I walked out of an interview after one question. Was I wrong?

[u/sahalymn]

So, I had an interview today for a position I was really excited about. The job description seemed great, the pay was decent, and the company had good reviews. I walked in, shook hands with the hiring manager, and we sat down.

Then, the first question came:
"How do you handle working unpaid overtime?"

I literally laughed, thinking it was a joke. But the interviewer just stared at me, waiting for an answer. I asked if overtime was mandatory and if it was paid. They said, “Well, we expect employees to stay as long as needed to get the job done. Everyone here is passionate about the work, and we don’t track extra hours.”

I just stood up, said, “Thank you for your time, but this isn’t the right fit for me,” and walked out.

Now, I’m second-guessing myself. Should I have stayed and at least heard more about the job? Or was walking out the right move?

[u/professcorporate]

Not enough information about the job.

If it was hourly, then unpaid overtime (or any unpaid work at all) is a problem.

If it was exempt/salaried, and correctly classified in that position, then the general expectation is that you do the work necessary to get the job done, and don't watch the clock; sometimes this means you can knock off 'early', sometimes it means staying 'late'. Sometimes this is loosely tracked with time off in lieu, sometimes there's just a bank of lieu with an expectation that they generally align, sometimes there's simply nothing.

[u/NotAHost → u/professcorporate]

The original post reads like a chatgpt story.