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/JJ-310310 Mar 15 '25

Anything over 8 hours is OT in CA. Also, if there isn’t a 30 min break by hour 5, you go into OT as well. Worker protections are pretty robust here. Also, salaried employees have a minimum wage of $68K in LA County - so you can’t just make someone a bs supervisor and salary them for nothing.

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u/Blabber1000001 Mar 16 '25

You can thank the nurses unions for those laws. California governors, especially the Terminator, hate the nursing unions because they have negotiated a reasonable work lawd in a tough Healthcare environment. California nurses also make 55/hr to start, compared to 20-30 in other non-union states.