Layoffs extend to major arteries

My boss, Bob, thought I was overpaid. He started chipping away at my salary, hoping I’d quit. He even had his brother-in-law, some dude named Chad, lined up to take over my project – a project, by the way, that was about to bring in millions. I didn’t argue. I just left.

Fast forward a few months. Bob’s company was tanking. He was scrambling for investors, practically begging anyone who’d listen. And the bigwig he was kissing up to? Yeah, he was kissing up to me.

It all started when I got back from a business trip. Bob called me into his office for a “chat.”

“Mark,” he started, “the company’s facing some tough times. We need to restructure, streamline our workforce. So, we’re going to have to… reassign you, with a… salary adjustment.”

It took me a second to realize what he was saying. He was trying to lowball me into quitting.

“Tough times?” I thought. My new software was flying off the shelves. We were crushing last year’s numbers. He just didn’t want to pay me what I was worth.

I’d been with the company since the early days, a key player in its growth. Now that things were finally taking off, this is how he treats me? It stung.

Still, I tried to be professional. “The Global Stone software is almost ready for final review. Shouldn't I stick around for the launch and hand things over properly?”

Bob gave me a tight-lipped smile. “No, that’s all taken care of. Don’t you worry about it.”

That’s when it really hit me. I’d poured a year of my life into that project, pulled countless all-nighters. Now, right before the finish line, he pulls me off? He clearly didn't want to pay me the hefty bonus that came with it.

That’s tens of thousands of dollars down the drain. I was furious. “Fine,” I said, my voice shaking. “But I want my bonus from last year's project, and my severance pay. Then I’ll go.”

Bob’s eyes darted around behind his glasses. He put on his best sad puppy dog face. “Mark, the company’s cash-strapped right now. We’re practically broke. Maybe we can… forget about those bonuses?”

Cash-strapped? He just bought a McMansion and took his wife on a shopping spree across Europe. He was lying through his teeth.

“Besides,” he continued, “we’re just reassigning you. If you choose to resign, there’s no severance.”

I almost lost it. He was trying to steal my bonus, cheat me out of last year’s bonus, and now avoid paying severance by forcing me to resign. He was treating me like an idiot.

I thought about my mortgage, my car payment, my daughter about to start kindergarten. I gritted my teeth. “Then I’ll wait until the company has ‘money’ and I get my bonuses.”

Back in my office, there was some guy already sitting there. Chad, Bob’s brother-in-law. Apparently, my office was now his.

Bob walked in, grinning. “Mark, you can sit over there.” He pointed to a cramped desk next to the water cooler and the bathroom.

My stuff was already packed in a box. I carried it over to my new “office” without a word.

Bob clapped his hands. “Alright everyone, I have an anno...