Whatever industry you work in, it’s natural to take pride in what you do. However, what’s equally important, as pointed out by TikToker Laniya Peterson, is making sure your employers don’t take advantage of you.
In a TikTok now viewed over 200,000 times as of Sunday, the service industry worker said that when it comes to working in the field, there’s one key bit of advice: “Do not be the hardest worker at your job.”
“Do not be the f*cking best worker because they’re gonna start expecting you to do sh*t that they don’t expect from other workers,” she explained, adding that those in their teens and early 20s are more likely to fall into this trap. “And they’re not going to try and pay you more. Be heavy on, ‘Do I get paid for this?’ If you ask me anything above my paygrade, I’m gonna say, ‘Do I get paid for this?’”
Although asking these questions might feel intimidating, Peterson was adamant that “everyone should be doing this,” as she pointed out that she knows “too many people doing way too much sh*t at their job, but they’re not getting paid for.”
“Like why are you as a crew member f*cking worrying about getting a shift covered, or you’re in the work group chat?” she asked. Peterson said that when you are in group chats like this, “they’re sending problems” that aren’t really meant to be your problem.
@monkeedc00chi3 #serviceindustry #rant ♬ original sound – Laniya Peterson
“Why is that your problem?” she asked. “You’re not getting paid to be a manager, and if you are a manager, I feel like you’re only getting paid $1 or $2 more than the crew members to be dealing with hella more sh*t.”
Peterson added that it’s likely that the “bosses at the top are doing the bare minimum,” and so it doesn’t make sense for others below that pay grade to put more effort in than they are.
“I’m doing the minimum required work, and I’m still getting f*cking paid,” she concluded. “I’m never being the hardest worker again because you’re disposable[…] they don’t care about you.”
For the most part, viewers were fully in agreement with Peterson, with several current and former service industry workers admitting that bosses expected them to do the jobs of multiple employees without extra compensation.
“Some managers will take your kindness as a weakness,” one former service industry worker warned.
The Daily Dot’s reached out to Peterson for comment via TikTok comment.
