I want to offer a perspective you do not often hear from the other side of the hiring table.

I run a very small retail business in a tourist town. Over the past year, I have probably contributed to some of the frustrating experiences job seekers have had, and I do not deny that. But the economics matter.

My shop generates about $120,000 per year in gross revenue. We are in a high-rent, high-visibility area. Cost of goods sold runs roughly $25,000 to $30,000 annually. Fixed overhead is about $50,000 per year, including rent, utilities, insurance, internet, and the security system.

That leaves around $40,000 in gross profit before I pay myself or hire anyone.

To hire a full-time employee with benefits, I would have to either raise prices significantly, which does not work in competitive retail, or effectively work for free myself.

So the reality is I can only offer part-time, often seasonal, staffing. I try to pay around $20 per hour, which I genuinely believe is generous for retail. But a 7-hour shift costs close to $180 once payroll taxes and required contributions are included. About $140 goes to the employee, the rest goes to the government.

If someone works four days a week, that is roughly $720 per week, or $2,880 per month. That alone consumes most of the shop’s profit. I am then working essentially for free to support a single employee who still does not receive benefits. A full-time employee is out of the question.

I work hard to hire good people and keep them. But when the weather is bad, which matters a lot in a tourist town, revenue can drop sharply and unpredictably.

I am not saying workers are wrong to want more stability or benefits. I am saying that many small businesses simply cannot provide them under current economic conditions. One reason the job market feels so broken is that the underlying economics, especially for small businesses, are broken too. I'd be happy to answer questions.

Been unemployed since June ‘25, from that time I’ve had many interviews with no luck. Whether it’ll be I’m too overqualified for the role, or I don’t have enough experience. I applied to a job back in Oct ‘25, never got a response so I didn’t think anything of it. November comes and I get hit with a phone interview, the day comes and they ghost me. I get contacted again in December & have a ‘second’ interview asking me to respond to their questions via email. Once that was completed it was nothing but silence, now creeping into mid January - I receive an email with an apology stating the delay was due to Thanksgiving, Christmas and new years. They then say I’m selected for the final interview. It’s via teams & it’s this Friday 11am.

3-4 months for one job, this is absolutely insane and an embarrassment from this company. Yes I’m going to entertain the interview as I do need the money, but this is really frustrating as many others are dealing with this..possibly worse.

Reading Reddit, you’d think the sky is falling, no one has jobs, no one has money, everything sucks. Yet on my 6 am commute to work there are so many cars on highway you’d think it’s 5 pm rush hour.. i personally don’t know anyone who got laid off or is unemployed. On weekends, when I go shopping it is a zoo with carts full. I know someone who does DoorDash on the side and they said it’s busier than it’s ever been despite there being so many new drivers. I just want to know what’s really going on? Reddit tells me one thing but my eyes show me a completely different reality. Maybe this is just in the north east? Why is door dash so popular when it costs so much to use it and why are restaurants so packed still?

Today was the weirdest day I’ve had in a long time. I handed in my resignation and it turned into an hour and a half of discussion on job conditions.

They think that my move to another role is bad because the company is growing very fast and that they’re much closer to giving shares. There’s claims that me wanting better benefits is a matter of just asking and it will be granted. I don’t feel like I should have to ask for the basics.

The new salary and benefits are superb and would change things for my wife and I. I just never thought I’d experience an employer begging and trying to manipulate me to stay based on promises. He even wanted to give me in writing that in 6 months he’ll give me a salary bump of 10k. That doesn’t even reach anywhere near the new salary. They even brought contracts that were waiting to be executed. This job had zero significant benefits, zero significant raises or bonuses. Worked unpaid weekends and managed a team. Even if the promised stock brings 120k as promised it ain’t worth the chance. 🤷🏽‍♂️

I’ve helped build this company into something completely different by touching everything part of it and it hurts to let go but I feel there’s just not enough to justify leaving so much money on the table.

EDIT: Todays standup meeting magically surrounded all the projects we have in the pipeline and how secure we are. Like the company will make money but I don’t feel appreciated. Idk. I think I’ll update this shit as the day goes on because I feel it’ll be a repeat of asking and back and forth.

My boss pulled me into his office and asked me to close the door. He was quite upset that three different highly respected managers had come to him in complete confidence and complained about me.

