Entrusting employees with managerial responsibilities on top of their own, without the intent of promotion, is like pouring gasoline on an already lit match.
Both lead to disastrous burnouts, especially when a manager says:
‘If you do XYZ, there might be a promotion in it for you.’
The word ‘might’ does a lot of heavy lifting there to absolve managers from following through. While giving employees extra responsibilities can be used as a testing ground for potential promotions, the tactic of “quiet promotions” by managers across all industries can abuse the promise of upward momentum if the requirements are not clear.
By continually pushing their employees to work harder, managers undermine an employee’s professional growth and long-term trust in workplace procedures, especially for those just entering the workforce.
“My first job out of college didn’t give me a lot of direction on how to move up, so I kept accepting any work they gave me,” Emily Allen, a recent Boise State alumnus, said. “I ended up doing way more than what my position asked of me.”
A 2024 study by Frontiers in Psychology found employees tasked beyond their original responsibilities wind up feeling crushed by the amount of tasks piling up around them, causing mental stress and leading to feelings of workplace apathy.
Extra responsibilities without a system in place to document employee progression or compensation is exploitative.
At Allen’s ad agency, client correspondence typically fell to her manager and despite not having the title of one, other responsibilities began to creep into Allen’s workload as well. Her manager gave her the impression that the extra tasks were an indication of a promotion, one that never came.
Her experience differs from what career progression should look like, clear and defined mentorships are vital for an employee’s early progression and long-term career aspirations.
Some companies are famously not transparent about their promotion requirements. The opaqueness of their standards absolves them of liability when employees feel slighted in the promotion process.
“I’ve been in a lot of retail jobs since graduating high-school and it’s usually all the same,” said Alexander Ramirez, a 22-year-old retail employee at the Fairview Idaho Youth Ranch. “My managers always see me working hard but it only gets rewarded with more work outside of my job description and never a promotion.”
Ramirez worked in retail stores such as Walmart and Target, where he constantly put in overtime to help out wherever he could, even taking up some of his manager’s “Team Lead” responsibilities. He thought his “above and beyond” attitude he displayed gave him a shot at an open management position — only to not even be offered an interview for the role.
“When I work that hard and get looked over like that, I feel frustrated and like I have to move on to the next job,” said Ramirez.
The promotion process, or lack thereof, is a large contributor to higher turnover rates among younger employees. A 2025 report by Randstad, a career development agency, found Gen Z’s tendency to hop from one job to another is directly connected to a “drive for growth.” The uncertainty for advancement drives away young talent in many fields.
However, older generations tend to argue the extra work is meant to prove employee readiness for the next step in a career path. Even when that readiness is put on display, it does not guarantee feedback or recognition from management.
“At Starbucks, I got into their mentorship program to become an assistant manager,” said Jacquelyn Kami, a 24-year-old barista. “But after jumping through all their hoops for over a year, I still wasn’t progressing and [management] weren’t being clear on why.”
Kami displayed proper initiative by applying for the mentorship program designed to provide Starbucks employees with a clear pathway for advancement. Despite this, management’s lack of follow-through and communication led to her eventual apathy toward her job.
“One day, I just stopped trying as hard,” Kami said. “I didn’t want more tasks to keep piling up, which honestly made me feel worse for a bit but it was what I needed.”
Ultimately, transparency from management is sorely lacking in the promotion process. When expectations are not clear while responsibilities continue to pile up, it’s no wonder young employees continue to burn out and “job-hop” in search of better opportunities. Employers must implement and follow through on clear advancement pathways, otherwise they risk further extinguishing the future of their workforce.
