@picandor i think you gotta have a mix of not being taken advantage of and also going above and beyond in the parts of the job you know you are good at. i've earned respect doing that where i can see that some coworkers really don't like the bosses because they don't know how to put their foot down.

for the most part i think my roommates are pretty good at it. they're good friends with their bosses because they are dependable and can get shit done, but have also earned respect by not just being a doormat. we actually got some of our furniture from one of their bosses and they used to go play poker with him on the weekends xD one of the guys has said that he's the only person his boss actually likes on his shift, and he has been able to go from working graves to alternating night shifts making the same graves pay because of that.

there is a difference between ass kissing--being used as a dirty dish rag--and being dependable but firm.