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Have you ever been curious about how much your co-workers make? It’s normal to wonder if they’re getting more than you. But what would you do if that information simply fell into your lap and you realized that you were being significantly underpaid?

That’s exactly what happened to one worker. He shared the story on Reddit, explaining that his boss meant to send him a different file but had accidentally sent one that contained all his co-workers’ salary information. 

A boss accidentally sent an employee a spreadsheet with the entire staff’s salary.

“Turns out I’m making 15k less than my coworker who does the exact same job,” he wrote. They were both hired within months of each other, the worker argued, and have similar experience. So it’s not like his colleague was more qualified.

Oladimeji Ajegbile | Pexels

To make it worse, a guy who started last year is already making more than the worker as well. “I’ve been here 2 years and got ‘great reviews’ every time,” he wrote. “Apparently that translated to 2% raises while they’re bringing people in at way higher rates.”

The worker then wrote that he’s updating his résumé, indicating that he might look for a different job under these conditions. Before he does, though, some people in the comments advised him that this might actually be the boss trying to help him get a raise.

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Knowing how much other people in similar positions make is essential for a salary raise.

It may sound odd that the boss actually sent a file with pay information on purpose, but it’s possible. Some people in the comments argued that they are bosses themselves and that, at times, they had to hint to certain workers that they could be asking for more money.

The reason behind that is companies often have a limit to how much they’re willing to pay you, but that doesn’t mean that’s how much you’ll get. Say a company is willing to pay you $100k max for your job, but during the offer, they only mention $90k. If you don’t bargain and accept $90k, that’s how much you’ll get.

Based on that, the Harvard Division of Continuing Education emphasized the need to do research before asking for a raise. It’s essential to find the salary range for your job position, level of experience, and location. On top of that, you can research within your company by talking with the human resources department or your colleagues about salaries.

But the thing is, the boss sort of already did that for the worker. Whether it was on purpose or not, the fact is that he now knows he could be getting paid more. He could either find another job or ask for a raise. 

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There are effective ways to ask for a pay raise.

One key factor when asking for a raise is to discuss the projects you’ve been working on in the company over the last 12 months, according to the University of Texas at Austin. “What you want to be able to communicate effectively to your supervisor is that the scope of your responsibilities has become more complex or that the number of tasks you now own has increased by a large percentage.”

This could be true for the worker, since he said he’s been getting great reviews and has been at the job for two years. So perhaps this is an amazing opportunity to ask for a better salary. 

It’s hard to say whether or not the boss sent them that file with salary information on purpose, but it might have been a catalyst for the worker to get paid better. If he’s going to start the job search process anyway, why not ask for a raise and see what happens?

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Matt Machado is a writer studying journalism at the University of Central Florida. He covers relationships, psychology, celebrities, pop culture, and human interest topics.