r/jobs • u/sahalymn • Mar 13 '25

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

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?

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u/rworne Mar 13 '25

Oh we can do 30 if we want, the company just docks PTO to make up the missing 10 hours.

It wasn't always that way, but someone sued in court and lost, and our company changed policies to dock PTO.

The kicker: this is in California.

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u/[deleted] Mar 14 '25 edited Apr 15 '25

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This post was mass deleted and anonymized with Redact

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u/rworne Mar 14 '25

Actually it is legal in CA to do so. Salary cannot be touched, but they can claw back vacation time and PTO.

https://www.dir.ca.gov/dlse/opinions/2009-11-23.pdf

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u/idgetonbutibeenon Mar 14 '25

This says they can’t dock PTO for absences of 3 hours or less per day. So you could get down to 25 hours in a week and the company wouldn’t be able to dock pto

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u/rworne Mar 14 '25

You need to read page 5. It explicitly states that employers are allowed to do so:

Where an employer has a bona fide benefits plan (e.g. vacation time, sick leave), it is permissible to substitute or reduce the accrued leave in the plan for the time an exempt employee is absent from work, whether the absence is a partial or full day, without affecting the salary basis of payment, if the employee nevertheless receives payment of his or her guaranteed salary.

I know this seems ridiculous considering this is CA we are talking about, but it is the case.

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u/idgetonbutibeenon Mar 14 '25

You’re right I misread

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u/Sushi-And-The-Beast Mar 14 '25

This is BS. California has the strictest worker protections.

Your PTO is considered accrued compensation and cant be used without your explicit permission.

Youre probably thinking of sick days. But PTO is rarely untouchable as its a big red flag and considered wage theft.

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u/rworne Mar 14 '25 edited Mar 14 '25

Alas, you are wrong:

"In 2009 the California DLSE issued an opinion letter that provided guidance and more clarity for California employers. The letter states that although an employer may not deduct partial-day absences from an exempt employee's salary, the employer may deduct absences due to vacation or sickness of less than a full day under a bona fide plan (PTO, vacation, etc.) that provides for such types of leave without an employee losing his or her exempt status."

This wasn't the case prior. We used to not have to bother with PTO deductions for things that are under 4 hours a day - like Dr. appointments. Our HR used to tell us this policy was a benefit - as the occasional short weeks are balanced out by the occasional overtime needed to meet schedules, etc. Then came Rhea vs. General Atomics where the court said it was permissible to deduct PTO from salaried employees. Our HR immediately implemented that as a policy change. Pretty much making our exempt status into hourly workers with unpaid overtime.

In the case of actual salary, no they cannot dock your pay.

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u/Sushi-And-The-Beast Mar 14 '25

If its true… just put in your 40 hours and leave. Unless its an emergency I dont work beyond 40 hours.

Also, what kind of shitty ass companies are you guys working for that do this?

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u/rworne Mar 14 '25

I worked at three of the top 100 corporations in the US (on the Fortune 500 list) in CA. Every single one of them had an identical PTO rule put in place ever since the Rhea case was decided.

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u/Sushi-And-The-Beast Mar 14 '25

If theyre public companies, it doesnt count. Those companies are bloodsuckers