“If you want my money boss, you can take it up with HR.”

Let’s face it, many workplaces take a lot more than they give, especially from their employees. Even though the pay employees are given is supposed to make up for the work they provide for the company every single day, we all know that we end up giving a lot more than just that. Think about it: you don’t just give 8 hours of your day to work; you give 8 hours plus however long it takes to commute, which is often hours more daily. And it’s not just about the work you do in the office, but all that extra time you spend after hours and during weekends answering texts, emails, or simply thinking about the work you will do once you’re back. When you add up all these little things to the actual job you get paid to do, you might realize the money that ends up in your paycheck (after taxes, of course) is not really worth it.

So, if you consider all that, and then read about the boss below who tried to charge employees for being late to the morning meeting, you will understand just how much some workplaces take from their employees. How can a boss look at an employee straight in the eye and ask them to Venmo him $5 for being 10 minutes late to a meeting? Not only is it incredibly unreasonable, it honestly sounds quite illegal, and if we were the ones staring back at our boss’s face after a request like that, we would definitely ensure HR joins the meeting next time.

When reading the story, we were surprised to learn that some employees actually paid the boss the $5 after arriving late to the morning meeting. The boss promised to use the money for a team breakfast once they had enough, but the fact that he was using his personal Venmo to collect it does not sit right with us. It also didn’t sit right with one team member, who decided to refuse to participate in what felt like actual theft…