I opened my little shop late last year and it's been doing well. At first, I was doing the books myself, but as we started getting busier, I realized I needed to hire someone to do them for me. I only needed someone for 10-15 hours a week since it was a small business with only nine workers, myself included. I hired you six months ago, while you were still in school pursuing your accounting degree. You were a good little worker. But then you got a full-time job in some accounting position about a month ago. To still keep you on with me as well, I got you to put in your 10-15 hours from home and on the weekends (rather than during the week, since this new job was Mon-Fri, 9-5). Unfortunately, lately you've been just putting in 5-7 hours a week and are falling drastically behind. I just found out this weekend there were some invoices from July that are still not in our accounting system! WTF! And you don't seem concerned at all about it. Then you have the audacity to request to have Saturday off working for me because you have to go in to count inventory at your other job for a few hours. Outraged I said "You work for me on Saturdays. You need to work HERE on Saturday because you're falling behind! I hired you before this other company did, and I've been accommodating to you with switching your hours around so it didn't conflict with your other job. Why are you putting your job with me on a back burner?" To which you snarkily replied, "You're paying me $10.75/hr, they're paying $14.50. Do the math." I was dumbfounded. How dare you talk to your boss like that! You ungrateful little brat, if it wasn't for the job I gave you before you graduated, you probably wouldn't have gotten this other job because you wouldn't have had any experience for them to consider you! I'd give you a raise if you would get your damn work done. I'm sorry, I run a small business and I can't afford to pay you $14.50 an hour like the big cats can. I get you'd want to be paid more, but you made a commitment. How about keeping that commitment? Is that type of thing lost on young people these days? 'Fraid so. I'm giving you one more chance, and if you don't get this shit caught up, I'm gonna hunt for another bookkeeper who will do the freaking job! —Small Biz Owner