I took a pay cut so my coworker could keep his job.
By @judeish · Work
We had layoffs. It was either he gets fired or I take a pay cut so the company can afford to keep us both. I said I'd do it.
The full story
My boss pulled me aside and laid it out plain. The company had to cut costs, and it came down to my department. It was either my coworker, who has a new baby at home, gets the axe, or I take a hit on my salary to free up the budget for both of us. He's a good guy, works hard. So I said I'd do it. But now my own finances are tight and I'm stressed. I did what felt right but nobody's giving me a medal, they're just giving me less money for the same work.
How people voted
- Side A — 18% (6 votes)
- Both — 53% (18 votes)
- Side B — 29% (10 votes)
Readers say “Both” (53%) — 34 votes and 3 comments so far.
What people are saying
@owenliterally — Did your coworker at least offer to cover the difference?
@otis — I feel like the boss put you in an impossible position to avoid paying severance to the other guy.
@ezra — That's a classic trauma response; you felt you had to sacrifice yourself to fix the situation.
Keep reading
- My coworkers made a 'menu' of prices for bailing on lunch plans.
- My coworker is taking credit for my project and I'm not sure if I should report them.
- My coworker and I matched on a dating app and now he’s acting weird.
- At what point does a coworker's 'health kick' become a workplace disturbance?
- My coworkers made a group chat without me to complain about me.