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Being good at your job is supposed to work in your favor, not become the exact reason you get buried alive with extra work and zero compensation to show for it.

One employee at a small family-run business learned that lesson the hard way after his boss noticed how efficient and skilled he was, and instead of rewarding that with a raise, responded by piling on more concepts, more hours, and more impossible deadlines.

Every accomplishment just meant a bigger ask next time, three weeks of output squeezed into three days, endless flattery about his “vision” for the business, and constant pressure to work Saturdays on top of an already brutal six-day schedule.

So when the employee finally scaled back to the bare minimum, the boss still had the audacity to get upset.

Keep reading for the full story.

My Boss is confused that no one wants to stay more than 10 years in my role..

I’m honestly so tired of working with delusional bosses. The thing is that where I work is really nice. It’s a family run business, where everyone is family.

But that is also the problem.

This workplace is known for working everyone pretty hard.

Everyone is always hands on deck, expected to give their all because it’s their family’s business. Nothing is planned and organised, we are reacting to sales.

So everyone works extra hours for the sake of the family business. Everyone works 6 days a week, and works during bank holidays (we are in the UK).

At first it didn’t seem so bad, but now this employee is starting to feel differently.

I used to like my job. And that is also another problem. The moment my boss realised how good I was at my job, and excited by it, all he wanted to do was challenge and push how much work he could get out of me.

The only reward for his good work seemed to be more work.

Finished early? Here is more work. You did 3 concepts? Please make 5 now. Even though this was never the standard of work they had before.

Suddenly he’s being pressured to take on even more hours.

He’s always begging me to do more hours (at least it’s paid). Asking if I want to start working Saturdays. Asking me to do 3 weeks worth of work in 3 days because, “You’re so amazing at it.”

Saying how he can see how the business can expand strategically with my vision.

But now the employee sees right through these empty promises.

It’s all a flipping trap. Because at the end of the day the one thing that keeps me on my desk isn’t being honoured, which is a salary that reflects my work input.

Every actual reward he’s proposed has been turned down.

In fact, I’ve asked for more holidays, or less time at work instead. Or remote options at least. Nope.

At least an assistant to help with workload? 3 months later he’s still waiting for the perfect candidate.

Now the employee is trying to act his wage.

I’m trying to always dial down now. Well, only do what I’m contracted to do, and he’s upset that I’m not the star performer he saw in the beginning.

Yeah, of course, you strangled me dry and now I’m burned out and tired. With no reward in sight.

And to top it off, we have no proper benefits and work in a windowless office inside a warehouse. Under eye-drying fluorescent lights.

What an awful situation.

Redditors chime in with their thoughts.

This commenter points out that this workplace has always been all about exploitation.

When an employer refers to their colleagues as “family,” it’s a huge red flag.

Apparently there’s a term for what’s happening here.

If you enjoyed this post, check out this story about an employee who decided to push back against time micromanagement.

Even high performers are still human at the end of the day.

Being trapped in a cycle where every accomplishment just resets the bar higher without any corresponding increase in pay or support is just about as unsustainable as it gets.

If the boss truly cared about retaining a top performer, he’d comply with one of the many reasonable requests this employee has already made.

A raise, an assistant, more flexibility. Literally anything.

Being a good boss entails a lot more than just extracting work out of your employees.