Office Horror Stories: True Workplace Nightmares

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Bad-job stories read in full, then judged out loud.

The gist

Office Horror Stories: True Workplace Nightmares reads listeners' stories of bad jobs all the way through. The stories run from coworkers who grope staff to a boss whose insistence on the expensive store makes the pair wonder about a kickback. Then the two react, naming the villain and siding with whoever got stuck.

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About Office Horror Stories: True Workplace Nightmares

Office Horror Stories: True Workplace Nightmares is a story-and-reaction show about jobs that turned ugly, built on accounts sent in by the people who lived them. The format is simple. A submitted story is read straight through in a relaxed, conversational voice, with the odd stumble corrected on the fly, and then the talk takes over. The second half is where the show does its real work: the pair pick out the villain, name what was absurd and side with whoever was stuck. The trouble ranges widely. One letter describes coworkers who groped and crowded the women on staff until the writer finally punched one of them. Another involves a boss whose insistence on buying from the expensive store has both voices wondering about a kickback. One of them, having remodeled a home or two, argues that products agreed with a homeowner are not the contractor's to swap on a whim. An episode titled 'In-Human Resources | HR Nightmares' asks what anyone can do when the person meant to keep a workplace ethical is the least ethical one there. Advice does come up, but it is practical, not polished. In one stretch they argue that flying under the radar is no disaster, that confidence and conceit are different things, and that being right counts for less than a paycheck. None of it sounds like an HR column or a self-help explainer. Sentences run long and improvised, then land on a blunt judgment or a joke. Patience helps, because the openings wander. One detours through a Midwest food court chain and a ranking of the good mall, the one with the Cheesecake Factory and the movie theater, against the lesser one with the rug shop and the off-brand pizza place. The show can move from mall jokes to harassment without a formal reset, and it treats the heavier material gravely when it comes. Tony Bruschi signs off episodes, speaking for Carol Hughes or Sean as well, and asks for new stories through the show's website and a phone line. The feed has also carried a preview of a companion podcast, Nightmare Neighbors. Its stories include a neighbor burning off brush with gasoline and a donut-shop worker whose neighbor turns out to work nearby too. An entry called 'Sneek-A-Peek' offers the title of Employee of the Month and a chance at a gift card in exchange for an Apple Podcasts review. A listener gets the whole story first, then an unhurried, dry debrief from two people who are plainly on the worker's side.

Made for: Suits a listener who wants to hear a workplace nightmare told start to finish and then picked apart by two people firmly on the worker's side, and who does not mind a winding road to get there.

What sets it apart: It sounds nothing like an HR column or a true-crime narration: the submitted story is read in full, the tangents around it are left to wander, and the verdicts that follow are blunt and plain-spoken. It can also swing from mall nostalgia to harassment without dropping its easy, dry register.

As heard by us

Based on 5 episodes we listened to · September 2026

Listener accounts and candid host reactions expose how bad management, failed oversight, and everyday workplace power shape people's lives.

Office Horror Stories turns listener-submitted accounts of bad jobs into conversational case studies of power at work. Tony and his co-hosts move from controlling bosses and ineffective HR departments to harassment, customer abuse, and the quiet calculations employees make to…

Read our full review in PlayNext →

Why you'd press play

HR becomes the enemy, and your strategy of staying under the radar gets a hearing.

Press play if you want

  • to hear Tony and Sean weigh being right against keeping your paycheck
  • to hear a contractor's costly flooring switch get the incredulous reaction you had
Read the full recommendation in PlayNext →
Listener-submitted workplace storiesSexual harassment by coworkersHR as the problemControlling bossesKeeping your head down to keep a paycheckNeighbor horror storiesRambling off-topic openings

Talks about

Podcasts like Office Horror Stories: True Workplace Nightmares

Episodes

  1. 1

    Sell Out Staff | Office Horror Stories

    Hosts Tony Bruschi and Sean present three listener-submitted workplace horror stories: a commission-based electronics store employee whose manager was caught stealing electronics to her car after intercepting every customer sale; a receptionist with severe asthma who was hospitalized after coworkers deliberately sprayed air freshener inside her purifier filter and drink, with one coworker later saying 'sorry you didn't die'; and a restaurant worker whose owner banned curbside ordering during COVID to avoid credit card fees.

    Jun 4, 2020·40m·2 clips
  2. 2

    Call The Cops | Office Horror Stories

    Hosts Tony Bruschi and Carol Hughes present three listener-submitted workplace horror stories: an employee falsely accused by their boss of altering equipment on a day off, who couldn't quit because leaving would mean returning to an abusive home; a worker at what appears to be a police department who was serially sexually harassed by two coworkers — including one who brought a sex doll to work — with no management intervention; and a new pizza restaurant manager whose first solo COVID-era shift ended with a customer being handcuffed after flipping a desk.

    Jun 2, 2020·35m·2 clips
  3. 3

    Collections Agency | Office Horror Stories

    May 28, 2020·40m
  4. 4

    Thrown Under The Bus | Office Horror Stories

    May 26, 2020·39m
  5. 5

    Neighbors From Hell | Nightmare Neighbors Podcast

    Hidden gem

    The first episode of the Nightmare Neighbours podcast, hosted by Tony and Jenny Bruschi, features listener stories and personal accounts of neighbor conflicts recorded on April 27, 2020.

