An Instagram post shared by @georgesternleadership has given rise to a conversation over workplace compensation and whether employers can expect salaried workers to consistently take on extra hours without additional support.
The clip was about workplace “red flags” and employee-manager dynamics and featured a text conversation between an employee and a manager about long workweeks and increased responsibilities. In it, the former asked for compensation.
The employee tells their manager they had worked "61 hours in one week and 58 hours the previous week," which is why they said that they are asking to discuss either "workload scope or compensation."
“That’s a lot of hours,” the manager says at first, but then asks where the hours are logged. When the employee says they track them personally, the manager says, “Salary doesn’t mean unlimited.”
The manager thus means that salaried employees are paid for completing the job rather than for hours in this video.
Putting in extra hours should mean extra pay, not extra taxes. With no tax on overtime, workers keep more of what they earn. It’s time hard work pays off the way it should. pic.twitter.com/XMTuTpXqS5
— Congressman Rob Bresnahan Jr. (@RepBresnahan) July 9, 2025
Next, the employee said the role was originally structured around a 40-hour workweek. But after the team downsized by two and those roles weren't backfilled, their plate expanded to nearly 61 hours a week. On that note, the manager brought up workplace loyalty and described the situation as a temporary “season.” They also noted that employees who push through difficult periods are the ones who get remembered in the long term.
Consequently, the employee pointed out that compensation had been frozen, noting that this continuous "season" had already dragged on for 14 months.
According to the clip, the manager later offered to bring donuts for the team as a gesture of appreciation.
Most Instagram users say that food or gestures are not substitutes for compensation. “I don’t want to be remembered. I want to be compensated,” one wrote. Another joked, “I’ll be sure to ask the bank if I can pay my mortgage with memories.”
A commenter also shared that they had worked themselves into the hospital before leaving a job that later required multiple hires to replace them. Others criticized what they described as a workplace culture that treats employees’ personal time as an unlimited resource. “Employers have a weird expectation that employees think work is life,” one wrote.
Commentary: Why Pushing Employees to Work Longer Is Bad for Business https://t.co/X5LllKuzxX
— U.S. News & World Report (@usnews) December 1, 2025
According to the U.S. Department of Labor, salaried employees are entitled to overtime pay depending on factors such as job duties, salary level, and classification under the Fair Labor Standards Act. So, not all salaried workers are exempt from overtime protections.
Editor's Note: The Daily Dot could not independently verify the events shown in the Instagram post. The details above are based on the content shared by the creator
