A supervisor spot had opened up on the night shift, and I was a shoo-in for the job. But a co-worker who had been sleeping with the boss got the nod, even though she’d only been at the plant months while I had years.

Still, I sucked it up and did my job. Half the time I had to instruct her in hers.

Any idea or suggestion of improvement she gave to upper management was a stolen idea. She was trying to seal her space in management heaven.

I found a way to streamline the process that increased output and cut down on overtime without sacrificing quality. Once again, she claimed the idea was her own.

She was showing the big dogs the process, when one of the managers asked a question about how we got around a glitch in the machine’s capabilities. She had no idea, so she said, “I’ll let Dennis explain it. He can explain it better than I can.”

I was nearby setting the machine up and overheard. So I said, “Sorry, guys. I’m on a timeline. This truck goes out in half an hour. I’m sure her explanation will be fine,” and I left to get my job done.

I watched from afar as she struggled to come up with an explanation. It became abundantly clear she had no idea what she was talking about, and that someone else HAD to have come up with the idea.

A couple of managers came up to me later and asked if I knew how to get around the glitch, which I explained in great detail. They nodded, looked at each other, and left.

Fast forward a week. Night shift needed a new supervisor again, as the one who had just got the job got demoted, got angry, and quit. And for some strange reason, I got an office and a raise in pay.