Man goes viral for instantly turning down boss who asked him to work on his day off and hanging up

Editor's note: This article was originally published on November 23, 2022. It has since been updated.

A TikTok user has gained attention on the platform after demonstrating how to set clear boundaries when it comes to work. A video posted by the @thelovieshow TikTok profile comes over two years into the COVID-19 pandemic when public sentiments have mostly turned against employers, especially those who believe they can encroach upon their employees' personal time as and when it suits them. The 25-second-long video features a brief, no-nonsense interaction between one-half of the couple behind the TikTok profile and their boss, who is on speakerphone asking them to come into work on their day off. While this is an uncomfortable scenario many of us have encountered in our professional lives, the man—who is likely the Drake of the "drake & marie ann" duo—lives out what we've all fantasized about doing.

"Yeah, unfortunately, we had some team members call out today due to COVID," the boss is heard saying in the video. "Dang, you don't have anybody else?" Drake asks in response. "No, we actually don't, and I know you're not on the schedule but we were actually wondering if you could come in anyway," the manager replies, probably expecting Drake to reluctantly agree. Drake, however, doesn't fall for it. "Um, yeah, no," he says even as his boss complains about being short-staffed. "Yeah, have a good night, sorry."

Drake's boss is then heard starting to say a surprised "No, wait" but is immediately cut off by Drake hanging up the phone. He then turns to the person filming the interaction and asks them if they want to go to Target before rolling away in his chair with a triumphant "woo!" "Did we buy anything at Target? Yes. Was it useful? No," the video caption reveals. The clip made quite the splash on the video-sharing platform, racking in over 4 million views as other TikTok users praised Drake for turning down his boss without offering any explanation as to why he wouldn't sacrifice his day off.

"Normalize 'No' and hang up. No is a complete sentence, and they aren't paying you for your time to talk on the phone with them," commented user68645754256. TikTok user ceeejing agreed, adding: "Normalise not answering calls related to work when you're not working." @kylieporter89 also chimed into the discussion, writing: "Managers really have the nerve to guilt trip you into going to work when you're not supposed to be there. Like no."

"Bad managers always do this instead of being a manager and covering the shift," wrote AliB while Hazel commented: "As a manager, you can ask people to come in but they are NOT obligated to. No means no. You call someone else." Another TikTok user, Lauren, admitted that they often lie in such situations. "I always say 'Sorry I actually set up an appointment last week for today because I was off' or 'My mom is coming out of town to visit because it's my day off,'" they commented. "Like should I just be able to say no? Yeah. Is it easier to make up a lie? Yes."

"Yeah, guilt-tripping people won't work. They need to start offering extra stuff if they want people to work extra," suggested Kyle Cummings. "In Germany, it's actually illegal to contact employees at all on their days off, I think we need that here," pointed out jimdim122.