‘I doubled my income leaving’: Guy calls out his ex-employer for offering poverty wages to new hires after complaining that ‘nobody wants to work anymore’

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Jesse Kessenheimer • Writer and Editor
Jan 3, 2024 10:00 AM EST

It's no secret that minimum wage has been nearly the same for decades, except all of our expenses are getting exponentially higher. Back in the 80's a mom could buy a haul of groceries to feed a family of 4 for a week for $20 and now, couples with only a cat to care for are spending 10x that amount just for basics at Trader Joe's. Hmm… Where did we go wrong here? 

As we all attempt our own ascent up the ladder of success, I can't help but wonder how much easier it would be for us folks down here on the bottom rungs if we could pay our bills with just one job. Imagine! Well, one curious worker who had successfully grown his career over the last decade recently went viral after calling out his ex-employer. Being bitten by the curiosity bug, OP investigated his first employer's desperate job listings and found the salary to be pathetically low. 

Scroll for all the details of this debaucherous tale where the little guy slays Goliath by pointing out the obvious. 

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  • 01
    "Good riddance" HELP WANTED
    via u/canva
  • 02
    r/antiwork. Posted by u/rhinocerosjockey 22 hours ago My former job has now fallen to min wage pay. For fun I looked up my former job/company I left 8 years ago. I know they've been chronically hiring and run a skeleton crew.
    via u/rhinocerosjockey
  • 03
    About 2 years ago I came across my former boss and owner of said company and she said she'd hire me back if I wanted, or if I knew anyone who could do the job. I don't dislike anyone to send them there.
    via u/rhinocerosjockey
  • 04
    So, I left 8 years ago making a few dollars an hour over minimum wage, and was frustrated they ran a skeleton crew while the owners and their kids took nice vacations often. I doubled my income leaving.
    via u/rhinocerosjockey
  • 05
    Today, 8 years later, they are now offering minimum wage to do the job. Just $0.74/hour more than I made 8 years, because min wage has increased. They are also trying to hire an accountant for the office at $0.24/hour more than minimum wage.
    via u/rhinocerosjockey
  • 06
    I do hope this is a death rattle for the company if that's all they are willing to pay. The job requires some industry knowledge and some skill to do (and they want you to have that already), for minimum wage. I'd rather do just about anything else for the same money.
    via u/rhinocerosjockey
  • 07
    And the parents, and their kids are "no one wants to work anymore" folks. Each of their kids had over had over $100,000 in vehicles (plural) each, and would try to convince you they worked for, and earned them without their parents help, at 16-17 yrs old. Good riddance.
    via u/rhinocerosjockey
  • 08
    parkesc. 22 hr. ago Well, they're not entirely wrong. No one wants to work - FOR THEM. 863 Reply Share rhinocerosjockey OP. 22 hr. ago You are not wrong. I have so many horror stories from that place. There are several competitors locally but the industry is relatively small, everyone knows everyone type of thing. I suspect they've burned up and burned through anyone in the area also qualified to do the job.
    via u/parkesc
  • 09
    Supergoid 17 hr. ago Go into business as a competitor with them? Pay 25% over min wage, hire out all their staff from under them??
    via u/Superg0id
  • 10
    cwk84 - 19 hr. ago I always find it funny when my low wage co workers complain about people not wanting to work anymore. Like are you not realizing you're the J bottom of the barrel because they want you there and now you're going on about the ppl who finally said enough is enough and demand better wages as an incentive to go to work?
    via u/cwk84
  • 11
    flavius lacivious 20 hr. ago I think the big disconnect is that people assume a business that is still operating is successful and that success is entirely the result of smart decisions, therefore management or owners aren't stupid.
    via u/flavius_lacivious
  • 12
    I have seen incredibly dumb decisions. For example, if a company has an employee who is productive and the work they produce generates many times their wages, then the smart decision is to keep that employee and pay them slightly more than they can get on the market - as long as they continue to generate much more revenue than they cost. Why?
    via u/flavius_lacivious
  • 13
    Because replacing an employee is significantly higher than the raises you give them. That also assumes that the new hire will produce to same results, will stay, and you can find this person. Many companies don't factor in how much they are losing by not having a trained employee in that seat. They don't realize that a new hire drags down productivity for months.
    via u/flavius_lacivious
  • 14
    But what employers don't understand is that by not giving raises and keeping trained staff, they are creating needless problems for the organization. That means that all the creativity and talent is now focused on replacing an employee who would have stayed for as little as $1500 a year instead of the organization fully focused on generating revenue, attracting new customers, innovating, or solving more expensive problems.
    via u/flavius_lacivious
  • 15
    In many cases, it would be far better to give an employee a $2k bonus at the end of the year (meaning it pays to stay to the end) and use the managements time to lower the $5k a month utilities. The issue is that payroll is a big number on the P&L and it's easy to think that by getting rid of Dave at $18 an hour to hire someone else at $16 an hour will fall to the bottom line.
    via u/flavius_lacivious
  • 16
    No, the real problem is that decision- makers equate low paid positions as low skilled and anyone can do it. This is rarely the case. It's only low paid because they don't value that position's contribution to the company and don't realize it until they are gone.
    via u/flavius_lacivious
  • 17
    The unfortunate fact is that management's poor decisions take months to impact the organization. I can guarantee you that almost all corporate train wrecks can be traced back to not valuing talent or listening to good advice months or even years earlier.
    via u/flavius_lacivious
  • 18
    spinonesarethebest. 18 hr. ago One of the best bosses I ever worked for told me his theory about employees. "Hire good people, do what it takes to keep them happy, and stay out of the way while they make you money."
    via u/spinonesarethebest
  • 19
    rhinocerosjockey OP. 19 hr. ago Bingo. And I'm preparing to leave my current job too. Since I started here, they took away my company car (it now sits in the parking lot and gets driven once a month or so), They got rid of what used to be a $5k - $6k year-end bonus, and I haven't received a pay raise since late '19. I stayed much longer than I should have.
    via u/rhinocerosjockey
  • 20
    Lynx3145 17 hr. ago Minimum wage = minimum effort 13 Reply Share corneliusduff - 21 hr. ago Not you, me or anyone else wants to subsidize their kids' fancy- minimum wage garages for
    via u/Lynx3145
  • 21
    railworx 18 hr. ago . They'll get the quality of people that goes for that level of wage. 63 Reply Share cwk84 19 hr. ago em I hope they go under
    via u/railworx
  • 22
    Opinionsare 13 hr. ago You just showed eight years of wage stagnation. Inflation for the last eight years is at least 25%. How are people going to be able to afford their Pumpkin Spice Latte and avocado toast?
    via u/Opinionsare

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salary boss worker antiwork wage theft employee income manager job work coworkers working ex wages ex company ceo employees minimum wage supervisor workplace Reddit company coworker business hires
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