After one woman discovered that she had one of her bosses' least favorite types of hearing aid, she was able to turn an illegally hostile work environment into a perfect demonstration of the power of malicious compliance.
For those who are unfamiliar, the term usually refers to a reaction somebody has when faced with a policy at work that clearly won't make anything easier, but that the boss insists on for whatever reason. So rather than keep trying to fight it, some workers will find a clever way to follow it to the letter and let the disaster that they're anticipating unfold on its own.
And while it usually serves to make the management regret the lengths they went to enforce a petty power trip, the right kind of malicious compliance can also make problem customers realize they aren't always right.
It's always satisfying to see a beleaguered employee use a stupid policy to their advantage, but it takes on a more cathartic context in a recent story from a woman with a hearing condition.
That's because she found a way to get the accommodation that never should have been called into question in the first place.
