I recently lost my job at a local publishing house where I worked as an administrative assistant after graduating with my MSc in engineering. I took the position in November 2024, viewing it as a temporary role while I searched for something more aligned with my qualifications. The owner of the company was an 88-year-old man who struggled with basic technology and had unrealistic expectations of our work. He often made vague requests and was resistant to any suggestions for improvement, even when our productivity increased significantly. The incident that led to my dismissal involved a paper submitted by a professor who was a long-time friend of the owner. I rejected the paper because it didn't fit the journal's scope, which was focused on engineering, and the paper was overly theoretical without the necessary sections. This rejection upset the owner, who insisted that I forward the paper to him, but I couldn't because it had been automatically removed from our system. Despite my explanations, he ultimately decided to fire me on the spot, stating that he had no choice due to the relationship with the professor. It's frustrating to have lost my job over a decision I believed was in line with our editorial standards.