MSN Careers - Think You've Got a Lousy Boss? - Career Advice Article

MSN Careers - Think You've Got a Lousy Boss? - Career Advice Article: "Think You've Got a Lousy Boss?

True Horror Stories From Work
By Laura Morsch, CareerBuilder.com writer

Bad bosses have become something of a pop culture phenomenon. 'The Devil Wears Prada,' Lauren Weisberger's tale of a new grad's struggle to maintain her dignity while working for an unreasonable magazine editor, spent six months on the New York Times bestseller list and will hit theaters this year. Mr. Burns, Homer's villainous boss on 'The Simpsons,' has become the manager we love to hate.

Even so, real life can sometimes be stranger than fiction. Here are some stories of truly horrendous bosses, straight from the mouths of actual workers:

Earplugs optional

At a previous position, my boss was notoriously unprofessional, making him infamous throughout the organization. In addition to partaking in the community pretzel bin while suffering from a finger fungus and perspiring so profusely that he would be sporting two-foot-long sweat stains before 9 a.m., he believed his office was a personal recording studio.

You name it -- from Van Halen to Avril Lavigne -- he was bolting it out at a high decibel level all day. But the day I heard Jessica Simpson was the day I knew it was leave my job or lose my sanity. Nothing beats a middle-aged overweight white man with a slicked-back Afro singing: 'Nothin' but a T-shirt on... never felt so beautiful, baby as I do now... now that I'm with you.'

-- Ashley, Fort Lauderdale, Fla.


Sticky situation

I worked for a small PR firm a few years ago. ... One day I was"