I have been debating about leaving my job over the last year for a few reasons. The typical, over worked underpaid, shifting responsibilities, and general stress to my own mental health.
In January my partner was laid off, and fearing the unforeseen financial gap this could mean I was gunning for a promotion. I did get the promotion and the compensation did not balance out the major change in workload. I had regrets but i was trying to ensure that we had as much extra money as possible. I asked if there was any room for negotiation but was told it was pretty much no room to discuss it. So for the first 3/4 months of the year had lean into the financial crunch that everyone was feeling. Not doing so hot but partner landed a job, but due to that and a few other life events my credit cards maxed out and I was really playing a game of robbing peter to pay paul. Eventually realizing I needed to go into debt consolidation to be able to financially recover without playing this long game just extending the credit.
Then my silver lining came. They wanted to start doing performance reviews. Everyone was behind but i was doing a really solid chuck of work. I had spent a good a making of my own time make sure that my self review was accurate, thoughtful and most importantly a written advocacy statement for why I deserved a raise. Review time came and I was notified that I would not be considered for any pay bumps.
I was promoted during the newly established review cycle which would prevent me from getting a raise. If I had gotten a modest increase I’d have been making the same if I didn’t take the promotion in the beginning of the year. Circumstances were tight, so I understand I made that choice but the visibility I had in to this review period and company policies were not exactly defined when I took the promotion.
Now, I genuinely believe I would have been in the position for an increase that would have been more than modest and I potentially could have been making more than I am currently while doing less. I’m not talking out of my ass here. This is based on the evaluations of other team members and discussions we’ve had regarding their review cycle and where they landed with their pay increases. Based on that it would have been about 6-8 percent.
I’ve had several discussions with my managers, director, the Director of HR but nothing came out of that.
One thing I was able to rely on was our monthly food benefit. It’s not much by any means. Like a couple hundred bucks. But that makes a huge difference on the monthly budget.
Today I was notified they would be taking this benefit away.
I know this is a weird thing to feel like the straw that broke the camels back but I quit one of my old jobs because my boss wouldn’t give me a .25 cent an hour increase.
Anyway, rant over.