Contractor Gets Revenge After Boss Refuses To Reimburse $100, With Four Words

In business, breaking your word can cost more than cash, it can cost your reputation. A contractor thought he was doing something nice by buying breakfast tacos for a small team, especially after getting the boss’s verbal approval to expense it.

But when that same boss decided to stiff him on the bill and act like nothing happened, the contractor made a mental note for the future.

So, when the tables turned and the boss needed him most, he gave him a perfect dose of his own medicine. Turns out, a $100 mistake can burn bridges that no amount of begging can rebuild.

A contractor, denied $100 for tacos despite verbal approval, quit a major project, throwing the boss’s “get it in writing” excuse back at him

This petty revenge story shows how fragile it is when leadership fails.

According to Dr. Paul White, co-author of The 5 Languages of Appreciation in the Workplace, one of the top drivers of employee loyalty isn’t salary, it’s respect.

“When workers feel disrespected or unappreciated, even minor slights can lead to major disengagement,” White told Inc.. A $100 disagreement might sound trivial, but symbolically, it communicates: I don’t value your time, honesty, or effort.

The Harvard Business Review backs this up. In a 2022 survey, 91% of professionals said they’d rather work for a boss who trusted them over one who paid more but micromanaged or dismissed them. Breaking that trust turns every future request into a negotiation.

What the Redditor did, while petty, was psychologically fair. Organizational psychologist Dr. Adam Grant explains that “reciprocal fairness” is built into human behavior if someone violates your trust, your brain seeks symmetry. Echoing the boss’s own words wasn’t cruelty; it was equilibrium.

It’s also a practical reminder of modern work culture: contractors and freelancers often live by handshake deals that collapse under scrutiny. Business coach Melanie Curtin calls it “casual exploitation” when companies rely on goodwill but deny accountability when it costs them.

So yes, the contractor’s revenge was deliciously petty, but it also illustrated a timeless rule of professionalism: if you want loyalty, don’t nickel-and-dime the people who make your success possible.

Here’s what people had to say to OP:

Many Reddit users cheered OP

These commenters slammed the boss’s entitlement

Some shared similar stories

Some advised

Sometimes, revenge doesn’t need yelling or confrontation. All it takes is remembering someone’s own words and waiting for the perfect moment to repeat them back.

Would you have played it cool like this Redditor, or demanded your taco money upfront?