “Tsk, what’s going on with your team? 12 people, all without clock-outs yesterday, and all absent this morning.” When asking for a favor, you have to be polite: “We were working overtime yesterday and forgot to clock out. We even slept in the office. If no one had reminded me this morning, I wouldn’t have realized we missed clocking in twice.” Manicure Lady kept staring at her computer screen, clicking her mouse incessantly: “Ugh, so annoying.” She suddenly slammed her mouse on the desk, leaned back in her chair, looking very irritated: “I can’t remove this. There’s not even a leave request. How am I supposed to fix it?” I stood there stunned, not expecting such an attitude from Manicure Lady. Lack of sleep, plus all the coffee I’d been drinking like water these past two days, made my temper flare up quickly. Before I knew it, I slammed my hand on Manicure Lady’s desk, pointing at her nose: “What’s with your attitude? Who are you giving attitude to?” The three HR women looked at me in horror. Looking at the three of them, I suddenly regretted my outburst. Our company’s HR department was nicknamed the “Wives Club” because it was staffed by the wives or female relatives of company executives. I’d gotten bold today and actually yelled at the Wives Club. The HR ladies were used to throwing their weight around, but Manicure Lady clearly hadn’t expected me to be so forceful. She deflated a bit. She muttered: “Why are you getting angry? If it can’t be fixed, it can’t be fixed. If you’ve got a problem, go talk to the boss.” I grabbed my phone and practically ran out of the HR office. Oh no, I’m in trouble now. Who knows which executive’s wife Manicure Lady is. But after leaving the office, I calmed down. What am I afraid of? I’m a tech backbone of the company, doing real work and making money for them. Surely no brain-dead executive would fire me, right?
The more I thought about it, the more I felt I could still hang on at the company. After all, the value I create for the company is much higher than the Wives Club. But I’ll probably face some trouble. If they don’t teach me a lesson, where would those self-important executives put their faces? I sighed, resigning myself to my bad luck. This society was never fair. If my husband outranked their husbands, I bet Manicure Lady wouldn’t have dared use that attitude with me. The boss’s office was on the top floor. I’d been there once before for a project report, but rarely had the chance to go to the executive level. Outside the boss’s office was a slightly smaller office for his secretary. As I was about to knock, the secretary’s door opened a crack. A woman in a gray suit poked her head out, asking coldly: “Who are you?” I recognized this secretary – she was often seen following the boss. I couldn’t afford to offend her. I quickly replied: “I’m Rachel, the project lead. I’m here to see the boss about removing some absence records.” Understanding my purpose, the secretary frowned slightly: “For such a small matter, you should just go to HR. Why bother the boss?” I explained: “HR said they can’t remove it without a leave slip.” The secretary’s frown deepened. After a few seconds of silence: “The boss isn’t in the office now. He usually comes in around 3 PM.” What? The boss doesn’t come in until 3 PM? I almost blurted out in surprise but managed to hold it in. After thanking her, I prepared to come back at 3 PM and turned to leave. “Wait,” the secretary called out, “Come register and I’ll make an appointment for you.” “Huh? Do I need an appointment even though I’m an internal employee?” I must have looked very foolish, as I really don’t interact with upper management. I couldn’t believe our crappy company required appointments just to see the boss. The secretary gave me an annoyed look: “Of course. The boss arrives at 3 PM and leaves promptly at 5:30 PM, not a second later. Even directors and managers can’t always get on his schedule. How could a team lead like you not need an appointment?” As she spoke, the secretary tapped on her tablet: “I’ve scheduled you for 5:20 PM. You only have 5 minutes. When time’s up, you have to leave whether you’ve finished or not.” I nodded numbly, indicating I understood. This boss puts on airs like an ancient emperor. If I didn’t need this money to live, I would have quit long ago! Let whoever wants to serve him do it. Is it easy for us working folks to earn money? As soon as I got back to the office, everyone crowded around asking if I’d gotten the absence records removed. I told them we didn’t have leave slips, so it couldn’t be removed. As soon as I finished speaking, Emma exploded. She’s a young girl who just graduated and joined our company 6 months ago. Emma shouted: “That’s ridiculous! We pulled an all-nighter to meet the deadline, and end up with absence records. We might as well have let the project be delayed. It’s not like it’s coming out of my pocket anyway.” Emma started packing up her things: “Since I’m marked absent anyway, why should I stay at this crappy company? I’m going home to sleep!” Several others also looked like they were thinking of packing up and going home. I tried to calm everyone down: “I’ll definitely get the boss to approve removing everyone’s absence records this afternoon!” After much persuasion, Emma finally put down her half-packed bag and sat in her chair sulking. Olivia is a middle-aged woman like me, with elderly parents and young kids to support. She never thinks about her own feelings, only money! After I promised to talk to the boss about removing the absence records, Olivia was still worried: “You must explain it well to the boss this afternoon. The monthly perfect attendance bonus is $300, and the year-end bonus is also tied to this. Without perfect attendance, we could lose thousands of dollars.” I reassured Olivia: “Don’t worry, the boss should have that much perspective.”
