Woman's Boss Told Her 'I Don't Understand Why We Even Pay You' On A Team Call & She Was Pressured To Defend Her Role
She was forced to defend her job position after her boss tried to undermine the tasks she does for the company.
A woman has shared a rather awkward and humiliating work call that she was on recently where her boss attempted to dismiss her role in the company.
In a video, TikTok user Amanda, who works as a social media manager for a sales company, shared that her role in the company was questioned by her manager after he inquired whether or not what she did was actually important for the benefit of the company.
She was told she was no longer an 'asset' by her manager after her job position was criticized for being unhelpful.
In Amanda's video, she reenacted the scenario that had taken place during a work meeting with her manager and other coworkers. Acting as her manager, Amanda shared that she was asked by him to give an update on all of the things she did during the last week.
"So I created and published all the company’s social media posts across 5 different platforms, which was a total of 40 posts this week. I also work with the other departments to figure out ad copy for the advertising campaign launch," Amanda told her manager.
"I also collaborated with the other departments to come up with some blog posts. I wrote 4 different blog posts for a total of 3,000 words. I also responded to all comments and DMs and then I created an updated social media strategy."
After giving the detailed description, Amanda claimed that her manager was unimpressed and instead proceeded to question her about how any of that benefited the company. "I’m gonna be honest, I don’t even understand why we even pay you," Amanda, acting as her boss, said.
"I don’t even know what you really do and why it’s helpful to the company I feel like you know if you’re not making money then like what’s the point?”
Taken aback, Amanda said that she attempted to explain to her boss about the role that he had hired her for, but was now suddenly confused about. "Your company literally relies on social media to get leads so if you’re not posting on social media, then you’re not gonna get any leads."
Again, her boss didn't seem convinced by that and accused Amanda of not being an "asset" to the company. Trying to be reasonable, Amanda was forced to defend her role as the company's social media manager.
"You hired me to help with brand awareness and post them on social media. Creating graphics—doing graphic design—creating blog posts. That’s exactly what I’ve been doing," she explained, adding that she's not a sales representative, and doesn't have the same tasks as her other coworkers on the call.
After going back and forth, her manager still remained unconvinced that they needed Amanda on their team. "I’m gonna have to like circle around and see if we even have the budget to keep a full-time social media manager. I just don’t know if we have that to give you that salary.”
Quickly, Amanda corrected her boss and informed him that she was actually not a full-time employee but was instead a contracted worker who was only being paid $1,500 for all of the work she was doing for the company, but in the end, didn't seem to be appreciated by her team members and boss.
In the comments section, people were taken aback at the amount Amanda was being paid.
Not only were viewers shocked at Amanda's manager diminishing her position in the company so brazenly, but some of them also pointed out that her pay didn't seem equal to the large amount of work she had listed to have done in a single week.
"40 posts a week [with] everything else for $1500 a month is wild of them," one TikTok user wrote, while another user added, "This would be crazy if you were a full-time employee but as a contractor? Girl, trim back that scope for $1500."
A third user chimed in, "That is insanely disrespectful - you should absolutely tell them being on weekly calls is no longer part of your contracted work…"
"As a business owner, I apologize that your ‘supervisor’ has no concept of your value - expressed in front of others! - this makes me crazy," a fourth user remarked.
Employees who often go unnoticed or underappreciated are more likely to not feel valued as an employee of the company they work for. In Amanda's case, she learned how her manager felt about her position at the company firsthand, and oftentimes things like that can eventually lead to a worker quitting.
Organizations need to address these issues and create a positive work environment that fosters a sense of value and appreciation among their employees.
Nia Tipton is a Brooklyn-based entertainment, news, and lifestyle writer whose work delves into modern-day issues and experiences.