A retired pipefitter at a Beaumont diner told me to turn down a $12k raise, and he was right

Viola Gibson · 2026-09-16T22:10:04.327005+00:00

I was 26 and working turnaround jobs in Beaumont, Texas when a guy named Ray, who'd been welding for 38 years, heard me bragging about a $12,000 raise to go run a crew. He put his coffee down and asked how many guys I'd be over and how many of them were older than me. When I said eight guys and most of them were, he just said 'you're buying a raise with your reputation.' I took the job anyway, and four months later I was back on a single hand after two of those guys quit because I didn't know how to run a crew yet. That conversation sticks with me more than any class I ever took. So my take is this: a raise that puts you over people you can't lead yet is a trap, not a step up. Has anyone here turned down money because the role wasn't right, and did it cost you or save you?

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A retired pipefitter at a Beaumont diner told me to turn down a $12k raise, and he was right | Career Advice - Vivisector