‘I walked out job interview after one question – but now I’m second-guessing it’

A man has sparked a debate after walking out of a job after the hiring manager asked him one thing. He explained how he revamped his CV and cover letter before applying for the position – but decided the workplace wasn’t the right fit for him just minutes into the interview.

However, he is now second-guessing whether he did the right thing. Taking to , he said: “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?'” Upon hearing this, the man started laughing, believing the hiring manager was joking around – but he quickly came to realise he was being serious.

He added: “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.’

With that, he quietly stood up and walked out of the interview while thanking him for his time. But now he can’t help but wonder whether he did the right thing or not. He said: “I 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?”

Commenting on his post, one user said: “They basically started the interview asking ‘are you ok with the company taking advantage of you?’ You made the right decision.” Another user added: “It’s the difference between exempt (salaried) and non-exempt (hourly) employment.

“I work in IT as a salaried employee and the job description is explicit about after-hours being required on occasion. I’ll work 50-60+ hours some weeks, but I’m extremely well compensated. I’ve never once felt that I was being taken advantage of.

“Conversely, a previous role at a Big 4 accounting firm had me logging 60-80 hours a week, and the compensation was rubbish compared to the market for my role. I left after six months. I don’t fault you for not wanting the role, but I’d probably want more info before walking out personally.”

A third user said: “I will never work unpaid overtime again. I left project management and went back to analyst work because the financials didn’t make sense anymore -you don’t get paid OT as a PM but you get paid more. When I worked out hours worked and compared to higher salary, I was making less than working as a lower analyst who makes overtime. Been working as an overqualified analyst getting paid overtime for six years now and I make more now than I ever did as a PM.”

One more user added: “I was salaried for years. I worked on average 50 hours a week. I just did it to get the job done. Were they offering a salaried position? If it was hourly, maybe they were just checking to see if you were willing to put in extra effort at work because it’s illegal to make you work overtime without paying it unless you were exempt.”