Well this is a life lesson learned: don't mess with upper management. What they are doing is exploiting their workforce (I mean c'mon a guy saves them $5000/mo and he gets a $50 pizza party?) and the only thing you can do is privately share your discontent behind their backs. Most companies are not open to disruption especially by petty labor.
Before you get a management position, if someone around you challenges your ideas or critiques things you do, you deal with it. After you get a management position, you fire them.
