pick/take up the slack

idiom

: to provide or do something that is missing or not getting done

The manager has to take up the slack when employees don't do their jobs correctly.

When he didn't get the pay raise he was expecting, he had to take another job to pick up the slack for more money.

Examples of pick/take up the slack in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

And now, the search for a new rally animal to pick up the slack begins, writes Paul Sullivan. —Chicago Tribune, 8 Apr. 2025

With Antetokounmpo out, the Bucks will look to turn to the likes of Kyle Kuzma, Taurean Prince, and Chris Livingston to help pick up the slack. —John W. Dean, MSNBC Newsweek, 7 Apr. 2025

Multiple companies have looked to Series Mania, not Mip London, to take up the slack of MipTV Cannes’ demise. —John Hopewell, Variety, 28 Mar. 2025

Kincaid missed three games with knee and collarbone injuries, but Knox didn’t pick up the slack. —Tim Graham, New York Times, 27 Mar. 2025