'Boss said I was lucky to have this job': Employee's raise gets denied outright, gets told he's "replaceable," so he puts that to the test and quits

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Ben Weiss • Writer and Editor
Aug 23, 2025 2:00 PM EDT

Everyone wants to feel valued at work, so when your boss repeatedly says that you could be replaced in a second, that has to sting after a while. Who does this guy think he is? Miranda Priestly from The Devil Wears Prada? I don't think so!

Let this story serve as a warning for any unreasonable managers out there who somehow still believe that negative reinforcement is going to make your employees work harder. If you're the type of boss who enjoys dangling the threat of termination or punitive treatment, then you just might end up like this dude. He was left scrambling for a replacement in the end after spending years making the author of this tale feel like there were a million other candidates lined up outside his office.

In truth, this guy ended up having to hire two employees to do the author's job, and neither was able to fulfill his needs. That's not because these folks were incompetent; rather, it was just proof that the author's former employer consistently made unrealistic demands in the workplace that would have the average employee scratching their heads as to how they were supposed to get everything done in time.

It's not healthy to work inside a culture where you should be grateful every day to be contributing your skillset to a company. In truth, given the fact that we now know most employees couldn't measure up to what this author was accomplishing at work, management should be grateful every day that they have the hard-working employees they do on staff. Keep scrolling below for the full story and for the best reactions from members of this online community.

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  • "Boss said I was 'lucky to have this job.' So I fixed that."

    Cheezburger Image 10545336320
    via Marten Bjork

    Image is representative only and does not depict the actual subjects of the story.

  • Thankfully, the former employee was able to find a better job offer in no time. All he needed to do was update his resume and apply to a few positions that were worth his time and energy within a week. After that, he was able to secure a stronger opportunity with a better boss and paycheck. Good luck to his former boss in finding someone as good as this author. Contrary to what he had been saying, it looks like he's going to have some trouble.

  • I worked at my old job for years, handling most of the workload for one of their biggest accounts. My boss constantly told me I was "replaceable" and that I should be grateful to even have a job there. Raises were a joke and every time I asked about growth, they brushed it off.
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  • One day I'd had enough. Updated my resume, sent out a few applications, and within a week I had an offer from a competitor. Better pay, better benefits, and way more respect.
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  • After I left, I found out through a former coworker that my old job scrambled to cover my responsibilities. They ended up having to split my work between three different people and still couldn't keep up.
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  • Meanwhile, I'm working fewer hours, getting paid more, and actually being treated like a human.
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  • Boss was right I was lucky to have that job... lucky because it pushed me to find something way better.
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  • ok-life-i-guess • 17h ago . This post may be fake but I literally watched this happen a decade ago. A coworker in another team had their yearly review, during which they were praised but given a rating just under what was necessary for a raise. When
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  • they asked why, their manager said he couldn't give them a better score because he would support no raise for his subordinates. He literally said: if you want a raise, find another job. And they did--
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  • not in a week like in this post but in a matter of a few months. When asked why they were leaving, they said because they wanted a raise and career growth. How stupid can an employer be to push their best people to resign?
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  • Cropped shot of businessman crumpling paper and pressing his hand to his face at his desk.
    via Unsplash+ (Getty Images)

    Image is representative only and does not depict the actual subjects of the story.

  • BCdelivery 11h ago . Never forget, your boss is replaceable. Sometimes you need to fire your boss. Just make sure to lay the groundwork for a soft landing for yourself beforehand,
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  • himthatspeaks 11h ago . Not fake. When someone leaves, they'll hire a couple people to replace their one person and then filter it down to the one strongest candidate that can handle everything.
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  • ShaneCanada • 15h ago . Good for you. I like reading these stories. It took me 2 years at a job I hated to get the courage to quit. Finally one day, I said "F this" and walked away. No regrets.
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  • onirasup 17h ago . Classic case of underappreciation. Always have your resume updated and network on standby. Companies often realize your value only after you're gone. Use their oversight as leverage for your next move.
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  • . Xandonge 13h ago Sometimes getting fired-up leads to getting hired-up
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  • Horror_Personalit... . 4h ago After my apprenticeship was completed I was hired by the same company I learned my trade at. Instead of being hired as a craftsman they labelled me as a helping position in the contract.
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  • When I asked why I wasn't given the proper title they said it was just a title and didn't matter much. Pay was okay for having just finished learning, but half a year in I was already responsible for jobsites and teams of 5
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  • people, all without a raise or anything. They said it's part of my job description and doesn't allow a raise at this stage (job description was basically "do all the tasks. that the trade requires").
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  • I wasn't happy, was overworked, overburdened with responsibility, so I started looking around. Then my dad got cancer, doctors said best case scenario he's got six months. Given I was working on the other side of the country I immediately quit,
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  • using up overtime and vacation days till the date of termination. I got a call from the main bureau in another state, they wanted to know my situation, immediately offered a big raise and various benefits if I decided to stay. I politely declined.
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  • Later that month the boss of the local bureau I was working for called me in, also offered me a raise, half of what the big bureau offered without him knowing. When I politely explained that it wasn't just
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  • about the money but also the ever growing stress and responsibility and it was not what I had signed for he scoffed and said "I can't remember any stressful jobs you had in the past year!" So
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  • I asked if working overtime every day and constantly being delayed with projects due to bad planning are just the regular, every day business. Man got angry, told me I should carefully consider if I really want to shut a door that might never open again. I left and haven't regretted it at all
    via CoDVETERAN11

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workplace-stories work stories toxic-workplace job i quit satisfying quitting story quitting work Horrible Bosses company money quitting employment toxic-work-environment
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