“I’ll Pay For The Food That I Ordered”: Woman Refuses To Pay For Someone Else’s More Expensive Food

There's this thing called "paying it forward," when a person at a drive-thru covers the cost of the order placed by the customer behind them. This results in the recipient having a delightful surprise that their food is now free, which often encourages them to repeat the move for the next in line.

However, as one person pointed out in the comments under her video, Jordan Reynolds Bailey was asked to "pay it backward." In a now-viral TikTok clip, the woman explained that when she recently got to the McDonald's pickup window, the employee read an entirely different order out.

After some back and forth, Jordan realized that the worker was trying to get her to pay for their own mistake.

More info: TikTok

In defense of the cashier, we can say that everyone makes mistakes, including when they're on the job. And especially when they don't really care about it. A Gallup survey found that in 2022, only 32% of employees were engaged with their work.

Additionally, the share of workers found to be "actively disengaged" has risen in recent years, while the share of those in the middle — the ones considered "not engaged" — has remained about the same.

"There's a growing disconnect between employee [and] employer. You could almost equate it to employees becoming a little bit more like gig workers," says Jim Harter, chief workplace scientist at Gallup and author of the new report.

Gig work by its nature doesn't lend itself to loyalty or long-term relationships between employees and employers, meaning that workers may feel less motivated to put their best selves forward.

"In the context of high-performance customer service, retaining your best people, that's a problem," Harter adds.

Having actively disengaged workers can be highly detrimental to companies because, according to Harter, they often share their negativity with other people.

And McDonald's doesn't have the best record of keeping its employees happy. For instance, a few years back, its workers in 19 U.S. cities asked the Occupational Safety and Health Administration to inspect their workplaces, alleging they've been injured because of a lack of training and protective equipment. Not to mention the millions the company has spent to block raises for its workers.

HR specialist from east London Nicola Greenbrook suggests the following steps after messing up at work:

Clear your head. Stop, take a deep breath and consider what’s actually happened (i.e. did you email the person intended or the whole company?). In your eagerness for damage control, realize that immediate actions could make things worse and it seem like you've lost control.

Face up to it. Don't run away, hide in the loos or blame the whole thing on others. Be upfront, apologize, but don't over do it. Present a clearly thought-out solution and display a calm and professional exterior.

Try not to catastrophize. Don't let panic or imposter syndrome overwhelm you.

Talk to a friend or loved one. What feels like the end of the world this morning could make for a terrific anecdote by the evening. Swapping 'you'll never guess what I did today' tales can offer reassurance, a reality check, and even a giggle.

Show em' what you’re made of. Don't let a misstep derail you. Work extra hard over the coming days to restore your confidence.

Check yourself. If you're keep making mistakes at work, there might be something else at play. Are you overloaded with a heavy work-life balance or anxious about something in your personal life? Or are you bored, taking your eye off the ball?

The customer shouldn't be paying out of their own pocket to cover your mistake. So after the McDonald's employee messed up the order, maybe they should've contacted their manager to try and fix it before pushing Jordan into a corner?