SINGAPORE: A workplace dispute shared online has reignited conversation about onboarding and mentorship in Singapore, after a newly hired employee claimed her first weeks on the job were made miserable by a mentor with little patience for beginners.
Sharing her experience on the r/asksg Reddit forum, the Singaporean employee said she was effectively thrown into the role without proper training, despite the job involving unfamiliar systems and a completely new scope of work.
“There was no system of teaching at all. I was expected to know things my mentor said once, and if I made a mistake, she would get so mad,” the employee wrote on Wednesday (Dec 17). “I also do have a serious case of short-term memory, so I would write down what she taught me, but sometimes it’s just impossible to record it all.”
She went on to share that whenever she made a mistake, her mentor would ‘let out a big sigh’ or react in a way that made it clear she was unhappy, leaving her constantly on edge.
Noticing how she was struggling in her early days, the hiring manager, whose desk was directly behind hers, stepped in to offer advice and support.
“He pulled me into a room and asked me how my day was. I told him what was going on. I was then told my mentor is like this to everyone. He then gave me a few suggestions to improve my work, and I followed.”
Although her performance improved slightly over the next few days, she said the mentor continued to be harsh. On one occasion, after the hiring manager had left for the day, the mentor allegedly told her, “Stop wasting my time, and maybe you should consider another line of work.”
Feeling unsure of how to handle the situation, she turned to Reddit for advice: “I have a 4-month probation, and if anyone has any suggestions on how to deal with this, please let me know! I like the environment a lot, and I’m afraid I’ll fail my probation due to her ‘hating’ me.”
“Focus on improving your work, not her attitude.”
In the comments, one Singaporean Redditor bluntly suggested she consider leaving her job. “Sorry to say, you should find a job somewhere else. If you’re expected to perform like a pro the first day/first time round, then why need probation, and for 4 months at that?” they wrote.
Another individual shared, “My ex-boss was like this, and I left. I would suggest you look for other opportunities while you continue with this mentor from hell.”
“I remember my ex-boss kept telling me off for no reason, and I wasn’t even in the wrong, and I just told her point-blank. She just went, ‘Oh,’ and went quiet, never picked on me again until I left that lord-forsaken place.”
Others, however, advised her to stay, suggesting she focus on learning and not let one difficult person derail her progress.
One said, “There’s often not much luxury in the workplace in proper training guides, and oftentimes you may meet a mentor who’s impatient. If you really like this job, be thick- skinned and just focus on improving your work, not her attitude. The fact that they hired you means they see your skills and potential. Keep an open mind and always seek to learn from colleagues other than your mentor. Jiayou!”
A fourth added, “Don’t be too worried about your probation. Just do your best to note everything that your mentor told you, and do an end-of-day reflection before you sleep or something. Pretty sure you will be 1% every day if you follow this.”
In other news, a Singaporean woman is receiving a wave of praise online after she stepped in to help a distressed foreign worker who was stranded at Bugis MRT station.
In a post on Threads, the woman, who goes by the username ‘syiatootie’, shared that she first noticed the man standing by the gantry, visibly shaken and “crying” as he tried to get the attention of passing commuters. Concerned, she approached him to ask what had happened.
According to her, the worker explained through tears that the lorry transporting his team had driven off without him, leaving him stranded in Bugis with no way to get back.
