36-year-old medical receptionist finds out the 19-year-old new hire is earning more than her, spreads the news to her underpaid coworkers and quits: ‘My mind was blown.’

Author image for Elna McHilderson
Elna McHilderson • Managing Editor
Jan 28, 2026 8:00 PM EST

This woman, working the job of three employees, was certainly not getting paid enough. They finally hired a new person, but this new employee was only 19 years old with zero experience. However, guess who was getting paid more?

Yep! The literal teenager… This woman, a 36-year-old employee who has been there for years, was getting paid less than this new hire, who was fresh out of college. She could not believe it. Sure, she probably should have asked for a raise sooner, but this was still mind-blowing to her. The outright disrespect had gone too far. 

She sat down and immediately messaged her manager, where she gave her an ultimatum: give her a pay raise or she walks. The manager pushed back and, instead, reprimanded her for discussing salaries at all. (Red flag!) Eventually, the manager budged and brought her pay up to the same as the 19-year-old and promised to hire another so she wouldn't be doing the job of three people. 

But the damage was already done…

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  • 36-year-old medical receptionist finds out the 19-year-old new hire is earning more than her, spreads the news to her underpaid coworkers and quits: ‘My mind was blown.’
    via Unsplash+ (and Getty Images)

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

  • She agreed to this at first, mostly because she just wanted to move forward. However, the disrespect from her higher-ups continued after that. This was not the 19-year-old's fault, this was poor management. 
     

    She tried to continue to do her job the best that she could, but she was still being punished for calling out how she was being grossly underpaid. Finally, things had just simply gone too far. 

  • "AITAH for emailing my boss and giving her an ultimatum?!?"

    So backstory... 36(f), work in a medical office doing insurance, intake, and playing receptionist. Our practice is big enough where there is supposed to be 3 people doing my job, but the head receptionist quit and they refuse to hire anyone else.
    via KoalaHoala
  • So I'm doing it all for maybe 4-5 months now. They finally bring someone in to train, but sadly it is for another location.
    via KoalaHoala
  • Let's call her Julie. We get to talking and she is 19 and has only worked as a seasonal cashier at Target.
    via KoalaHoala
  • Somehow we got on the subject of pay which you should never do, but she was talking about the pay she got at Target then the pay she was starting out at my job.
    via KoalaHoala
  • Julie was making more than me. My mind was blown. I had more years experience than this girl had fingers plus I had been doing the work of multiple people for months without getting paid or even a thank you from the higher ups.
    via KoalaHoala
  • Yes, I understand I should of controlled my rage a little more, but the build up from months finally just popped.
    via KoalaHoala
  • I emailed my head boss...I told her I have been working for months doing multiple jobs, only to have someone with less experience be hired on making more than me doing less work.
    via KoalaHoala
  • I told her I wanted a pay raise or I would be resigning. AITAH for demanding a pay raise?
    via KoalaHoala
  • UPDATE: Thank you to everyone who commented because this has been weighing on my shoulders heavily.
    via KoalaHoala
  • I have a few updates for you ...So this happened a little over two weeks ago.
    via KoalaHoala
  • 1st: My boss called me the next day saying it was unprofessional for coworkers to talk about their pay and we should be working instead of slacking off.
    via KoalaHoala
  • Also, because of my experience and what I have done for the company she increased my pay to what Julie was making and they have hired a new employee for my location starting the following week.
    via KoalaHoala
  • I told her that was agreeable. 2nd:1 have an interview at a hospital next week making more than I am now with more benefits.
    via KoalaHoala
  • 3rd:Somehow my email or upset spread throughout the company including other locations. I don't know if when Julie went to her location, she said something or the higher up I emailed did.
    via KoalaHoala
  • Occasionally I have to call other offices about patients or get help on things. Whenever I would, I would be questioned about it, laughed at for doing something so bold, or I noticed my work emails would be left on read and I was constantly left on hold.
    via KoalaHoala
  • My head manager just completely stopped talking to me and answering my calls even when I sent her 911 texts.
    via KoalaHoala
  • 4th:I resigned. I have enough saved up to last me until can find another job.
    via KoalaHoala
  • F them.
    via KoalaHoala
  • 36-year-old medical receptionist finds out the 19-year-old new hire is earning more than her, spreads the news to her underpaid coworkers and quits: ‘My mind was blown.’
    via Unsplash+ (and MedicAlert UK)

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

  • After just several days, she turned in her resignation. She said she had enough and was ready to move on without them. Currently, she has enough savings to last her until she gets a new job. 

    However, her quitting started a ripple effect, and now other employees are starting to figure out that they are being grossly underpaid. She sure left a fire as she quit, but we are here for it! 

  • NTA VarnishedTruths Obviously, you shouldn't have to even ask for the raise, but welcome to capitalism I guess. Also, this part: >we got on the subject of pay which you should never do You should always always always be happy to talk pay with your coworkers. The idea that it's not acceptable is how places get away with this kind of BS in the first place!
    via VarninshedTruths
  • Ok-Pin-6955 NTA, you're either 1. going to get the raise you so deserve or 2. FIRED. It's a 50/50 shot lol, I'd be looking for work if I were you. Not to mention that they will probably fire Julie as well. So yeah, maybe not the wisest choice. But you're doing the right thing standin up for yourself & your worth.
    via Ok-Pin-6955
  • Mannahnin You're NTA but you may have been foolish in how you went about this, emailing out of the blue rather than requesting a sober sit-down meeting where you make the case and provide data about how underpaid you are. Sounds like you've been taken advantage of (and I can see why, with you repeating that exploitive "got on the subject of pay which you should never do" nonsense), and you're going to be lucky to get properly compensated by this place.
    via Mannahnin
  • loki2002 >Somehow we got on the subject of pay which you should never do You should always talk about pay with coworkers. The only people that think otherwise are employers that want to take advantage of you and bootlickers. You are NTA.
    via loki2002
  • Icy-Talk-5141 You're not the asshole for wanting fair pay for your experience and workload, however it would've been better to schedule a meeting with higher-ups to discuss your pay rather than an ultimatum right off the bat. I hope it works out for you regardless, and give an update on what happens if you can!
    via Icy-Talk-5142
  • Salt_Evidence_9878 There's 0 reason you can't discuss pay. Employers just don't like employees discussing pay for this exact reason. Employees should 100% talk about pay between each other, power in numbers. There's absolutely nothing illegal about discussing pay. It's usually just "Discouraged" or they say something like "Don't discuss pay" in a handbook. If they were to fire you or Julie over the discussion of pay that's just discrimination, you (and her) can fight that.
    via Salt_Evidence_9878
  • BulbasaurRanch This is probably the worst possible way to go about this. Good luck with your upcoming job search!
    via BulbasaurRanch
  • cincyaudiodude Just a reminder, you absolutely SHOULD talk about your pay with your coworkers. There's a reason why that is a federally protected right. The only person who wins when you refuse to discuss salary is the company who is actively trying to fuck over their employees. NTA, hold them to account.
    via cincyaudiodude
  • Equivalent Lemon_319 Oof. You're NTA but that was also the wrong play. You will most likely be fired at the earliest opportunity.
    via Equivalent_Lemon_319
  • yakkerswasneverhere You can't treat professional relationships the same as personal ones. This should have been handled with a calmer head.
    via yakkerswasneverhere

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management coworkers medical receptionist resigning pay raise workplace quitting
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