Imagine this: You’ve poured years into building a tight-knit team, covering shifts during tough times, watching them grow. Then, suddenly there is a new hire with zero experience who joins your team that too at higher pay, while your loyal team members are stuck at old industry rates. That’s the soul-crushing reality for “u/TeamLeadStruggles,” a manager who bared his heart on Reddit’s r/OfficePolitics recently. In a lengthy post, the manager shared the office politics that made him feel bad for his loyal team. Here’s what really happened:A team’s trust shattered by one unfair hireFor years, his nine-person crew thrived on $21/hour (roughly INR 2100 per hour) consistency – employees who’d stuck through thick and thin with him. Three months back, five newbies joined at that rate. Fair enough. Then, two months later, a new decision-maker (DM) hires one more… The surprising twist: The new hire joined at $24/hour with no skills and no background. This was shocking to the manager as the salaries in his team were less than the new hire: An eight-month employee got $21; an employee with four-year experience hit $24 through sweat; while an eight-year rock earned $22. “Honestly a joke,” the manager vented, voice cracking in the post. And when the newbie got a 5% cost-of-living bump too, it broke the manager – the loyalty of his employees felt like loyalty only downward.Fighting for his corporate family – And hitting a wallThis wasn’t a faceless boss; he saw his team as family. So he raised his concern with the DM, but got no response. Ops manager looped in – still nothing. Imagine the sleepless nights. These weren’t numbers; they were people who’d trusted him. But their quiet dedication was now being mocked by a newbie’s check. Resignation hit like mercy – freeing him from this dilemma.“Honestly, this was the last straw for me on top of many other issues. I’m submitting my resignation tomorrow. These are really good people, and I feel like I’m failing them by leaving. So, should I expose this on my way out? I want to tell them, but I don’t know how,” he shared in the post.Redditors’ empathyWith 10k upvotes, and comments flooding, the Reddit post felt relatable to many and it soon gained people’s attention. “Speak up -you owe them that,” urged one, evoking their own betrayal. While another cautioned, “No consent? Legal minefield.” Another wrote, “You’re the boss they deserved. Loyalty’s rare.”What do you think– should he tell or stay silent? Tell us in the comment section below.
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