In one of the books dedicated to the beginning of the WWI, a long list of peculiar diplomatic hints is given, indicating an imminent severance of relations between countries. Choosing a brand of wine at a diplomatic reception, selecting dishes for the menu, the polite refusal by the foreign minister's wife to the country's ambassador over a dance invitation... the list goes on for a long time, but such messages are used not only by countries, but also by companies.
The author of the story we are going to tell you today, the user u/vorrhin, was almost sure that management wanted to get rid of them. Behind their backs, of course, while declaring to their face some wonderful and obvious phrases about a friendly team and common goals. So let's figure this story out together.
The author of the post is a social worker and recently switched to a nonprofit
Image credits: Kindel Media (not the actual photo)
At the interview, the manager verbally assured them that their rate would stay at the current level for at least 2 upcoming years
Image credits: vorrhin
Moreover, the higher-ups announced an upcoming 3% raise for all the employees
Image credits: Christina Morillo (not the actual photo)
Image credits: vorrhin
But the very next day the HR offered the author a new agreement, thereby accepting a 9% cut
Image credits: Skylar Kang (not the actual photo)
Image credits: vorrhin
The employee was incredibly upset and was sure that the managers simply wanted them gone, so they started to look for a new job instantly
So, the Original Poster (OP) is a social worker and just transitioned to a nonprofit. According to the author of the post, it was a little boring, but the pay was good. Then the grant for OP's project ended and they moved on to another. They crossed over with a joyful feeling, largely because management had previously announced a 3% raise for everyone. However, reality, as often happens, turned out to be much more painful, and OP's joy was premature.
Literally the next day, the author received a letter from HR offering them a “change of status form” accepting a 9% pay cut. This was all the more surprising to the original poster, since all the other employees in the office had maintained their raise, and earlier, during the interview, they had been verbally assured that their current rate would remain for at least two years.
The author tried to enlist the support of two supervisors, but no one advocated for them. The employee was even denied the opportunity to receive at least a 6% cut, taking into account the previously announced raise. Meanwhile, as the OP claims, the office is bursting with recently purchased office furniture, brand new equipment and other stuff, “purchased because they needed to spend down at the end of the fiscal year.”
Well, the author claims that they would be ready to leave on the spot, but they value stability too much, and they do not yet have enough resources to look for a new job immediately after quitting. But this attitude of the higher-ups has done one important thing - the organization has lost an employee, because, in their own words, the author now spends most of their time on Reddit and Indeed. And as soon as they find a new job, they will immediately quit.
By the way, some great news on the run - in a short but joyful update, the original poster admits that recently they received an invitation to an interview for a job that would pay $25K more than they are currently getting. Well as they say, what goes around comes around...
Image credits: Karolina Grabowska (not the actual photo)
Why is the original poster almost certain that management wanted to get rid of them? The thing is that they themselves expressed a similar point of view in response to a question from one of the commenters. In the author's own words, they're autistic ("the kind of autistic where no one will believe me 'because I look so normal'") and sometimes make social or political mistakes without even realizing what they did. Therefore, the author presumes that someone from the higher-ups might simply not like them, thereby making them another victim of the office “Game of Thrones.”
The author also says that they did an excellent job on the previous project, and management representatives personally invited them to stay on and move to another project. However, in this case, perhaps the company simply wants to avoid the probable consequence of paying unemployment if they simply fired them? Who knows? Moreover, now the author has neither the desire nor the time to understand all the intricacies of office politics. All they want is to do their job decently and get no less decently paid for it.
Well, people in the comments almost unanimously sided with the original poster, giving various tips on how to take revenge on a previous employer and what to do next. The author rejects all plans for revenge (even the pettiest), but they definitely liked one of the commenters' idea to “take the PTO and never come back.” "Ooh, nice! I like this option," the original poster wrote. And all we can do now is to wish them good luck in their new job.
However, you don’t have to look far for examples of ugly behavior on the part of employers - here are literally two recent posts of ours. For example, this new hotshot manager got rid of a “not flexible enough” employee, thus making an expensive mistake that even cost them their job soon after. But this tale is way sadder - an employee was ready to return to work after an injury, but was informed that they already had a replacement. And if something similar has happened to you at work (and I’m almost sure it has...), then please feel free to share your own tales in the comments below.
People in the comments sided with the employee almost unanimously, exceling in wit with some petty (and not that petty) revenge plans too
