‘Now they'll have to pay 50% more to replace me’: Tech manager tries to negotiate a lower raise with their star employee, only for her to resign and score a senior position elsewhere

Author image for Lana DeGaetano
Lana DeGaetano • "Show me to me please."
Nov 1, 2025 1:00 PM EDT

In the workplace, it's essential to know your worth; coworkers and higher-ups are always hoping for your downfall.

Luckily, younger generations are leading the crusade in fighting against toxic workplace practices and vindictively advantageous work peers. You can be the most skillful, charismatic, and holistically good employee, and the only thing that bosses give back to you is a pat on the back and more work to complete before EOD. What happened to monetary merit raises? Promotions? It seems like those practices don't exist anymore, or at least, in the realm of those who actually deserve them.

The employee in the story below is a testament to knowing your worth in the workforce. She was hopeful to receive a good raise that is reflective of her hardworking, go-getter work ethic. Instead, she was met with lowball counteroffers from her boss. If you don't treat an employee well enough, they will go roaming around for greener pastures (and even greener dollar bills). All it takes is some job shopping, interviewing, and a big fat resignation that feels like a weight off your shoulders to truly show you how much you've been enduring for so long. Scroll below to read this very satisfying success story from a woman in STEM.

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  • 01
    young woman working on computer with multiple monitors in the workplace
    via Getty Images (Unsplash+)

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

  • 02

    "My manager tried to save 10-15% and haggled with me over a raise. Now they'll have to pay 50%+ more to replace me."

    I thought I'd share a nice situation that happened to me recently. It's a great feeling to stand up for yourself when your manager is being ridiculous.
    via rinks_pithy_0o
  • 03
    I work in tech, on paper as a junior, but for about a year, I've been doing work far beyond my pay grade.
    via rinks_pithy_0o
  • 04
    During my annual review, I came prepared and asked for a raise. Market research indicated that a 20% increase would be fair, but I asked for 12%, and honestly, I would have accepted anything between 8% to 12%.
    via rinks_pithy_0o
  • 05
    My manager gave me the same old story about why it couldn't happen - a cocktail of bureaucracy and canned corporate talk that was very insulting.
    via rinks_pithy_0o
  • 06
    In the end, I walked away with nothing. Of course, right after that, they started throwing more senior-level work at me, like managing the team's projects and mentoring new employees.
    via rinks_pithy_0o
  • 07
    All this while our team, which is supposed to have 4 members, was down to just me carrying the entire load.
    via rinks_pithy_0o
  • 08
    That was the final push I needed. I started testing the waters, and within a few weeks, I had interviewed with 3 different companies for a senior position.
    via rinks_pithy_0o
  • 09
    Two of them sent me offers. I accepted the better one and submitted my resignation. I wish you could have seen my manager's face then.
    via rinks_pithy_0o
  • 10
    a yellow post-it note that reads "I quit!" on top of a mechanical keyboard
    via Nick Fewings (Unsplash)
  • 11
    Suddenly, upper management panicked and scrambled to prepare a counteroffer. And the funny part? To even come close to my new salary, they would have needed to give me a raise of over 40%.
    via rinks_pithy_0o
  • 12
    Edit: Basically, they are willing to pay more to hire a new person than they are willing to pay as a raise for an existing employee.
    via rinks_pithy_0o
  • 13
    It's dumb as hell. It really is more expensive to hire new people than it is to keep existing people.
    via rinks_pithy_0o
  • 14
    Writing a job description, having multiple people disrupt their work to interview prospective candidates, onboarding the new person, and on and on are all costs.
    via rinks_pithy_0o
  • 15
    If you end up hiring the new person at a higher wage than the person who left, it's going to take quite a while to make back that cost.
    via rinks_pithy_0o
  • 16
    In addition, I was transferred to a higher job title with a salary that is appropriate for my experience over the past years.
    via rinks_pithy_0o
  • 17
    last_unsername I've never been more proud of an 4177 internet stranger. Bravo.
    via last_unsername
  • 18
    citychickindesert Good. They deserve this and you deserve to be treated better. Enjoy not looking back!!
    via citychickindesert
  • 19
    415Rache Good for you! Hearing how arrogant these folks are and how utterly unveiled and overt corporate greed has become is just too much.
    via 415Rache
  • 20
    Squeezing you for ever more output and expecting you to be happy with an almost share cropper level compensation for almost ng yourself? Do they think you will just hang in there for ever? I'm over here pumping my fist cheering your move. Bad behavior deserves consequences.
    via 415Rache
  • 21
    No_Couple7538 I'm going to live off of this for days. Get paper, babe.
    via No_Couple7538
  • 22
    NabelasGoldenCane This is so common, unfortunately! I've found that to get anything more than 5%, you'd have to be promoted, and in order to be promoted, you have to be doing that next level of work for at least a year. I also found myself in a similar position, denied raise and "didn't qualify" for bonus bc only worked 10 months out of 12.. they were shocked when I resigned for more money then hired a lesser qualified man for more money. Clowns.
    via NabelasGoldenCane

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