Finding the key to a healthy work-life balance seems like the quest of this century. Whether it’s checking your email on a weekend or losing track of the hours working from home, professional life often finds a way to seep into our personal one. That’s why it’s important to draw clear boundaries of what simply won’t do when it comes to work.

That’s exactly what TikToker ‘laurenn_morgann’ did during a phone interview for a 9-5 job. At the very end of the call, the potential employer presented certain specifics regarding the schedule and their email policy. After hearing them, the New Yorker didn’t think twice before giving them her final answer. Scroll down to find Lauren Ann’s video and the full story in her own words, as well as Bored Panda’s interview with her below.

Finding a healthy work-life balance is not an easy task, which is way some people are not willing to bend over backward for a job

Image credits: Anna Shvets (not the actual photo)

New Yorker Lauren Ann spoke about the unreasonable work conditions a company presented to her during a phone interview

I’m sorry, but I have to share this. So I just got off of a phone screening for a job. Okay, first of all, the guy was really, really nice. He was really nice. So we’re talking about the job and he, you know, asks about ‘your qualification, expectations for the job.’  You know, ‘what are you looking for?’, basically.

We get to the very end,  and he’s like, ‘Yeah, so I do just want to let you know, this is five days a week in the office. And you need to be making sure that you’re still checking your emails once you get home and just following up with people, and also you do need to be in the office one day over the weekend, so Saturday or Sunday.’

Image credits: laurenn_morgann

No, no. He’s like, ‘So what are your thoughts on that?’ Literally, I just go, ‘Yeah, so I’m feeling like with the salary and not really having any work/life balance, being that it is a six-day work week, and still having to, you know, do my job when I get home, it’s just not aligned. But I really hope that you find what you’re looking for.’

Image credits: laurenn_morgann

The woman’s video quickly went viral and reached over 620k TikTok users

@laurenn_morgann Then employers are like why doesnt Gen Z want to work a 9-5?!! like this is why. #jobsearch #9to5 #interview #worklifebalance #foryoupage ♬ original sound – laurenn_morgann

The young woman was far from impressed by the idea of working six days a week and also in the evenings

Image credits: Firmbee.com (not the actual photo)

Lauren Ann felt the conditions the interviewer described were nonsensical, considering the requirements and the reimbursement. Most of the TikTokers in the comments sided with her on that; it’s likely some of them have walked a mile in her shoes before.

“I spoke publicly about this topic because I know that there are so many people out there who share a similar experience with feeling undervalued by employers,” Lauren Ann told Bored Panda.

“The reality is, having a 9-5 corporate job is not as rewarding as it once was. Many individuals, myself included, have gone on to higher education, which has put us in debt. Then once we are job searching, the only options are jobs that offer a very poor salary that isn’t sustainable and the work that is asked of us isn’t aligned.”

Even with all that in mind, the pay itself wasn’t the main problem in the story. The concerning part was the amount of time the potential employer expected her to spend working for that pay. A six day workweek sounds rough enough, not to mention the additional time spent checking email after hours.

A long workweek can have a negative impact, not only on employee’s work-life balance but on their well-being as well

Image credits: Ephraim Mayrena (not the actual photo)

A person in the comments pointed out that at least the interviewer was being upfront about the longer workweek. For some people, the typical five days often extend after they’ve been there long enough to start accumulating overtime. Statistics from 2021 show that workers collect over 9 hours of overtime each week, which is nearly two hours/week more than it was one year ago.

Considering that a typical work week usually lasts five days, one more round of 9-5 turns it into six, which, according to Business Insider, is a terrible idea. It pointed out that not only does it leave less time for personal life, but it also negatively affects the person’s health and mental well-being. To make matters worse, working more hours a week can have an adverse effect on vocabulary and reasoning.

That might be one of the reasons some places around the world tried implementing a four-day workweek. Euronews covered some countries giving the shorter week a go and how that went for them. For example, people in the UK deemed it a success, while Swedes had their doubts. In Iceland, which was the first to try it out (in the period of 2015-2019), a four-day week brought positive results, such as less stress and burnout for employees, and a better work-life balance.

Lauren Ann believes there are ways to create a healthy work-life balance; however, people often have to jump through hoops to do it as well

During the phone interview, Lauren Ann politely told the interviewer that the position was not for her. She saw that maintaining a healthy work-life balance is nearly impossible under such conditions.

The TikToker told Bored Panda what she considers to be the biggest struggles when it comes to creating such balance: “The biggest obstacle that stands in the way of work-life balance is the structure of the typical job. It’s 5 days a week from 9-5. We wake up, go to work, leave and have a couple of hours to ourselves, go to bed, then repeat.

“Another obstacle is the overall narrative of our culture that if you don’t dedicate your life to hustling and working, you’re the problem and you’re lazy. Those two are the biggest obstacles,” she added.

She also shared her views on what could help people overcome hurdles when it comes to professional and personal lives: “In my opinion, the best way to have a healthy work-life balance is for people to find careers that they love or to start your own business. We’re told to get jobs where we have bosses, and it is harder to find out what you want to do. However, I believe that if people were less fearful of taking risks in their career and invested in themselves, there’s a higher chance of building the work/life you desire.”

Image credits: Vojtech Okenka (not the actual photo)

People were understandably curious about what the position was

Viewers didn’t hold back their opinions, a lot of them were disappointed or outraged by the ridiculous conditions

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