At 5:10 PM, I was waiting outside the boss’s office 10 minutes early. Time ticked by second by second. The wall clock soon showed 5:25 PM. I got anxious. Why hasn’t the previous person come out yet? I asked the secretary. Without looking up, she replied: “Mr. Davis is discussing a project with the boss. If you want to listen in, you can go in.” How could I dare? A big boss and an operations director. I’m just a nobody. I could only wait patiently. Soon the minute hand reached 35. Voices came from the door. The boss and Mr. Davis walked out chatting and laughing. I hurriedly stepped forward. Respectfully: “Hello, boss. Hello, Mr. Davis.” Mr. Davis’s face flashed with displeasure. He still wanted to chat more with the boss, but I’d interrupted. After saying goodbye to the boss, Mr. Davis left. The boss didn’t linger either, heading straight for his private elevator. I followed behind the boss like a tail: “Boss, I’m Rachel, the project lead for the Cloud Shadow Intelligent Security Defense Platform. Our project was originally due in two weeks but suddenly needs to be completed in 5 days.” Seeing we were just steps from the elevator, I sped up: “The team members have all been working overtime. Last night no one went home, causing us to miss clocking out last night and in this morning. Because we don’t have leave slips, it can’t be removed. HR said we need your approval.” I finished in one breath, feeling a bit short of air. But I’d finally seen the boss. With just one word from him, our absence records could be removed. We reached the private elevator. The secretary had already pressed the button, and the elevator was quietly waiting. The boss walked in and turned to look at me: “Rules are rules. If I make an exception for you today, what about when others ask me tomorrow? Do I help them or not?” The boss looked at his secretary: “Sarah, just handle these things yourself in the future.” The secretary nodded in acknowledgment. I was about to say more, begging the boss to be lenient, when the elevator doors slowly closed in front of me. The secretary left without lingering, turning back towards her office. I was left alone, staring at the closed elevator doors, feeling lost. Everyone on the project team sacrifices their time for money, staying late at the office. But what’s the result? The company’s project is successfully delivered, money goes into the boss’s pocket. Employees work diligently for a month, then lose the $300 perfect attendance bonus at month-end, and thousands in year-end bonus. Even someone like me with a thick skin is thinking of quitting. How am I supposed to face the people on the project team? I’d made such confident promises this morning, only to have reality slap me in the face. I don’t remember how I got back to the project office. In the blink of an eye, I was surrounded by everyone. “Rachel, did the boss agree?” Olivia asked anxiously. Looking at everyone’s expectant faces, I didn’t know how to answer. I just shook my head. This simple gesture seemed to drain all my energy. The hopeful looks in everyone’s eyes instantly dimmed. Olivia’s eyes reddened with urgency: “How can this be? Why didn’t the boss agree? Rachel, did you not explain it clearly?” Looking at Olivia, I suddenly felt we were all so pitiful. We do the work, but don’t get a share when it comes to the money. This world is truly absurd. I smiled self-mockingly, feeling I’d learned another important lesson. “I explained it clearly to the boss. He said ‘rules are rules’ and told the secretary to handle these things herself in the future, not to bother him.” Olivia’s hand resting on the desk was shaking. The color drained from her face at my words: “Why? How can this be?” Seeing Olivia like this, Emma, who had been holding back, finally exploded. She pulled over a chair, stood on the desk, and waved her arms: “Look at this everyone! We give our all to the company, and the company treats employees like slaves! How can they bully us like this?” Suddenly, Emma turned to look at me, her eyes red: “I’m going home today. Whoever wants to work this crappy job can work it. Don’t try to stop me!” For some reason, I also felt the urge to follow Emma, abandon the project, and go home for a good sleep.
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