Link to original post: https://www.reddit.com/r/careerguidance/comments/suee03/should_i_accept_the_counter_offer/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=ios_app&utm_name=iossmf
I went into work last Thursday with every intention of saying no to the counter offer that was presented to me. I told my manager no, I told my managers manager no but they kept pushing me. I was in their office for about an hour each (2 hours total) and every time I said no they kept coming back with how great of an opportunity it was, how much I was leaving the department in a lurch etc. so I caved and said I’d stay.
They say great, they’re excited to develop me etc.
Friday morning I came in and immediately I find out that the promotion that was promised to me will not be on paper, I just have to “trust” my managers manager that he will promote me and give me the raise come somewhere between May – July (at first he said June but then he started changing months lol, red flag).
I find out that the department that I was promised to develop and build has no room in the budget to add head count and I would have to duke it out with another manager to see if I could take roles away from his department to add to mine (what manager would ever give up resources lol).
Lastly because I am the last person in our small company who understands the ERP system I would have to take on about 20 hours of work from people who have left because my managers manager can’t handle the workload. When I asked about doing all this extra work he said “that’s what managers do, they do what needs to be done”, I didn’t bother telling him “well I’m not a manager yet…”.
Needless to say I got played. I was smart enough to not email my new employer cancelling their offer because I had a gut feeling something was off.
I decided right then and there two can play this game. Tuesday February 22nd (yesterday) was supposed to be my last day based on the 2 weeks notice I had handed in originally. However, because I said I would stay they cancelled all the training sessions I was supposed to do from Thursday to Tuesday (remember I’m the only one in the company who understands the ERP system the way I do).
I decided to keep my resignation in my back pocket. I knew if I went to them and said that I am longer comfortable with this “counter offer” that they would have tried to pressure me yet again to stay.
All day yesterday I received urgent emails of things to action from the new 20 hours of work they had chosen to dump on me but I just packed up my office, went around to say goodbye to all my coworkers and explained to everyone why I was leaving. The support was astounding, people hate working there now and they understood why I was doing it the way I was.
Last night at 10 pm I sent an email to HR, my manager and my managers manager and listed all the ways they screwed me, lied to me and the amount of extra work I had been asked to do for no extra compensation whatsoever and told them my resignation was effective immediately.
I also forwarded the email to some of my coworkers who absolutely loved it.
I woke up today to multiple text messages from my former coworkers saying that my boss, my boss’s boss and HR have been in the boardroom for hours now because HR is demanding to know how someone’s job description can change that vastly in a matter of days (extra workload they dumped on me) and that HR had no idea about the counter offer.
Just goes to show that managers will fuck you any way they can and to always look out for yourself and stand up for yourself.
I would have honestly taken the counter offer if it weren’t for people on Reddit helping me out so thanks everyone for the advice :).