Originally Posted by Jughead135

The OP is guilty of using, and you guys are guilty of reacting to, a bit of military slang that evidently doesn’t translate very well.

A “bum” is someone who hangs out in a particular place (job) for a longer time than might be expected for someone seeking advancement/improvement in that same spot in life (company), all the while improving their prospects for entering a new station in life (better/more desirable job). While doing so, the “bum” is taking opportunities whence they come to pick up scraps to live on (students to teach / hours to log). Cf. “Guard Bum.”