So I work overnight shift at an IT company and get paid a shift differential for doing so, a differential that comes out to about $100. That shift differential is pretty much the only reason I'm barely able to pay my bills as a single parent.
I like my job, the work I do, my team, and even my old boss AND new current boss, who have always been good to me. I've been extremely loyal as I find my work fulfilling, despite the pay.
Three weeks ago this bit me in the ass after my HR department forgot to pay me my shift differential and I had to choose between buying groceries or paying rent in full. I talked to my property manager and was assured they'd work with me so I bought food for me and my daughter, reached out to HR about the discrepancy, told me they had made a mistake and would be paying me what they owe in two weeks.
Two. Weeks.
The landlord didn't like that. I've now been given a notice of non-renewal for my agreement as a result and now I have to move, even though I'm now caught up with rent two weeks later. The last time I was late on rent was because I was hospitalized and it took 10 weeks to receive my short term disability, and I still owe hospital bills. Because of this I was already on a final warning and I explained all of this to my HR department.
I am devastated but not surprised that I am completely blameless in this situation but both my landlord and HR department have dedicated themselves to making me suffer the sole consequences of their actions. It was just $100 to them, but to me it forced me to choose starvation or homelessness.
I'm sick of landlords and I'm sick of companies that allow their employees to face either. I did everything right, gave them full availability, took the crappiest shifts and worked 70 hours a week because I was forced to “pull myself up by my bootstraps” to make ends meet, and I still got completely and utterly fucked.