May 28, 2026 at 2:22 am

A Conversation About Luxury Travel Pushes One Underpaid Employee Closer to Quitting

by Benjamin Cottrell

wealthy woman sitting on a plane

Pexels/Reddit

Making more money doesn’t just change your net worth — it changes the way you see the world. And, in this story, how you treat your employees.

An underpaid employee spent the day watching her boss mock economy flyers with a client, then pivot to complaining about the cost of her upcoming European trip — a trip that would run $20,000 only because anything below business class was a non-starter.

The really rich part? The same woman who claimed she “didn’t make much money” was pulling between $4,000 and $7,000 a day, and her employee had seen the tax return to prove it.

So as this employee continued to be denied raises and humane treatment, she questioned how much longer she could tolerate this boss.

Keep reading for the full story.

My boss rants about the flights being too expensive. She refuses to fly economy and was laughing that people do…

On half a million salary, owns a house in a really locked down market — overpriced, and most desirable location — that is high $.

What’s even worse than that is her cruel attitude towards people less fortune than her.

Had to hear my boss and her obnoxious client make a mockery of people who fly economy, as they could “never” — while laughing.

Now my boss has European plans, ranting that the tickets are “far too expensive” and would run her well over $20,000.

Her boss has absolutely no idea how out of touch she sounds.

I rolled my eyes, considering economy is about $1,000-$2,000 — which is pushing it.

The reason it’s “so expensive” is solely because she refuses to fly anything other than business or first.

Her 16-year-old son also travels all over the world, and it’s business only.

Even still, nothing ever seems to be enough for this greedy boss.

Same woman who whines she doesn’t “make much money” — which is crap, since I saw her tax document: $415k, with a semi-retired husband.

Pulling $4,000-$7,000 a day due to her profession.

This employee is getting more and more fed up by the second.

Same lady who whips me to do x, y, and z and doesn’t care to raise my wage, and says “can’t do that.”

What a joke.

Screw this job, and screw corporate. Screw wealthy too.

It’s hard not to resent people who behave this way, especially when you’re struggling to get by.

If you enjoyed this story, check out this story about an employee who followed bad orders, then ruined their manager’s career for good measure.

Redditors chime in with their thoughts.

Most working people understand that the more money someone makes, the less competent they tend to be.

Screenshot 2026 05 27 at 12.22.45 PM A Conversation About Luxury Travel Pushes One Underpaid Employee Closer to Quitting

High-level executives have a very different idea of comfort than most normal people.

Screenshot 2026 05 27 at 12.23.35 PM A Conversation About Luxury Travel Pushes One Underpaid Employee Closer to Quitting

Many bosses seem to completely misuse their power the second they get it.

Screenshot 2026 05 27 at 12.24.04 PM A Conversation About Luxury Travel Pushes One Underpaid Employee Closer to Quitting

This boss is incompetent in more ways than one.

Screenshot 2026 05 27 at 12.25.10 PM A Conversation About Luxury Travel Pushes One Underpaid Employee Closer to Quitting

There’s something uniquely exhausting about working for someone who complains about money while sitting on a salary that most people will never see in their lifetime.

The mockery of economy flyers, the $20,000 travel budget complaint, the raises that are somehow never possible — none of it exists in a vacuum. It all adds up, slowly and then all at once, into the kind of frustration that doesn’t have a professional outlet.

This employee isn’t asking for lavish accommodations or first-class travel, just a living wage that actually keeps up with the rising cost of living.

One thing’s for sure: it’s time to book a one-way ticket out of this job.

Benjamin Cottrell | Assistant Editor, Internet Culture

Benjamin Cottrell is an Assistant Editor and contributing writer at TwistedSifter, specializing in internet culture, viral social dynamics, and the moral complexities of online communities. He brings a highly analytical, editorial voice to his reporting on workplace conflicts, malicious compliance, and interpersonal drama, with a specific focus on nuanced stories that lack an obvious villain.

As a published author of rhetorical criticism, Benjamin leverages his academic background in human communication to dissect and elevate viral social media threads. Instead of simply summarizing events, he provides readers with balanced, deep-dive commentary into why the internet reacts the way it does. In addition to his cultural reporting, he is an experienced fine art photography essayist and video game reviewer.

When he isn’t analyzing the latest viral debates, Benjamin is usually chipping away at his extensive video game backlog, hunting down the best new restaurants, or out exploring the city with a camera in hand.

Connect with Benjamin on Instagram and read more of his essays on Substack.