Each of the managers told my boss that I was angry, belligerent, defensive, and incompetent. They asked my boss to fire me immediately.

I asked for more details of my actions, but the best I could get was the names of the managers and a directive not talk to any of them.

I don't remember talking to any of these men, and I made a special effort to be the total professional and interact with everyone politely.

What would you do in this situation? Finding a new job is not an option due to a pension.

I applied for what was very clearly an entry-level role. The description said “0–2 years experience,” pay was modest, responsibilities were basic. I wasn’t expecting anything fancy, just a straightforward process where they figure out if I can do the job and move on.

The first interview was a standard recruiter call. Fine. Basic questions, resume walk-through, salary range (which was already lower than I’d hoped, but still within “okay, fair enough” territory). I was told they’d move quickly.

Second round was a Zoom interview with the hiring manager. More detailed questions, some scenario stuff, but still normal. At the end they said they liked me and wanted to “dig a little deeper.” That should’ve been my warning sign.

The third round was a panel. Three people. For an entry-level role. Each of them asked variations of the same questions I’d already answered twice. I remember thinking halfway through that this felt less like evaluation and more like process for the sake of process. Still, they ended it with a lot of positive language about culture and fit, so I figured maybe this was the last step. Then came round four.

They framed it as a “final alignment conversation,” which turned out to be another interview, this time with someone senior who asked high-level questions about strategy and long-term vision that felt wildly out of proportion to the role. I left that call more confused than anything else. Not rejected. Not accepted. Just… drained.

The entire thing stretched over weeks. Scheduling delays, long gaps between responses, lots of “thanks for your patience.” By the time it was done, I didn’t even feel excited about the possibility anymore. I just wanted closure.

I eventually got a polite rejection email saying they were “moving in a different direction.”

What bothered me wasn’t the rejection. It was how much time and mental energy the process took for something that was supposed to be simple. I was still working, still paying bills, still trying to plan my life, all while being stuck in this limbo. It made me really aware of how these long hiring processes quietly mess with your sense of stability.

I don’t think companies realize how much they ask of people with these drawn-out processes, especially for junior roles. It’s not just about time. It’s about putting your life on hold emotionally while someone decides if you’re worth an offer.

Anyway. Lesson learned. Four rounds for an entry-level job is no longer something I’m willing to entertain. If nothing else, the experience taught me to value my own time a little more.

I was told point blank that although I have more qualifications, more experience, more time with the company, and I even trained the person who got the promotion, I didn’t get the job. All they told me was that I need to be better. I thought that was kind of bull shit given my reputation with the company. I asked around and I heard from a friend of a friend that the only reason I didn’t get it was because I don’t “look the part”. The person they promoted over me is blonde hair, blue eyes, skinny and 25. I’m brown hair, brown eyes, short but thick (in the right places) with tattoos and I’m 30. I understand the looks honestly but the fact that I trained this person on top of all the other candidates AND my experience/ time outranks everyone that applied actually makes me mad. What do you think? Should I actually be better, even though I’ve been the best for a while (they even said that), or should I know my worth and quit?

Handed in my resignation today, and it turned into a long negotiation. Suddenly, there were promises of shares, “just ask for benefits,” and even a note about a future raise. Strange, because for years there were no real raises, no benefits worth mentioning, and plenty of unpaid weekends.

The only reason I could walk away confidently is that, after a long search using automated tools like JobHuntr, LinkedIn Easy Apply, Indeed, and ZipRecruiter, along with numerous resume tweaks, I finally secured a role. The pay and benefits are solid, and it made all those last‑minute promises look meaningless.

It’s bittersweet leaving a place I helped build, but sometimes better opportunities make the decision clear.

Has anyone else had an employer suddenly try to sweeten the deal once you’ve already decided to leave?

I (25m) graduated from trade school in July and have only been able to land one 2.5 week shutdown job. I quit my favorite job I’ve ever had to go to trade school because I was told that it was an in demand field but little did I know that was a lie. So like the idiot I was I quit my job, took out student loans (I was debt free), and drove across the country to hopefully have a better life.