    May 22, 2020·39m·2 clips
  6. 6

    Car Dealership Nightmare | Automotive Horror Stories

    May 21, 2020·38m
  7. 7

    In-Human Resources | HR Nightmares

    Hidden gem

    Hosts Tony Bruschi and Sean cover three listener-submitted workplace horror stories and one personal anecdote: a letter describing four HR directors across two companies — including one who openly bragged policies weren't written down 'because then people would make me follow them' and another who called pregnancy a 'self-inflicted disability'; a beauty store employee whose burn was mistaken by a customer for a lipstick swatch; and a home improvement store worker who spent ninety minutes dealing with a customer convinced terrorists had tampered with fertilizer beads in her soil.

    May 19, 2020·47m·3 clips
  8. 8

    Control Freak Boss | Office Horror Stories

    Hidden gem

    Hosts Tony Bruschi and Carol Hughes present two listener-submitted workplace horror stories: a contractor whose boss Hutch sabotaged a $56K project by forcing expensive material changes that drove costs to $87K, and a librarian who returned from maternity leave to find her formerly close boss had grown cold and accusatory.

    May 14, 2020·38m·2 clips
  9. 9

    Too Good To Be True | Job Search Tips

    May 12, 2020·33m
  10. 10

    Fake Identity | Business Fails

    May 7, 2020·36m
  11. 11

    Send Us Your Neighbor From Hell Story!!

    May 6, 2020·2m
  12. 12

    Delusional As F | Manage Productivity

    May 5, 2020·41m
  13. 13

    Can't Make Them Happy | Be Your Own Boss

    Apr 30, 2020·35m
  14. 14

    Strange Co-Workers | Entrepreneur Stories

    Apr 28, 2020·34m
  15. 15

    Be Part of The Nightmare Neighbors Podcast!

    Apr 24, 2020·2m
  16. 16

    Not In My Job Description | Manager Tools

    Apr 23, 2020·35m
  17. 17

    Working On Vacation | Dream Job Nightmare

    Apr 21, 2020·41m
  18. 18

    Vindictive Boss | Management Tips

    Apr 16, 2020·32m
  19. 19

    Ungrateful Bitch! | Employee Relationships

    Apr 14, 2020·31m
  20. 20

    Call Center Nightmare | Career Growth

    Apr 9, 2020·32m
  21. 21

    Creepy Co-Worker | Office Management Tips

    Apr 7, 2020·44m
  22. 22

    The Cleaning Company | Office Horror Stories

    Apr 2, 2020·43m
  23. 23

    Monitoring Inappropriate Videos | Career Advice

    Mar 31, 2020·39m
  24. 24

    The Dark Side of Wikipedia Preview!

    Mar 30, 2020·17m
  25. 25

    Scabies Outbreak Fun! | Hospital Job Stories

    Mar 26, 2020·33m
  26. 26

    Warehouse Nightmares | Dream Job Nightmare

    Mar 24, 2020·35m
  27. 27

    No More Bathroom Trips | Working Advice

    Mar 19, 2020·46m
  28. 28

    Fired From First Job | Crazy Office Ladies

    Mar 17, 2020·39m
  29. 29

    Do a Better Job | Career Tools

    Mar 12, 2020·46m
  30. 30

    Crazy Customer Letters | Entrepreneur Stories

    Mar 10, 2020·42m
  31. 31

    Corporate BS | Career Growth

    Mar 5, 2020·37m
  32. 32

    Retail Nightmares | Big Box Nightmares

    Mar 3, 2020·29m
  33. 33

    Overworked | Office Horror Stories

    Feb 27, 2020·35m
  34. 34

    Moving Company Nightmare | Office Horror Stories

    Feb 25, 2020·40m
  35. 35

    Bridal Consult Nightmares | Bridal Industry Stories

    Feb 20, 2020·46m
  36. 36

    Affair In The Workplace | Human Resource Nightmares

    Feb 18, 2020·43m
  37. 37

    Bar Horror Stories | Office Horror Stories

    Feb 13, 2020·34m
  38. 38

    Don't Tell Anyone | HR Nightmares

    Feb 11, 2020·45m
  39. 39

    Office Gossip | Employee Management

    Feb 6, 2020·37m
  40. 40

    Dentist From Hell | Crazy Office Stories

    Feb 4, 2020·33m
  41. 41

    Ride Share Nightmare Stories! | Side Job Stories

    Jan 28, 2020·41m
  42. 42

    Lost In Translation | Career Tips

    Jan 21, 2020·39m
  43. 43

    Company Money Problems | Office Horror Stories

    Jan 14, 2020·37m
  44. 44

    Crazy Boss Stories | Workplace Nightmare Stories

    Jan 7, 2020·38m
  45. 45

    Crazy Office Christmas Party | Office Horror Stories

    Dec 23, 2019·32m
  46. 46

    Lying Co-Workers | Office Horror Stories

    Dec 17, 2019·48m
  47. 47

    Sneek-A-Peek | Office Horror Stories

    A comedic podcast sharing true workplace horror stories, with a call for listener reviews to win a gift card.

    Dec 10, 2019·39m
  48. 48

    Kitchen Nightmare | Workplace Horror Stories

    The episode transcript consists entirely of advertisements for Florida sweet corn and WellPoint health insurance, with no actual content from the show.

    Dec 3, 2019·40m
  49. 49

    Boss Only Hires Friends | Office Horror Stories

    A podcast sharing true horror stories from the workplace, with a call for listener reviews and a segment on dealing with a manager who only hires friends.

    Nov 26, 2019·43m
  50. 50

    Crazy As F Boss | Workplace Nightmare Stories

    A podcast sharing true, frightening stories from people's workplace experiences, with this episode featuring a call for reviews and a teaser about a typical bad day at the office.

    Nov 14, 2019·36m