K
ristin McCarley, a single mother and real‑estate agent in East Texas, posted a TikTok clip that has since racked up 1.4 million views. In the video she shows the single, drunken text she received from her boss at 10:36 p.m. on a Saturday: “Do not come in Monday. I’ve made changes to the office. I have to let you go.” The clip ends with her scrolling to a second message sent at 1:07 a.m. that included a screenshot of a photo from her own social‑media feed, where she and a friend are smiling.

    The clip sparked a flood of comments. Some urged her to contact HR, others suggested she sue. One user wrote, “You’re about to get a Christmas blessing in the form of a lawsuit.” Another said, “Sueing time,” while a third added, “That’s so insanely unprofessional.” A fourth posted, “What? Getting fired over a drunk text? This can’t be legal.” Yet another replied, “I thought he was giving you a day off. That last line had me like ‘dayum’.”

    Workplace specialist Roxanne Calder explained that firing an employee via text is not only impersonal; it signals a broader cultural shift. “Email threads and instant messages have become the default,” she told news.com.au. “Technology can act as a shield, making people feel less accountable for their words.” Calder described this as “avoidant communication,” where the fear of confrontation overrides professional duty. “Since the pandemic, we’ve normalized distance,” she added. “When conflict is digitalized, managers treat a termination like any other task—send a message, tick it off. But a layoff is a human life, a livelihood, and it carries emotional and psychological weight.”

    She noted that similar text‑based firings and resignations have occurred before. Calder said the first step she would take if she received such a message is to bring it to HR. “It reflects a workplace culture that lacks emotional maturity,” she warned. “If this becomes the norm, we’re in big trouble.”