NEED TO KNOW
- A man helped get his parents’ business off the ground, but now they call him “selfish” for wanting to be paid a livable wage
- His parents opened a cafe when he was in college, and he contributed his own time, money and labor to the business
- The man took to Reddit to voice his frustrations and get outside opinions
For five years, a young man poured everything he had into his family’s small-town cafe — time, labor, even his college savings. Now, at 26, he’s turning to Reddit for perspective after reaching a breaking point.
The cafe was a family dream. His parents purchased the building when he was 21, and he helped transform it, installing insulation, hanging drywall, and painting the walls. Back then, he was in college, juggling studies and unpaid shifts.
“I started working here when I was going to college. Anytime I had free time, I would be here working,” he writes in his post. “None of the time I was getting paid.”
When money was tight, he gave what he could. He handed over college savings, took out student loans, and even gave them his COVID stimulus checks, including the enhanced $600 weekly unemployment payments during the pandemic.
“Around the time I was in college my family was hard on cash. So any extra money I had from college was given to them. I took out student loans, they are now paying them,” he says. “One of the requirements for a class was to have a paid internship.”
After graduation, the cafe became his full-time job. But the compensation remained shockingly low. “I work here 6 days a week for 47 hours a week,” he shares. “I make about $40 in tips each week. And my parents pay me maybe $400 a month.”
He lives at home, but his financial support is lacking. His car hasn’t run in over two years. Though his parents cover the insurance, he can’t afford repairs. He contributes to groceries, buys produce for the shop with his own money, and even maintains their rental properties using equipment he purchased himself.
“I mow and maintain all 4 properties that they own on a mower that I bought,” he adds. “They did not help.”
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His unpaid work extended beyond the cafe. He helped renovate his parents’ home and built them an addition. Still, when he raises concerns about money, he says he’s met with dismissal. “They treat me like I am ungrateful,” he writes. “They say that they pay me very well.”
Eventually, he gave them an ultimatum: either he starts receiving a proper paycheck, or he walks. “It got to a breaking point where I told them that I either need to get a paycheck or I will look for a different job and be done,” he shares.
In response, his parents offered a compromise — letting him renovate one of their buildings to start his own business. But they still expect him to work at the cafe while launching his venture.
That, he says, is not sustainable. “Come June I will no longer be working at the cafe,” he wrote. “My parents say I’m being selfish, but other people say what I’m doing is more than reasonable.”
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