>To quit would have been a bad idea. It looks very bad on a CV. In the UK you are told that you shouldn't criticise a former employer, no matter what. I don't

>To quit would have been a bad idea. It looks very bad on a CV. In the UK you are told that you shouldn't criticise a former employer, no matter what. I don't think anyone should ever let fear of having a gap in their CV keep them in a job which they would otherwise quit. It should be possible to talk about why you left without being critical (saying you didn't "fit in" would be a non-judgemental way of explaining it). If it looks like you're avoiding being critical a good interviewer will understand and as long as you're honest and can talk about it confidently they'll give more weight to your skills than anything else. It's worth rehearsing answering the question so you can appear confident. I've had to explain gaps in my CV where I've been unemployed for months (including a year out to work on a side project that went nowhere but which ultimately help me get my previous job as I was able to demonstrate my skill and bring in printed code listings to the interview). I've gradually worked my way up to a job where I've very happy with what I'm working on and have the skills and confidence to know I could get a good job quickly if I ever had to move on. > The finance manager said that I shouldn't be aggressive at work, because I could be put on some sort of "employment blacklist", which would mean that I would never get a job ever again. That was almost certainly a lie. They might have complained to an agency if you were working for one but they were probably more afraid of you telling someone about all the bad practice there than you were afraid of them. If this was fairly recent and you think it is still going on you might want to consider finding out if there is any regulator body you could make an (anonymous if you prefer) complaint against them. I hope you find/have found work and employers that suit your ambitions.