Corporate spending rules can feel nonsensical, especially when they punish small acts of generosity.

After being reprimanded for tipping his server fairly, one traveling employee found a deliciously petty way to even the score.

You’ll want to read on for this one!

Company says I tip too high when I travel. Now I intentionally order more expensive food so I can tip what I think is an appropriate amount.

When going over my expense report, my company saw I tipped 20% for lunch one afternoon.

Lunch was $15; the tip was $3.

The company was swift with their disapproval.

They told me that is too much “because I wouldn’t do that with my money.”

Heck yeah, I do.

I just took the better part of an hour of my server’s time.

The least I could do is leave $3.

It’s $3, for crying out loud—but rules are rules.

So the employee found a way to keep giving generous tips.

However, my company is fairly generous, allowing me $75 a day to spend on food, which I never do.

And that’s about to change.

On the company’s dime, of course.

For lunch today, instead of my usual salad or sandwich, I went for the lobster grilled cheese.

And of course, upgraded my regular fries to the duck fat fries.

Enjoy “saving” that 5% for the rest of my travel meal expenses.

Looks like the company should have just held their tongue.

What did Reddit have to say?

You would think tipping poorly would be bad for the company’s reputation.

Sometimes management just doesn’t get it.

Some corporate rules are way too easy to find loopholes for.

This user thinks of another way to spread some good on the company’s dime.

In the end, the company’s penny-pinching only ended up inspiring even more indulgence!

When the rules limit kindness, people always find ways to push back.

If you liked this post, check out this story about an employee who got revenge on a co-worker who kept grading their work suspiciously low.