Ex-graphic design employee deletes all their work after they regularly worked 60 hr/week with no overtime, had their work stolen: 'I just nuked all my design assets'

Author image for JR Atkinson
JR Atkinson • Writer and Editor
May 5, 2025 12:00 PM EDT

When you're an entry-level employee, it can feel like you have little to no control over what kind of job you're going to get. The job market is so tough when you're starting out that it feels like you have to take any job you can get. Even if that job means long hours and little pay, there's a sense that you have to "pay your dues" when you're just starting out. But this statement can help cover up a lot of nefarious activity if you let it. Employers can easily take advantage of their employees, and it might take them a long time to realize it since they have nothing else to compare it to. 

That's the type of situation you wish you could get revenge from in hindsight, but it rarely works out that way. You usually just move on and try to learn from your mistakes. That's not what happened in this story, though. 

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  • 01

    I just nuked all my design assets after my old agency stole years of my work

    About 5 years ago I worked as a graphic designer for a boutique marketing agency. They paid me barely above minimum wage despite charging clients premium rates for my work. I was fresh out of school, desperate for experience, and they knew it. I
    via u/Meiftie
  • 02
    Cheezburger Image 10501982720
    via Unsplash+ (Getty Images)

    The image does not depict the actual subjects of the story. Subjects are models.

  • This ex-employee got the kind of revenge that anyone with a bad boss wishes they could inflict on their employer. Though it took them a while, they wielded the only leverage that they had and it proved to be devastating. Read on for the story and see what you think.

  • 03
    created hundreds of custom illustrations, logos, branding. packages, and social media templates. I regularly worked 60+ hour weeks with no overtime. My portfolio grew impressive but my bank account didn't reflect it.
    via u/Meiftie
  • 04
    The toxic workplace was next level. The creative director would criticize work in front of clients to make herself look more valuable. Account managers would promise impossible timelines without consulting me, then blame me when deadlines were missed. After a year, I gathered
    via u/Meiftie
  • 05
    my courage and asked for a raise, showing them how my designs had directly increased client retention and brought in referral business. They agreed I was "valuable" but said raises weren't in the budget. The next week, the owner bought a Tesla.
    via u/Meiftie
  • 06
    I quit two days later with no backup plan. It took months to find stable work, but I eventually landed at a company that respects my time and pays fairly. Yesterday, I discovered they were still using a portfolio site I had designed AND maintained under my personal domain. They never paid for these rights. Even worse, they were passing off newer designers' work as mine to leverage my reputation with former clients.
    via u/Meiftie
  • 07
    So I took screenshots as evidence, downloaded everything for my records, and deleted the entire site. I also changed all passwords and revoked their access to the premium font libraries I'd purchased with my own money. They're going to wake up to broken links, missing assets, and a lot of explaining to do to their clients. LL F around and find out.
    via u/Meiftie
  • 08

    Commenters swooped in to congratulate them on their revenge victory.

    henrycaoimhe ⚫ 2d ago Good on you! Stinks that you now have to rebuild your portfolio on a new site. Since your contract said you retained rights to all the material that you created on your own time, I wonder if they will be in violation of
    via u/henrycaoimhe
  • 09
    contract or guilty of intellectual property theft. It might be worth keeping track of things like the hours it takes you to rebuild a new site, changes in website traffic, etc. in case that could support a future claim.
    via u/henrycaoimhe
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    voxam72 2d ago . It might not be too late to report them to the labor department for unpaid OT. You don't always need to sue for that.
    via u/voxam72
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    PurplePufferPea • 2d ago It sounds like you have a potential lawsuit on your hands. Please tell me you are consulting a lawyer!!! And the Budget excuse drives me NUTS!!! It's amazing how company's never have "budget" to pay
    via u/PurplePufferPea
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    an employee what they're worth, but they always seem to have money to take care of the top guys. And they wonder why there is no company loyalty any longer.... That's why I say to NEVER take a counter-offer, because all that says is there was budget to pay you all along but they CHOSE NOT TO!!!!
    via u/PurplePufferPea
  • 13
    Cheezburger Image 10501982976
    via Unsplash+ (Getty Images)

    The image does not depict the actual subjects of the story. Subjects are models.

  • 14
    smegmaboi420 .2d ago If your company doesn't have the budget to pay its workers what they deserve, the company is a failed business. It is a failure, and has no right to exist because it cannot stand on its merits. But that's not true. It has the money. It would rather just not pay you. Remember that everybody.
    via u/smegmaboi420
  • 15
    unnameableway · 2d ago. Amazing. Great job.
    via u/unnameableway
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    CO_Renaissance_Man • 2d ago . Good for you. Have you thought about a legal challenge?
    via u/CO_Renaissance_Man
  • 17
    Meiftie OP 2d ago I've thought about legal action, but not sure if it's worth the stress. I have all the evidence saved just in case. Honestly, watching them panic when they discover everything's gone might be satisfaction enough though I am curious if they'll try contacting me when they realize what happened...
    via u/Meiftie
  • 18
    . RanisTheSlayer 2d ago You were making just above minimum wage and they weren't paying you overtime? That's extremely illegal.
    via u/RanisTheSlayer
  • 19
    Glitter_puke. 2d ago I worked for an absolutely toxic design agency. Designers were classed as "salaried exempt" meaning they didn't get OT. I think we gave them comp time but I'm 6 years removed from that job.
    via u/Glitter_puke
  • 20
    obtuse- 2d ago • Sounds like you may have a suit. Might be a good idea to talk to a lawyer. Stealing intellectual property is a no- no.
    via u/obtuse-_
  • 21
    greeneyedguru. 2d ago You should delete this, and hire a lawyer. Even assuming what you did was completely legal and within your rights, you still might get sued and have to prove all of this in court to avoid having to compensate them or worse.
    via u/greeneyedguru
  • 22
    You also want someone who's detached that can negotiate on your behalf if the company decides they want to resolve things amicably and continue using your name/assets/etc.
    via u/greeneyedguru
  • 23
    Soggy-Isopod9681 · 2d ago Just as long as it is your intellectual property on YOUR system or a system that you pay for that isn't your former company, you might be fine.
    via u/Soggy-Isopod9681
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    Otherwise, you committed a possible civil or criminal offense. Your work product becomes the property of your employer unless you have it in an employment contract that states otherwise.
    via u/Soggy-Isopod9681
  • 25
    whatacatch_nat • 2d ago . As a graphic designer, I love this for you. Unfortunately, when I was fired, I asked if I could get my work and they said "We'll work something out." I tried to go home to log in to get my files, and they already kicked me out.
    via u/whatacatch_nat
  • 26
    Well they asked for some stuff back (a dual monitor plug-in and a laptop charger), and I told them I would be happy to send the stuff back if they gave me a written reference (because my work was perfect, according to them). They didn't respond.
    via u/whatacatch_nat
  • 27
    I didn't send the stuff back for over a year. I still have a Time Machine with 95% of my work on it, so I was able to get my work back. They were dumb enough to not even remember they gave. me a Time Machine. But if they ask for it back, I'll gladly give it back ;)
    via u/whatacatch_nat
  • 28
    I didn't send the stuff back for over a year. I still have a Time Machine with 95% of my work on it, so I was able to get my work back. They were dumb enough to not even remember they gave me a Time Machine. But if they ask for it back, I'll gladly give it back ;)
    via u/whatacatch_nat
  • 29
    Oh and they also underpaid me as well. They basically started detailing any tiny mistake I would make because I asked for a raise after being there for a year. I guess instead of talking like adults, they plotted to fire me behind my back for asking to be paid fairly.
    via u/whatacatch_nat

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