A technology professional claimed they succeeded in sacking their manager after he was placed on a performance improvement plan (PIP) and outlined how they challenged what they claimed was retaliation.
Writing anonymously on the Blind workplace forum in a post titled “I fired my manager after he tried to PIP me. Here’s exactly how,” the individual said he had been placed on PIP but instead of “crying about it” chose to decline. “Everybody here just rolls over when they get a PIP. ‘Update your resume, start interviewing, take your severance pay.’ No. I chose violence,” the user wrote.
According to the post, PIP followed up with an employee who raised concerns about project delays, which he said were “100%” the manager’s responsibility. The employee described it as a “classic retaliatory move” and said they had spent a fortnight gathering evidence instead of making a decision.
“The dude literally told me he wrote a great piece”
They explained that they collected internal communications, including Slack messages, to point out discrepancies. “Dude literally told me ‘great job on X’ in writing 3 weeks before he said I was ‘underperforming on X’ in a PIP document,” the user wrote, adding that they thoroughly documented everything.
The employee also said they filed a formal complaint with the company’s ethics team, rather than standard HR channels, alleging retaliation and providing supporting evidence. They also contacted two former colleagues who had allegedly been placed on PIP by the same manager, with one agreeing to provide a statement.
The matter was then escalated to the skip level manager via what the user described as a “polite email” that included facts, timelines and documentation. “I sent a very polite email to my skip level, along the lines of ‘I want to make sure management is aware of a certain pattern.’ Not emotional, just facts + data + evidence,” they wrote.
Within a month, the manager was reportedly placed on a “management coaching plan” and left the company six weeks later. The employee acknowledged that such results are not always typical, but argued that well-documented allegations of retaliation can pose a risk to companies and prompt them to act.
“Most people won’t even try because they assume the company will always side with your manager. That’s probably true 70% of the time. But if you have actual evidence of retaliation? That’s a liability for the company and they’ll let your manager go to protect themselves,” the post said.
“Stop being a doormat. Companies have no loyalty. Managers have no loyalty. The only person looking out for you is you,” the user added.
Reaction on social networks
The post quickly went viral and drew countless reactions from social media users.
Some users urged caution, suggesting that the employee’s role could still be at risk. “You bought yourself a year OP. Expect to be on the chopping block again or find another team now,” wrote one user.
Read also | Indian tech says he was fired 4 days into PIP for refusing tip
“Your skip is a snake. He must have known about your manager’s intention to PIP you and gave you his blessing. But instead he chose an easier way to get rid of your manager. From his point of view, he just needs to get rid of L6 for this performance cycle, it doesn’t matter if it’s sdm or sde. You have to watch your back. You can still switch other teams that are still on the bottom.
However, others applauded the move, calling it a protest against PIP abuse. “You’re Blind’s hero now. Guys we need to do this more often and encourage others to do it. It’s about time managers stopped using PIP as a weapon,” wrote one user.
Read also | ‘Put on your PIP because…’: Employee shares workplace ‘harassment and toxicity’
“On behalf of the other employees who have been harassed and bullied by stupid managers. THANK YOU!” said another.
Read also | Co-founder shares how she reversed an employee’s termination
“Hats off!! I hope the manager has learned his lesson about abuse of authority.” If more ppl start doing this half the managers at amazon will be fired for all their horrible actions throwing ppl under the bus, another user commented.
(Disclaimer: This report is based on user-generated content from social media. LiveMint has not independently verified and does not endorse these claims.)
