Ex-manager blamed him for the team's struggles, unaware he was on the conference call. His new boss' 7-word reply left the room embarrassed

Crossing paths with an ex-employer is always an unexpected moment of reflection. It stirs feelings of nostalgia, and the experiences swim before one’s eyes like a tape of their past workplace. For an employee, it’s usually a great opportunity to leverage their former employer's network and rebuild connections. One employee (u/adventurouspool1244), however, had a bizarre experience when they came across the former employer that had terminated them because there wasn’t enough work. They described how their previous employer tried to throw them under the bus, unaware of their presence. The Reddit post was shared on June 4, 2026. 

Surprise encounter

The worker described that they had been working as an engineer for this company since 2019. In 2024, however, they lost their job during a layoff because, apparently, "there wasn't enough work" for them. Not long after that, the employee landed a job at one of the company's biggest competitors. The other day, at their new job, they were called in for a meeting about renovations at an old facility. "I realized that this was a facility I had worked on a lot at my old job. Then I noticed that several managers and engineers from my old company were sitting in the same call. The secondhand embarrassment for them started immediately," the employee recalled.

Thrown under the bus

The former coworkers didn't realize their presence, and so they blamed them for an issue at work. They even accused the ex-worker of putting them in a difficult situation. While the engineer was trying their best to suppress laughter, their current project manager informed them, "This same engineer works with us now." After realizing that their former worker had heard everything, they were left in a difficult and embarrassing situation. Their reaction, the employee confessed, was “glorious.” And even though they were saying negative things about them, the employee maintained a professional attitude and said they looked forward to working with them on the new renovation project.

Reunions with ex-employers 

For the most part, it depends on the relationship the employee has with their previous employer. Studies have shown that while most employers are eager to reunite with former employees, they might choose not to for various reasons. For example, Accountemps surveyed 2,800 senior managers, and 94% said they would hire ex-employees who left their companies on good terms, but only a little more than half, 52% precisely, of the 1,000 workers said they would want to work with their previous employer. Among the reasons they cited for not wanting to work with the past employer were dissatisfaction with leadership (22%), unfulfilling duties (13%), and bridges burned by the company (11%).

Similar instances surface on Reddit

Meanwhile, in response to the engineer’s Reddit post, people shared similar experiences with a former employer. For instance, u/nnote said, “I got laid off because there was no work for me, so I turned around and got hired by the company my previous employer sent all my work to. Bonus: now I'm also remote!” Similarly, u/mcindy28 shared, "Hahaha they thought they could throw you under the bus since you were no longer working there...except here you are! Surprise!"

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