When you have to travel for work, expenses add up fast.

But when one stubborn project manager tried to cut allowances, one builder found an innovative way to balance his finances and enjoy a little comfort while on the road.

Read on for this tale of malicious compliance!

Won’t pay allowances, then fly me home.

I once built electrical substations in Australia.

These jobs were mostly away from home and included some hefty tax-free allowances.

We would typically be there for a short amount of time and have to pay high short-term accommodation costs in a motel.

This way of working and living got rather expensive, but there were systems in place to benefit the workers.

Eating out was the only option, as there were no kitchens, so we relied on restaurants and takeaway.

The rate was $130 a day, totaling $910 a week, with the incentive that you could keep whatever you didn’t spend.

That is, until one boss began to tighten the pursestrings.

Enter the project manager: “You’re only working five days a week, so you only get five days of allowances.”

“Okay, PM, then what happens on weekends when I’m still in a motel seven hours from home?”

“Not my problem.”

So this employee wasn’t going to take this lying down.

I called head office in front of the PM and said, “I’m going to need a taxi to the airport on Friday, flights, and a taxi home in the city, then a return journey on Monday—which means I should get to the site around lunchtime on Monday.”

The PM got ticked and tried to have his cake and eat it too.

So then the top bosses started coming down on the project manager.

Head office asked the PM what the heck he was thinking since the standard procedure was to pay for weekends and maximize time on-site.

The real issue was that the PM didn’t want to pay overtime.

Long story short, I got my full seven days of allowances.

He even decided to share the wealth with others.

I then met another apprentice on-site and offered to pay half his and his girlfriend’s rent ($200 a week).

Since they weren’t making much money, I also chipped in for half the groceries.

The result? Cheap rent, affordable, well-prepared meals, and a comfortable place to relax when I wasn’t working.

Any manager can come around to your way of thinking if you manipulate the situation just right!

What did Reddit think?

It’s always good to help out the younger generation while also speaking out against the man!

At the end of the day, employees have to stick together!

This builder really exhibited the traits of a true leader.

Sometimes bosses just need a little… persuading.

With a little thinking outside the box, anything is possible!

If you liked that post, check out this one about an employee that got revenge on HR when they refused to reimburse his travel.