Who should we blame — the reason we have to complain or the complainer? If people say they’re struggling, is there any room for pushback? Clearly, there’s some room and people are furious over a now-deleted TikTok posted to the Antiwork forum on Reddit, where an ‘out of touch’ user posted about living ‘paycheck to paycheck’ on her six-figure combined salary with her partner. The Antiwork, or r/antiwork, thread of Reddit is a place for users to unload all of their work-related stories — from ignorant coworkers to workplace horror stories, it’s a forum to jokingly suggest “unemployment for all”. RELATED: Man Throws Wife & Kids Out After She Questions Him About Being Out Late — He Refuses To Answer Because He Pays The Bills
After complaining about ‘struggling’ with a 120k salary, this TikToker received some serious backlash.
“Why am I still,” the woman emphasizes, “living paycheck to paycheck? WHY?” In a TikTok from January 9th, this TikTok user took to her audience to describe the audacity of the economy in making her and her partner’s life difficult — with their shared $120,000 salary. “My job pays a decent amount of money. Like, very median. Very average. But, I should be able to live on it — it’s a good salary.” Viewers seem to be blinded by a mention of 6 figures as they destroy this woman for her ignorance in the comments — but, she clearly mentions that 120k is her ‘combined’ salary. “People are missing the point entirely.” one comment criticizes in the Reddit comments. “She’s complaining about the fact that six figures isn’t even enough to live off of which is valid because that’s insane.” “We should be okay. We should be set,” she continues in her video, talking about the insanity of discomfort while making her salary. But, many TikTok and Reddit comments alike seem to be disgusted at this woman’s perspective on ‘struggle.’ “Why are we both living paycheck to f—ing paycheck?” she asks over and over again – aggravating TikTok viewers with every mention. RELATED: Bartender & Mom-Of-One Posts Photo Of $9 Paycheck For 70 Hours Of Work To Explain The Importance Of Tipping
‘This is not sustainable,’ the TikToker mentions about her ‘paycheck to paycheck’ lifestyle.
“I’ve started to dread going to the grocery store to buy f—ing tinfoil,” she yells, referencing insane inflation hits to grocery store prices. “How are people supposed to find a place to live?” she asks shortly after talking about the inability to build savings, make investments, or buy a home with her paychecks. “How are we supposed to continue to eat?” she yells at the camera after talking about her last $70 ‘essentials’ grocery run. With a sense of impending doom, the user continues to speak on how difficult it is for her to grocery shop, or drive around, but comments are enraged. “The delivery of this video,” one comment writes, “could absolutely be better.” RELATED: Stay-At-Home Wife Gets Backlash For Saying Husband Will Have To Pay For’ The Luxury Of Having Her Available 24/7’
Even though she complained about her struggles, she also referenced the vulnerabilities of others.
While many of the comments seem hyper-focused on the first half of the woman’s TikTok, a few others back her up — defending her by bringing up the last half. “Forget about me,” the still upset woman brings up, “because we’re still living…it’s not as horrible as it could be.” “What about these young kids trying to start a life — trying to get out of their parent’s house and be independent adults? They CAN’T.” the video echoes. Many comments suggest that it’s just this narrative that should be taken seriously from the woman’s video — even if it came across in a strange way. ‘If you need more than the most basic money management skills to live off of $120k, it’s absolutely, 100%, totally, and completely not your fault,” one comment points out. “It’s f—ing frustrating and obviously unsustainable. I’m really f—ing sorry about the people that actually make minimum wage in this country and about all the future adults that will have to deal with this,” another comment assures. RELATED: Woman Claims She Was Denied Service At A Restaurant Because She Was With A ‘Non-Tipping’ Friend
Some comments seem misdirected in their rage against this woman and her paycheck.
With a deflated and unattainable American Dream, her concerns are surely not invalid — but, for many, trigger words like ‘paycheck to paycheck’ can be misleading. “Well, that’s called living above your means, sweetheart,” one comment writes, “I make roughly 38k a year. My girlfriend makes about 20k doing part-time, and we’re happy as happy can be and living very comfortably in these trying times.” Many comments make very similar assumptions — another comment reads, “Anybody making $120k a year who is only responsible for providing for themselves should have no trouble saving a significant portion of their salary. My suspicion is she’s buying luxuries she can’t actually afford.” Another important perspective from a few comments suggests the diversity in spending — whether from location, family status, dietary restrictions, disabilities, etc. Upset at her situation and upset at the situations of those around her, the woman ends her video simply saying, “This country is going to burn to the f—ing ground.” RELATED: Stay-At-Home Mom Asks If She’s Wrong Threatening To Drop Baby At Husband’s Office After He Didn’t Do Chores
In a new TikTok, she asks ‘what’s wrong?’ with people amidst the ‘disgusting’ hate directed at her deleted video.
“I just wanted to rant for a second,” the upset woman said, starting her new video, “What the h— is wrong with y’all?” RELATED: ‘Baffled’ DoorDash Driver Leaves Note For Customer After Their Tip Made Him Cry In an effort to clear any misconceptions and defend herself against claims of ignorance, she begins to clarify what she meant when she posted her original TikTok. “I cannot imagine how badly everybody else around me is struggling,” she admits openly. “My video was not me saying, ‘Oh, my life is so hard with the money that I make’, it was saying ‘I cannot imagine how my peers are struggling’ trying to raise children on a single person’s salary.” ‘Obscene’ is what she characterizes the hate directed at her as — upset not only at people’s misguided opinion about her but also upset that people would comment such ‘disgusting’ assumptions about her. While it’s always important to support when someone struggles, it’s also important to understand the severity, and as always – check your privilege. Even as wealth inequality and job insecurity rise, the problems of the middle class are not exactly following the same trends as the cohorts below. As comments point out under this woman’s video, don’t let your privilege completely blind you — while you might be missing out on an emergency savings fund or an investment profile, others are missing a meal. RELATED: Man Explains The Unique Way He Taught His Daughter To Understand The ‘Importance’ Of A Dollar Zayda Slabbekoorn is a news and entertainment writer who focuses on pop culture analysis and human interest stories. Catch up with them on Instagram or TikTok.
