I'm scared of my boss. She belittles me in front of others, calls me names, will ignore me for days, withholding information related to my job, then scold me when I do not complete something on time. She slams doors in my face, she slams her firsts on the desk, she slams phones down, she slams books down. She rolls her eyes, she laughs if I look like I might cry. She accuses me of doing things I've not done, or accuses me of not doing things that I have done then yells "NO" if I try to defend myself. She makes Glen Close look like a gem in the Devil Wears Prada. She treats others this way too. She throws temper tantrums in public. She's getting worse. I know I know, why have I not quit, I'm looking for other jobs, it's just slim pickings for someone with my level of student loan dept.

I'm getting called into the HR office because I've stopped saying sorry for everything. I read that women say sorry too much so I'm trying to stop. Anyway, I would like to meet with HR without my boss there so that I can be more honest. I'm too scared to really list everything that I'm stressing out about in front of my boss. I know I'm going to cry and my boss will use it as ammo against me later, "remember that time you cried?" I tried to go to HR once before about all this but my boss was there and she became angry that I'd not said something to her first. As I stated, I'm scared of my boss and about the retaliation that may occur.

No one around here goes to HR problems about their supervisor because the HR person will call the supervisor up on the phone after the meeting to complain that someone is complaining. Then the supervisor retaliates against the employee filing the complaint by making their life awful.

I did not call this meeting, my supervisor did. I'd like for someone other than my boss to be in the meeting so that I can speak freely.

If you feel this way, then why on earth are you still working there ! I would never ever work under those conditions. For NO amount of pay. You are not in an honest environment and their HR department must be a total laugh and useless as last week's newspaper.

I know this doesn't answer your question but if they are all corrupt then what is the point!

Well yes... if its employer related your boss/supervisor IS going to be involved.

Can't stand your boss?. transfer to a different department of find another employer otherwise learn to live with them. Sorry... that's harsh and I'm going to be blunt... but you either suck it up... and live with it, or you suck it up and find another job.

I've left jobs because my supervisor was not treating me the way I felt I deserved... and it was the best thing I ever did.

First, Meryl Streep was the boss in The Devil Wears Prada, not Glenn Close.

But whether your boss needs to be part of a meeting with HR is up to company policy. Did you request that your boss not be involved? Or did you ask that someone other than your boss or HR participate? Is there only one HR person?

If you fear anyone at work and cry easily, you shouldn't be working there. The meeting isn't going to change ANYTHING (unless it gets worse). Just go and deal with what happens.
Look at it this way: you are a wreck. How do you expect to get another job?
Better to starve for a while, not buy anything but groceries and rent, so you can regroup and regain some confidence.
Confidence sometimes includes indignation and ANGER.
Crying brings out double meanness in some people.
It's doomed there.

I will be a little more harsh, you need to be strong and hard. Tell your boss in no uncertain terms, that this will stop and stop now.

Report the behavior, not only to HR, make a list, like this, and demand that the boss be the one investigated. Also send a copy to the higher up boss.
This was the way management worked 50 years ago but not today, Unless you leave in a 3rd world nation.

I personally, if my boss slammed their fist on my desk, I would slam mine and say, "what do you want".

If he starts to tell negative things about you, in front of you, stop him, tell him this is not proper and then take your phone out to record what he says.

You have to stop thinking, and acting like a victim.