My Boss Refused My Raise as My Rent Increased — Then Reality Hit Hard

Asking for a raise shouldn’t feel unreasonable — especially when the cost of living keeps climbing. One employee believed years of loyalty and hard work would speak for themselves. Instead, a simple conversation about rent and salary turned into a harsh reality check that changed everything.

Jenna’s letter:

I was the general manager of a busy downtown café, pulling 60-hour weeks and keeping the place afloat. When my rent spiked, I finally asked for a raise. My boss didn’t even look up. He said, “You should be grateful for your paycheck. If you can’t make it work, that’s a personal failure. Anyone can do your job.”

A week later, I was scrolling through a job board when I saw it: my own position. He had posted it that morning for $5,000 less than I was currently making. He wasn’t just refusing a raise; he was actively scouting my “cheaper” replacement while I was still behind the counter.

I didn’t confront him. I spent the next week quietly interviewing with our biggest competitor. I also stopped doing the “extra” things he never noticed—like the manual backup for the faulty inventory system and the tricky calibration for the espresso machines that only I knew how to fix.

On a Friday morning, right as the morning rush began, my boss walked in with a “candidate” to show them the ropes. He looked at me smugly, thinking he had the upper hand. I didn’t wait for him to speak. I took off my apron, handed him my keys, and said, “Since anyone can do my job, you can start today. I’m going to my new job where they actually pay a living wage.”

He panicked. He didn’t know the passwords, the supplier contacts, or how to restart the POS system when it glitched ten minutes later. The “candidate” walked out after seeing the chaos.

Jenna.

Thank you for sharing your story, Jenna. It’s both frustrating and incredibly revealing.

What happened to you wasn’t just about a raise — it was about respect. Working 60-hour weeks to keep a business running, only to be told to “be grateful” while rent climbs, shows how easily some employers dismiss the people doing the real work.

The most striking part of your letter is how quickly your boss tried to replace you for less, as if experience, loyalty, and expertise were just numbers on a spreadsheet. But your exit proved something many workplaces forget: a job title can be replaced on paper, but the knowledge and responsibility behind it cannot.

Your response was calm, professional, and honest. You didn’t cause chaos — you simply stopped carrying it alone.

This story is a reminder that asking for a living wage isn’t an entitlement. It’s survival. And sometimes the harshest reality doesn’t hit the employee — it hits the employer who finally realizes what they’ve taken for granted.

Wishing you success in your new role, where your work is valued the way it should be.

The global situation

As year-end reviews roll around, many employees are walking into those meetings hoping for more than feedback on last year’s performance. They’re looking for bonuses, raises, or promotions in 2026. New research suggests many of them may leave disappointed — unless they work in a high-demand field.

After several years of employee-friendly conditions, bonuses have been shrinking since 2021. With hiring slowing and fewer people quitting, workers are holding onto their jobs more tightly. That has made it easier for employers to retain staff without offering generous bonuses — or any bonus at all.

New data from payroll provider ADP highlights the trend. After analyzing payroll records for 12 million workers at companies with at least 50 employees, ADP found that fewer than 40% received a bonus in December 2024. That’s down from 44% in 2021. Bonuses, which tend to go to senior and higher-paid employees, are still most common in industries like construction and manufacturing that rely on contract-based work.

Not only are bonuses reaching fewer people, but they’re also getting smaller. The median bonus payout dropped 4% from the year before, landing at $1,786 in December 2024. According to ADP, employers are steadily returning to pre-2020 compensation patterns.

Raises aren’t looking much better. A recent survey from consulting firm Mercer shows that most employers plan to keep salary increases flat in 2026. On average, merit raises are expected to remain around 3.2%, with total increases — including promotions and cost-of-living adjustments — holding at about 3.5%, the same as in 2025.

Employers cite economic uncertainty and a cooling labor market as reasons for restraint. When there are more unemployed workers than open jobs, companies don’t feel pressure to raise pay to attract or keep talent. Promotions are also expected to slow, with only 9% of employees projected to receive one in 2026, down from 10% in 2025.

That’s the overall picture — but some fields are bucking the trend.

What do you think about today’s pay and bonus trends? Share your thoughts in the comments below.

I Refuse to Earn $20K Less Than the Colleague I Trained