Employee pressured to keep working after not receiving compensation for 2 pay cycles, maliciously complies with boss's orders: 'The work I perform reflects the pay you provide'

Ben Weiss • Writer and Editor

Oct 17, 2025 4:00 PM EDT

Imagine having the audacity to compel your already overworked employee to apply himself after he hadn't received compensation for two pay cycles.

First of all, it's a huge red flag when a business owner cannot pay their employees on time. There better be a valid reason for it to happen once. If it happens twice, you should know that it's already time to start looking for better opportunities elsewhere.

Let's be real: paying your employees is literally the most important part of a business owner's responsibilities as an employer of others. Not everyone can afford to miss multiple pay cycles and trust that the money is on its way. People have families to feed and rent to pay. Part of being an employer is understanding the plight of the people who work for you, and yes, that does mean their basic responsibilities outside of the workplace as well.

This employee decided he wasn't going to apply himself when his boss was not doing his own part as a responsible manager. Keep scrolling below for the full story and for the best reactions from members of this online community.

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What's remarkable is that this boss actually expected his team of employees to take him seriously after he clearly messed up the billing process two times in a row. That is either a sign of gross incompetence or extreme financial instability, which of course, is even worse.
Hopefully, several other team members are following in the author's footsteps and are using their company time to apply for other jobs. It's what this business deserves at the end of the day.
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"Company wants me to keep working despite not paying me for a month?"

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