Toxic coworkers are never good for morale.

This man received a glowing shout-out from the boss in the work group chat. Only one friend reacted to it, but everyone else ignored it.

Is he right to feel excluded or is he overreacting? Read the full story below and weigh in.

Is it weird my coworkers completely ignored a shoutout my boss gave me? It actually kinda hurt.

Yesterday, my boss shouted me out in our team group chat. It was really positive and specific praise about a project I worked hard on. She tagged me directly, and it was clear she put effort into acknowledging the work.

Our team is very small, and usually when anyone gets a kudos or shoutout, the whole group reacts – hearts, congrats, emojis, all of that. I’m always one of the first people to hype others up, because that’s just how I am. I always like/react, congratulate, and show appreciation when people get recognized.

But when it was my turn?

Literally no one reacted.

Not a single emoji except for one coworker (the only one I genuinely vibe with). Everyone else was online, saw it, and just… ignored it. Meanwhile, if you scroll up in the chat, everyone reacted to all the other shoutouts for other people.

It made me feel excluded and, honestly, embarrassed. Like everyone celebrated each other except me.

This man doesn’t know if he’s overreacting.

For context, I’m also the only Black person on the team. I don’t know if that’s relevant, but it does add another layer because I work extra hard to be approachable, warm, positive, and “easy” to work with – just so no one can twist my attitude or energy into a stereotype.

I show up for people, I support them, and I genuinely try to keep the workplace vibe positive.

So yeah, it stung when nobody could give something as simple as a heart reaction back.

I’m not saying they need to validate my work – my boss’s praise is ultimately what matters. But the contrast was loud. And it lowkey made me feel singled out or excluded.

At this point, I’m thinking of pulling my energy back. No more overcompensating, no extra warmth, no small talk. I’ll be professional, get my work done, and that’s it. The only people I’m giving extra grace to are my boss and the one coworker who actually acknowledged me.

Maybe I’m too sensitive, maybe it means nothing, but it honestly didn’t feel good.

Has anyone else dealt with this?

Is this normal team behavior, or is it a red flag?

They don’t deserve the positive vibe and energy anyway.

Let’s read what other people have to say about this.

This one shares their opinion.

This user empathizes.

A similar situation from this reader.

Some insight from this one.

And this person finds the story relatable.

Go where you’re celebrated, not ignored.

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.