One-night stands can have unexpected consequences – like surprise pregnancies. Usually, the two people involved will decide together how best to manage the situation, but what if they suddenly lose all contact with each other?
This was the situation facing one woman after the guy she spent the night with left the country the day after. With no way to reach him, she raised her daughter herself, but now he’s back in town and about to become her new manager.
More info: Reddit
One-night stands might seem like a good idea at the time, but they can have unintended consequences down the line, as this woman found out the hard way
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After spending the night with a fellow PhD student, she found out she was pregnant, but he’d already left the country, shut down his local number, and wasn’t on social media
Image credits: Ling App / Pexels (not the actual photo)
With no way to get hold of him, she got on with raising their daughter alone but, in a twist of fate years later, found out he was about to become her new manager
Image credits: August de Richelieu / Pexels (not the actual photo)
When she told HR the truth about their history together, they immediately did everything they could to push her out of the company
Image credits: cottonbro studio / Pexels (not the actual photo)
In a meeting with her lawyer, the union rep, HR, and a member of the senior management team, she was asked to resign
Image credits: Edmond Dantès / Pexels (not the actual photo)
When she said no, they insisted on a statutory declaration about the intimate details of her relationship with Jacob, which she also declined
Image credits: Freepik / Freepik (not the actual photo)
The company’s solution was to start messing with her pay, benefits, and swipe card access
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Her lawyer guessed that it would take ages to get any kind of resolution, and at that point she didn’t even want the job anymore
Image credits: Alison Green
Wanting to steer clear of any more workplace warfare, she resigned, but let the clueless dad know about their daughter anyway
Life has a habit of throwing curveballs, but nothing could’ve prepared this woman for the plot twist that hit her inbox. Years after a one-night stand with a fellow PhD student, Jacob, she discovered he was about to become her new boss. The kicker? He had no idea their night together had made him a dad.
As office introductions rolled in, the reality of their history loomed large. Would he be okay managing someone he unknowingly had a daughter with? Could she keep things professional while holding onto a life-changing secret?
After disclosing their relationship to HR, however, management started playing dirty. The stress was unbearable, and she decided to resign rather than endure any more workplace warfare.
But there was one last thing for OP to do—tell Jacob. To her relief, he didn’t want to take legal action and said he’d love to meet his daughter—if she was ready. And OP’s daughter? She was glad to have his contact info but didn’t want to disrupt her life for the time being.
It’s not like OP didn’t try to get hold of Jacob and, when she could, she didn’t take long to put all her cards on the table. The real villains of this story seem to be the HR department. So, is HR your friend? We went looking for answers.
Image credits: cottonbro studio / Pexels (not the actual photo)
In her article for The Guardian, Alaina Demopoulos writes that, in a 2021 survey of 1,000 workers at UK organizations with over 250 employees, 47% reported that they didn’t trust HR to help with conflict resolution.
Peter Cappelli, a professor of management, says the problem is that many employees don’t grasp how HR fits into a company as a whole.
“What people don’t understand is that ultimately, HR works for the company and the employer organization,” Cappelli explains.
In her article for the BBC, Joanna York writes that, when disputes arise, HR departments often walk a fine line between delivering the outcome the employee wants and the outcome the organization wants.
Perhaps OP’s decision to resign was the right move. They sound like a lousy company to work for anyway.
What would you have done if you’d found yourself in OP’s shoes? Do you think she made the right choice by telling HR about her history with Jacob? Let us know your opinion in the comments!
In the comments, readers slammed the company for breaking a bunch of laws and some even advised the woman to pursue legal action
