Indian banker’s rant on manager who ‘cries like baby’ over leave requests has internet saying, ‘don’t ask, just apply’

An India-based retail banker has triggered an online discussion after sharing a screenshot of an email in which his manager refused to approve his planned leave. The post, shared on Reddit’s ‘r/IndianWorkplace’, drew widespread criticism of the company’s work culture.

Employee says routine requests blocked

Posting under the title “Planned leaves”, the employee explained that despite planning his time off a month earlier, his manager consistently refused to approve even “two days of continuous leave”. He noted that he had already submitted his schedule for December and January.

According to him, this has become a monthly pattern. “He cries like a child every month when I mention two continuous days as ‘leave’ and then I have to break it into separate days,” he wrote. The manager reportedly argued that the “team is small” and any absence “puts pressure on other members”.

The banker questioned how anyone could organise a short trip or holiday without being allowed two consecutive days off, stressing that his request did not include “clubbing any holidays or weekends”.

Take a look at the viral Reddit post here

Reddit calls out poor work culture

Reddit users strongly supported the employee. One commenter said, “This happens when your manager has zero idea of the work,” accusing such supervisors of micro-managing to “look important”. Another user remarked, “‘Planned’ leaves are supposed to be planned by the employee, not the employer.”

A third user joked that they mysteriously “get sick the day after my planned leave” in similar situations.

Others suggested the problem extended beyond the manager. One comment read, “As someone who’s spent a decade in corporate, this sounds like an organisational issue more than a manager one… You should start planning an exit, bad company and bad boss are unwanted problems.”

The same user advised a more assertive approach: “Next time, don’t ask for leaves. Just put them in the portal, inform your manager that you’ve booked tickets, and hand over your tasks in advance.”