We all want to feel valued at our jobs . We want to go into our workday sure of the fact that we bring something to the table and contribute to our teams, also hoping we’re compensated for that in the long run.
When none of that was happening for one Reddit user, on top of other workplace insults, they decided to leave and enact revenge on the company that mistreated them, posting the saga in the r/ProRevenge subreddit.
RELATED STORIES
Their post began by describing the company.
It was a small business of 15 employees that had been running for 15 years, with the author having worked there for the last five. It was also rather successful, being the top-performing company of its type in their area.
They then describe that they not only loved their job, but they were fantastic at it too. They handled everything from HR to scheduling, marketing to training, and much more.
They were always told they performed well with ‘no recommendations for improvement.’
That didn’t seem to be reflected during bonus season, though. The author said their bonus, while higher than previous years, was notably lower than that of their teammates.
They asked the company’s owner if the bonuses were performance-based, and if so, what they could do to improve. The owner replied, “The bonuses are not performance-related, you are just more replaceable than the others.”
Of course, they were immediately upset, but they didn’t make it known.
Instead, they called their spouse during their break to ask for advice. The two had vacation time coming up, so they both decided to still go through with that and use the time away from work to clear their heads and think of what to do.
After consulting many people, the author decided that upon returning from their vacation, they would quit with two weeks’ notice.
When they tried, though, the company owner fired them on the spot “in a fit of rage,” an outcome they actually saw coming and prepared for.
What did this person with a wide skillset in a niche industry do about it? They opened a competing business.
They also maintained contact with their old coworkers, who would vent about how the workplace had gone downhill.
“I knew service, quality, and the work environment in general suffered since my departure. Moral went down and clients were less satisfied. I also read the Google and Facebook reviews for old company. Yikes!
“Additionally, two full-time and one part-time persons were hired to fill my role and a portion of my responsibilities, like HR and payroll, were filled by outside companies.”
Meanwhile, their own business kept growing.
“I quickly built up my business and within 3 months was able to hire several of my old teammates. […] The quality of previous workplace’s offerings continued to fall which sent additional business my way and quickly caused incoming work to be nonexistent at [my] old workplace.
“My old workplace went from being the number one provider of unique service in the region to nothing in a matter of months.”
This story even comes with a moral.
“Moral of the story, don’t tell your employees they are replaceable because they might create a competing business that is better than yours, while taking your best employees and your clients which will leave you with no business […]
“Looks like your company was replaceable, not me.”
Though a bit specific, it’s also not wrong! That owner certainly learned their lesson.
We want to hear from YOU so we can serve you better. Complete this quick survey and you will be entered to win a grand prize of $2,000, or a chance to win one of 10 Diply prize-packs!
