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15-year-old Mae alleged that after completing a 7-hour babysitting shift, she was shocked when the children’s mother, Marianne, refused to pay her
When Mae contacted Marianne to follow up on her unpaid $150 wage, she was stonewalled. (Photo: Reddit/@MightUsual421)
A 15-year-old girl’s babysitting experience has ignited a fierce debate over workplace fairness, teenage autonomy, and religious double standards, after she was denied payment for a full day’s work simply because of her clothes.
The teenager, identified only as Mae, shared her ordeal on Reddit’s #AmIOverreacting sub, where thousands weighed in with support and disbelief. A regular babysitter in her neighbourhood, Mae had taken a routine job watching children for a family she had worked with several times before. But this time, things ended differently.
Mae, who lives in the United States and comes from a Jewish background, said the family she was working for identifies as devoutly Catholic and holds conservative values. Despite a history of cordial interactions, Mae alleged that after completing a 7-hour babysitting shift, she was shocked when the children’s mother, Marianne, refused to pay her.
The reason? According to Marianne, it was Mae’s “inappropriate clothing”.
Mae explained she had arrived in a tank top, sweatpants, and a sweatshirt, removing the sweatshirt only when the children asked her to come play outdoors. There was nothing revealing or inappropriate, Mae clarified in her post, adding that she was careful to be respectful around the family.
See the viral post:
When she contacted Marianne to follow up on her unpaid $150 wage, she was stonewalled. Marianne reportedly justified the non-payment by saying she did not feel “comfortable” rewarding someone who wore clothes that conflicted with her family’s values.
Mae didn’t back down.
She reached out again, firmly stating, “…$50 honestly does not feel like enough money for 2 kids and 7 hours. I understand you do not feel okay paying me full price, and I’d be willing to do half of what I normally charge.”
With no response from Marianne, Mae eventually asked her own mother to intervene via email, but still received silence. It wasn’t until Mae sent one final message that the situation shifted. Marianne’s husband ultimately transferred the full $150, and with that, Mae vowed never to babysit for the family again.
But the fallout wasn’t just financial. Mae also revealed troubling remarks from the family that bordered on the personal. She claimed that Marianne once said she saw “the image of her own mother” in Mae, a comment the teen described as “disturbing” and “not normal”.
In her final message to the family, Mae told Marianne that she would not go to her house again because of the way she was treated and things Marianne said about her parents. She added that she would warn her peers against accepting work from them.
Reddit users overwhelmingly supported Mae, calling the family’s actions “manipulative”, “disrespectful”, and “exploitative”. One user wrote, “If they had an issue with her attire, they should’ve addressed it before the job began. Making her work and then refusing to pay is outright cheating.”
Many commenters also highlighted the broader issue: how young girls, especially teenagers trying to earn an income, are too often subjected to judgment, control, and exploitation in ways that boys are not.
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