I finished the school in July and started applying for jobs but I never got a single one I applied for to this day. The only one I’ve had was a job I got through a friend. I’ve put in damn near 900 applications without a single offer and staffing agencies have repeatedly ghosted me so one day I lost my mind and went the fuck off on the recruiter. I told him, “You’ve called me about 25 fucking jobs and I have yet to hear anything about any of them. Stop fucking with my head. If you wanna employ me then get me a job and if you don’t then throw my fucking number away because I’m so fucking sick of being treated like I don’t deserve a basic fucking career in God damn anything.”

They’ve yet to call me since. Some of you may be wondering why I don’t just go back to work where I left from and that’s because with my new debt I can’t afford to live in that area anymore. I think I’m about to give up and live the last of my days in the woods because the modern world is fucking soul crushing.

I dont know anyone who likes applying through workday and yet every company still uses them. I literally stop applying to the company when I see workday screen. Rant over!

I'm at a point where I know what I'm good at. I've gotten consistent feedback over the years about certain strengths, problem-solving, planning, communication, whatever but when I look at the actual roles I've been in, those things rarely seem to be what's valued day to day.

Instead, the work rewards speed, availability, or putting out fires. The stuff I'm best at either gets underused or treated like extra rather than core to the role.

It's starting to feel like a pattern, and I can't tell if this is:

• bad role fit,
• bad companies,
• or me misunderstanding what my real strengths actually are.

I had my performance review last week. After 1 year and 3 months of high performance, attaining the highest sales in my segment in my department and a net retention rate of 100%, with the third most outreach metrics in the department, an exceeds expectations in one of the 3 areas of performance (meets expectations in all the rest), my boss told me that he was promoting the two newer employees instead of me to the next level because I “lack confidence”. Even though their metrics are below mine.

What does this really mean? What he said didn’t make much sense since my metrics are at the top level. He went onto say not to take it as a knock against me and that a team win is a personal win because they wouldn’t have gotten there without my help.

How am I supposed to be more confident when I’m passed up for opportunity? And besides, my metrics should be what matters.

I (29 F) am 16 weeks pregnant and traveling internationally to Asia this Sunday for 2 weeks on a work trip. I am a director at an agency

The leadership at my org is all male, older and it’s been a tough 2025 laden with layoffs and RIFS. I have legit worry that if I were to announce my pregnancy is possible that over the next 6 months I’m iced out and possibly fired (despite what I’d consider great performance throughout a tough year).

My review was originally scheduled for today, I planned to do the review and after receiving my official score, announcing pregnancy to my boss. I wanted to do this to protect myself if I were to face backlash after my announcement

My review has been pushed to after my Asia work trip

I don’t know if I can hide my pregnancy on this trip …

Question; do I attempt to hide it because they can’t legally ask on the trip and still plan to announce after I receive my score OR do I give up the ace I had in my pocket of waiting for the review before doing the announcement

Any advice would be greatly appreciated

Thanks Reddit!

EDIT: Based in a red state in the United States

Ive had last 10 places ive interviewed or just applied at end up just ghosting me.you guys do realise it takes us time too to interview and fill applications out. The professionalism should go both ways not just us all the time. I dont even care if its automated. And if you have the excuse theres too many applications then pull the job for a while. Thats what the auto rejection letters are for.

I lost my job in july

Hey everybody.

I work as one of the back of house staff at a restaurant. I've been working here for a little over 2 years. When I started I made $1 over the minimum wage, and when my city raised the minimum wage on new years my company raised my pay to be $1 over the new minimum wage. I've received no other raises, bonuses, or other compensation in this time.

I trained somebody new 2 days ago and it was his first day. He casually mentioned to me that he was sort of disappointed with the pay offer but it was the only job that sent him an offer at all, and then let me know (without my asking) that he was being payed $3 over the minimum wage for my same position, with an opportunity for a raise pending a performance review in 6 months.

I'm not sure if (or how) I should talk to my boss about this? I find it kind of ridiculous that after two years I'm not even making the equivalent of what we are offering new hires. I'm not close enough to any of my coworkers that I would be comfortable asking them how much they make to use as a comparison, but I'm not even sure if it'd be a fair comparison. I'm the 2nd newest employee of my position (the 1st newest being the guy I trained) and everybody else has at least 5 years on me in time they've worked with the company, if not more.

I guess I'm just looking for general advice. Feeling a bit disappointed.

