What’s done is done. But it would be smart to write a letter to your manager explaining that you’ve learned from the situation and that you appreciate the oppor

What’s done is done. But it would be smart to write a letter to your manager explaining that you’ve learned from the situation and that you appreciate the opportunity they gave you and are sorry that you squandered it. The manager's decision to fire the interns was entirely within their right and the interns should have seen it as a possibility, even if it was a little extreme. But even though it has essentially no bearing on what happened, the interns were in the right. They saw unfairness in the office, confronted the superior about it, and were ignored. Obviously management needs to protect the privacy of the injured employee, but for the sake of dignity and good communication, they could have at least said "that person has a special circumstance which warrants an exception". Their reaction to being ignored violated social conventions, but was a civil, meaningful expression of dissatisfaction. The quote above takes the wrong lesson from this story. It encourages apologizing for organizing the petition, but they absolutely shouldn't apologize, because they were in the right. Unless they want to try to still get a good reference out of this employer (which would be characteristically naive), they have no reason to pander. Instead, they should thank the manager for giving them a reality check about how business operates, while holding firm to their convictions. It would take care to not come across as passive-aggressive, but full repentance would only serve to reinforce the manager's authoritarian tendencies.