Company forces employees to seminar called 'Stretching Your Dollar in Tough Times' after denying real raises for 3 years

Author image for JR Atkinson
JR Atkinson • Writer and Editor
Apr 16, 2026 9:00 PM EDT

Would you take advice from your own company on how to spend your money?

Financial literacy is important. You can make all the money in the world, but if you don't know how to properly save it and invest it, then it might as well be nothing. And we aren't all born knowing how to do that. We might have to take some classes and get some advice. But you probably want to seek that out on your own terms. No one wants to be condescended to, and yet here we are. Sometimes companies just can't help it, and they do all they can to try to justify their lack of care toward you. When you're not being properly compensated at work, you might start to feel a little miffed. You can understand if your company is going through a tough time, but there is only so much run-around you can take.

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  • A businessperson gives a speech in front of a group of employees
    via Unsplash+ (Getty Images)

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

  • My company sent out a "Financial Wellness Workshop" invite to help us "make the most of our income"

    We haven't had a real raise in 3 years. Inflation hit, rent went up, groceries are insane. HR has been radio silent on comp reviews for months. Today we get a company wide email inviting us to a lunch and learn called "Stretching Your Dollar in Tough Times" hosted by some random third party wellness vendor. Topics include things like budgeting money effectively and "finding joy in simplicity."
    via SuitableAmbition997
  • I wish I was joking. The same company that made us eat a 0% raise last year because "market conditions" is now paying an outside consultant to come teach us how to have some savings set aside instead of just you know, paying us what we're worth.
    via SuitableAmbition997
  • The audacity is genuinely staggering. Not even a 2% cost of living bump but sure, Karen from FinWell Solutions is gonna fix everything with a 45 minute PowerPoint about meal prepping. Whats even worse is my manager sent a follow up email saying attendance is "strongly encouraged." So now its.
    via SuitableAmbition997
  • mandatory learning how to be poor more efficiently on my lunch break that I dont even fully get because I play on my laptop and eat at my desk most days.
    via SuitableAmbition997

  • Commenters offered their coping mechanisms and strategies.

    GreyWulfen Time to start asking questions using real numbers. If our take home pay averages X and rent/mortgage is Y, how should we budget for savings.
    via GreyWulfen
  • Will the company support work from home to help us reduce fuel costs/depend Be polite, be respectful, and be ruthless.
    via GreyWulfen
  • betwixtphencycl... our "founder" boss sent us a 3 paragraph "reality check" email on excessive consumption of the free diet cokes in the office fridge (tax-deductible btw). We're no longer allowed free drinks except once per month after work. It was clearly written with Al too.
    via betwixtphencyclidine

  • The company in question here was not doing a great job of making its employees feel like they were being cared for. Nobody wants to be treated like a child by their employer, except so far as they pay you and provide for you. You can accept that kind of parental relationship, but not one where they talk to you like you would a teenager. But that's what happened here, when a company needlessly paid money to bring in some external help. Sometimes it's fun to have a third-party seminar at work- it helps break up the day- but not if it feels like a backhanded compliment. You don't need your job to tell you how to pinch pennies. You need your job to pay you enough that you don't have to worry about the price of milk at the grocery store. After all, if they can afford a seminar, they can probably afford to pay you a little more. That's the hypocritical position this person was put in when their company sent out an invitation. So they did what we all would do and broadcast their pain to the internet. Keep scrolling to read the details.

  • A person gives a seminar to a group of workers in a conference room
    via Herlambang Tinasih Gusti

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

  • TheCrimson Steel Reminder that changing jobs can, on average, get you a 20% raise
    via TheCrimsonSteel
  • JJBtch I am sure a bunch of idiots will use this service just to make the corpos feel all warm and fuzzy inside.
    via JJBtch
  • Church_of_Cheri I remember when Walmart got called out for holding training seminars for their employees to teach them how to apply for food stamps and welfare assistance because their salary qualified them. That
    via Church_of_Cheri
  • was more than 20 years ago, now they don't include it in training but employees still have to do it to survive. And Walmart got themselves a PR war room so the stories wouldn't leak again.
    via Church_of_Cheri
  • V.. I used to work for a financial wellness firm. If they share an anonymous survey afterwards, I strongly recommend sharing your feedback. Survey results are discussed. Use this as an opportunity to share what you would really find helpful
    via Virtual_Salad_5042
  • (i.e. student loan repayment match, 401k loan provisions. added to company sponsored retirement plan, 401k match and/or a higher match if already provided, or h I - a raise vs this). Make sure it's anonymous and/or complete it with your personal email (highly recommend personal email on file for this stuff anyways).
    via Virtual_Salad_5042
  • I'd also share how insensitive this workshop felt given company dynamics + suggest the HR team sharing a survey with employees on what workshops you'd actually find beneficial (if any) BEFORE assuming and/or having the provider just
    via Virtual_Salad_5042
  • throw something out there. The presumptive/callous workshop theme would've ped me off too lazy and - without actual reason (unless you can confirm) outside of guilt/an unused financial wellness credit the company has.
    via Virtual_Salad_5042
  • I will say, HR teams I worked with would lazily throw these things on the calendar without any real thought just to check a box...without saying it directly, let them know they should be held to a performance standard too. Best of luck!
    via Virtual_Salad_5042
  • crsh1976 They make it extra tough not to be even more cynical. Have you considered not eating 3 meals a day? Who really needs an apartment when you can sleep in your car? Time to divorce that spouse, ditch the kids, and marry into money!
    via crsh1976
  • Defiant-Rabbit-... My company had been so toxic. They sent us a discount code for 30% of therapy services. I wish I was joking.
    via Defiant-Rabbit7599
  • Boom_the_Bold I feel the same way about the "Resilience Training" my girlfriend has to take occasionally as a Nurse. "We know we're grinding you to dust; here's how to pretend we're not!"
    via Boom_the_Bold
  • Mitch Wallberg Ask how much they paid the third party vendor for their condescending advice seminar
    via Mitch_Wallberg
  • voodoobunny999 Get together with your like- minded co-workers and write questions, like, "Does this mean we should stop expecting any raises going forward?", "I can stretch a bag of dried beans by eating the little stones that get in there. Is that safe?", "Should I just give up the idea of ever being able to afford to eat meat again?", "Did YOU get
    via voodoobunny999
  • a raise last year?". Just pepper Karen with questions. Start out by raising your hand to ask. When Karen wises up and stops taking questions, just yell them out. Make this b 's work life h_l. She deserves it since she's telling you to smile as your company force feeds you a load of sh. Then everybody
    via voodoobunny999
  • take the rest of the day off and come in late the next day. When asked, tell management you want them to learn how to get by with less.
    via voodoobunny999

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salary boss antiwork workplace-stories saving money toxic-workplace job working workplace bad bosses toxic-work-environment
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