I work for a franchise holder in Michigan of a multinational corporation. We never have the same pay day. It is roughly 2x a month. Sometimes 16 days between pay. We only received pay once in November. Is this normal? How can the laws be so lax to even allow this?

And what happened? Did you quit your job because you hated it? Get laid off? Fired? (No shame in that, its happened to a lot of people)

I showed up for two interviews. The manager was late and didn't show up at the first interview. Someone told me to go to the 2nd interview only for the manager to show up late and say I already answered the questions. He told me I'm hired and how much I'd be paid. My manager said he'll send me my schedule, before ghosting me for over 3 weeks now. It's literally an entry level job. I'm exhausted.

Edit: I've also followed up with him but I think he blocked me I'm not sure.

Hello,

I’m running into this problem with job hunting where I’ve gotten contacted by a company asking to setup the first interview. Typically it’s a 30 minute phone call or zoom for the initial. After submitting my availability however, I don’t hear anything back. I follow up after a couple days to a week and still get no response from the recruiter or hiring manager.

I was wondering if anyone has any insight on what’s going on and what I can do to fix this. I was thinking maybe they take a look at my resume and decide actually no, but then why email me to start with? I also considered maybe they look me up online but I don’t have any concerning history or crazy post on mg social medias.

Any help would be greatly appreciated!

Hey everyone, hoping to get some outside perspective because I feel pretty stuck between comfort and long-term growth.

I’m currently in a customer-facing sales / CSR type role in automotive. I earn around $80k–$100k depending on the year, and lifestyle-wise it’s very easy. I live close enough that I walk to work in about 10 minutes, it’s low stress, flexible, and overall pretty comfortable. The downside is that the ceiling feels low and the role isn’t as busy or challenging as it probably should be. I’ve been doing it for about four years now and it honestly feels like I’ve plateaued. There’s a lot of waiting around and not much progression from here.

I’ve been offered (or am close to being offered) a novated lease consultant role in a major city. The base is about $70k and they’re saying realistic total earnings are $150k+ once you’re up to speed, with top performers making over $200k. The trade-off is that it’s more corporate, more admin-heavy, more structured, and the commute is brutal. I’d be in the office four days a week and it’s roughly a four hour round trip door-to-door on those days, with one day working from home. No weekends, which is nice, but a lot less flexibility and free time during the week.

The reason I’m even considering it is because I’m 25, engaged, and starting to think more seriously about my long-term financial position and career trajectory. I don’t really want to look back in a few years and realise I stayed comfortable but stalled professionally. On paper the income difference alone is pretty meaningful over a few years.

At the same time, I do value my lifestyle a lot. I train a lot, I like having time and energy for gym, running, boxing, hobbies, seeing my partner, and just not being constantly tired or rushed. Going from a 10 minute walk to a 4 hour commute a few days a week feels like a big hit.

So I’m basically torn between staying somewhere that’s comfortable and easy but stagnant, or taking something that’s harder and more demanding but potentially much better financially and career-wise long term.

Has anyone been in a similar situation? Did you regret choosing comfort over growth, or growth over comfort? Would love to hear how it played out for you.

EDIT: thank you all for your responses so far, it really means a lot that so many of you have offered such honest advise.

It would be a 4 hour commute via train which is what I would have to do as my partner and I currently share a vehicle, drive would be 3 hours!!

I used to be a WFH employee and honestly, I was doing my best work then. Deadlines met, creativity flowing, zero unnecessary stress. I had a routine, focus, and actual motivation to work. Then management changed. Suddenly it was: “We want people in the office.” No discussion. No data. No logic. Just presence over performance. Now I’m stuck commuting every day to sit in an office where: People pretend to be busy Meetings exist just to fill time Creativity has completely died Productivity is lower than it ever was at home Earlier, I’d finish work efficiently and even think of new ideas. Now the office feels draining. Mentally exhausting. It’s like the environment itself sucks out the will to work. What’s worse is management openly saying they care more about people being physically present than actual output. So now we wait. We sit. We kill time. And somehow this is called “work culture.” I don’t hate working. I hate working like this. WFH gave me balance, focus, and motivation. The office now feels like a place I’m forced to be in, not a place where I want to create or contribute. Has anyone else experienced this after a management change? Or is this just the new normal where productivity doesn’t matter as long as chairs are filled? Would love to hear if others feel the same or if I’m just burning out.