Question

1 he has a lot of nerve asking for a raise when he is the company laziest worker

Answer 1

The answer is pluck
In this particular context, the nerve that the worker has to ask for the raise could even be considered a courageous effort. Dumb, but courageous.
In the context of literature, the word pluck could be use to describe someone who brave enough to put themeslves in unpleasant situation in order to gain a specific outcome.