Pexels/Reddit

Nothing says “we value our employees” quite like a pizza box and a request to haul furniture for free.

One employee got an email announcing that the office was relocating two floors down, and that staff was “invited” to spend the weekend moving monitors, chairs, and boxes so the company could keep costs reasonable. The only compensation was pizza afterward, with no overtime and no extra day off.

But when he read between the lines, he learned that the company was tying performance reviews to who showed up to work for free.

He was already giving them five days a week, and he wasn’t sure a sixth was part of the deal.

The cherry on top was that this was a workplace that constantly preached respect for personal time.

You’ll want to keep reading for this one.

My company is asking us to come in on a weekend to move the entire office instead of hiring movers

Our office is moving two floors down in the same building next month.

Soon the employee got an interesting message from management.

Management sent an email saying they want everyone to come in during the weekend and help move monitors, chairs, boxes, and small furniture so the company can “keep relocation costs reasonable.”

Of course, leadership tries to downplay this massive overstep.

They’re calling it a team effort. No overtime, no extra day off. Just pizza afterward.

Manager said that nobody is being “forced,” but they’ll remember who helped when performance reviews come around.

This employee has had enough, though.

I’m already giving them five days of my week. I’m not donating the rest because they don’t want to pay movers.

The funniest part is we’re a company that constantly talks about respecting people’s personal time.

The bar just keeps getting lower and lower.

Redditors are sure to have some thoughts on this one.

This isn’t just tactless — it’s also potentially against the law.

Who in their right minds would agree to something like this?

The refusal can be kept short and sweet.

Never Miss a Story

Sign up to get our BEST stories of the week straight to your inbox.

This reader shares a cautionary tale.

This company wants a moving crew without the moving budget, and of course it picked its employees to fill the gap.

Calling a free weekend of heavy lifting a team effort is the kind of story no reasonable employee actually believes.

At the end of the day, this employer already gets more than enough of this employee’s time — and weekends are off limits for a reason.

This invitation read more like a threat.

Add TwistedSifter to your Google News Add us as a preferred source on Google

Author

Benjamin Cottrell

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.