Office celebrations often sound harmless, but like everything else in the workplace, they sometimes come with strings attached.

One junior staff member felt cornered into paying for a new workplace tradition, but when they found out that not everyone was asked to chip in, they felt even more suspicious of the whole thing.

Read on for the full story.

AITA for not wanting to chip in for monthly birthday parties at work

I (a junior employee) was asked if I could chip in $7 per month for monthly birthday parties at work.

This is a new initiative.

But this initiative wasn’t rolled out in the most equitable way.

It seems that not every employee on my team was asked, and it doesn’t make sense to give a set amount when we could just divide the cost (e.g., cake and drinks) among the team of 15+.

I also overheard the boss talking about performance reviews.

AITA if I said yes on the spot (out of shock) but later change my mind?

Turns out peer pressure can sometimes follow people out of childhood.

What did Reddit think?

Maybe this employee can blame their refusal on a third party.

The cost of this should absolutely not fall on the employees themselves.

Can the person who requested this really be trusted?

Even small sums add up over time.

They didn’t want to make waves as a junior employee, but agreeing left them stuck in an unfair arrangement.

Maybe it’s worth it to speak up next time.

If you liked that post, check out this post about a woman who tracked down a contractor who tried to vanish without a trace.