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The original was posted on /r/maliciouscompliance by /u/Picdesign on 2025-06-12 12:23:19+00:00.
So this happened a few years ago when I worked at a warehouse for a major retail chain. I was a low-level picker, meaning I grabbed items off shelves and packed them for shipping. Not glamorous, but I took pride in doing it efficiently.
Now, the layout of the warehouse was... let’s say “sub-optimally designed.” Some items were placed in the farthest corners, while others you'd need a ladder, a forklift, and divine intervention to reach. After a few weeks, I started making small changes to improve workflow — grouping items that were often ordered together, reorganizing poorly labeled bins, and suggesting process tweaks that shaved off hours in picking time.
At first, my manager “Todd” seemed mildly impressed. But then corporate came for a walkthrough, and when they asked Todd how these improvements were implemented, he took full credit.
When I politely mentioned that I had been the one making the changes on the ground, Todd pulled me aside afterward and said:
“Look, we don’t pay you to think. Just do your job.”
Well, okay then.
Cue malicious compliance.
From that day forward, I stopped making any suggestions. If an item was buried under three pallets of stuff, I waited for forklift assistance. If something was mislabeled, I’d pick the wrong item — exactly as labeled. If two items were always shipped together but stored 100 meters apart, I made two trips instead of one. I followed every rule and instruction to the letter.
Productivity tanked. Mistakes increased. Complaints from clients rolled in. After two weeks of this, Todd was getting chewed out in every manager meeting. Eventually, his boss came down to talk to me directly and asked what changed.
I just smiled and said:
“Todd told me I’m not paid to think.”
The next week, Todd was transferred to another location (aka “the warehouse Siberia”), and I was promoted to workflow coordinator.
Now I get paid to think. A lot.