Link: https://old.reddit.com/r/antiwork/comments/1vp0jpm/girlboss_hr_director_was_rude_and_dismissive_to/

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The original was posted on /r/antiwork by /u/Depressionade97 on 2026-08-15 11:34:59+00:00.

Long story short, the senior HR director at my company was incredibly rude to me (28F) in a managers' call (this is the local chapter of an international company, and she was hired to build the HR department for it. I am based in a South Asian country)

So it started with HR making a policy change that would see a one-week deduction in the amount of paid sick leaves employees get annually. I have chronic pain and migraines so those sick leaves were very important to me.

I brought it up in a meeting with other local managers and her, and she immediately became defensive. Said that i should rethink my mindset and stop counting PTOs, said that if I was really sick I should just take my casuals instead. She asked why my team even needs so many sick days and that if i would just encourage them to take more annuals they would not get sick so much. She bulldozed the conversation and did not let me respond, I had to interrupt her to get in a word. And best part, she refused to say the sick leave had been deducted and kept saying "the PTO policies have been aligned with applicable frameworks" lol whatever that means. All this was said in an angry and dismissive tone by the way. In the end she said "lets move on because sick leave is not that important to the agenda of the meeting"

I was so upset after this incident, I had to log off for the day to get my head in order. I have to note here that my direct reports are lovely, I am good at my job and i need the money, so i cannot quit. But I know that reporting this incident to anyone is only going to land me in more trouble. She is an industry veteran (although people in the local industry know this is what she's like). However, in front of the international leadership she is calm, composed and the picture of professionalism.

I am neurodivergent and was promoted in a managerial role last year. Playing the corporate game is very difficult for me because i physically cannot speak this kind of language nor can my mind comprehend it.

The worst part is that she pushes herself as a "women supporting women" person. She runs a women's network and organizes all these "women's meetings". What a joke. This isn't even the first time she's done something like this towards me, although in the past it has never been this obvious.

I honestly don't know how to deal with this. I think i mostly wanted to vent but any advice or suggestions would be appreciated!