Occasionally, I find a gem in an unlikely place. I found this one at Monster, the popular job search site. In another lifetime, I worked for nearly a decade in the world of workforce development and am certified by the National Association of Workforce Development Professionals and I am a National Workforce Institute Certified Workforce Expert (just sharing my credentials to make it credible for me to write about this stuff).
My work was primarily focused on readying people for employment and their job search, but I frequently ran into situations in which an employee felt betrayed by the company they worked for. It was usually when they were fired through no fault of their own. People give a lot to their employers and their jobs. It’s painful on a lot of different levels when the employer doesn’t give back as hard as we give.
The fact is, as we who cover liberal issues all the time know, there are some honest employers out there, but the dog-eat-dog American culture of capitalism generally rewards the companies that are cold-blooded and uncaring about their employees. It’s a game. Their goal is to see how can they get the most blood, sweat, and tears from people for the smallest possible compensation. It’s disgusting.
In the examples below, I’m going to add “valid reasons this may happen.” Don’t misunderstand me: I am ALWAYS on your side (unless you’re dishonest). But there are good employers out there and I don’t want to discredit them.
Important note: I am not speaking about all companies here. This is about the employers who are dishonest.
Monster identified the most common lies that employers/companies tell their workers.
1. Annual Bonuses
From Monster:
A lot of employees are hired with promises of an annual bonus on top of their regular salary. If we do well as a company, we all share the rewards is often a big lie, says Jacob Shriar, growth manager for Officevibe, an employment engagement software company. This may not be an intentional lie, he says. Instead, it’s likely the company just didn’t hit its financial goals and did not have the cash to pay bonuses.
Even the best companies have bad years. To combat any negative effects on your bottom line, you can either budget for the year as if the bonus won’t happen and then have a pleasant surplus if it does, or get specific goals and criteria for your bonus in writing when you negotiate your salary and other benefits.
Possible valid reasons this happens:
Do I buy into these excuses from companies? No. A commitment is a commitment and should be honored if at all possible. However, from the company’s point of view, there are times when an employee doesn’t perform as they promised and limited bonuses may have to be given to people who are making the company money. There are also times when the money just isn’t there. This happens more frequently with small businesses.
I’m not justifying a company’s broken commitment. If you find yourself in this situation and feel that your employer’s intentions were good but genuinely doesn’t have the money to keep their promises, talk to them. Try to find out what you can do to help them reach their goals, which may work towards helping you reach yours. Your BS detector will tell you if they’re sincere or not. If you suspect they’re just being jerks, get out if you can.
How to avoid this:
Before accepting the position, ask if bonuses are a guaranteed part of salaries (a percentage of sales, for example) or if they’re distributed solely at the discretion of the employer. You may decide to take the job regardless of the answer, but at least you’ll know what to expect.
2. Advancement Opportunities
From Monster:
When you were hired, it’s entirely possible that your manager wanted you to advance along a certain path. You may have even been promised additional training and resources for your professional development that since haven’t panned out. Yes, it’s possible you were totally lied to, but it’s also possible your supervisor’s timeline just doesn’t match yours, says Stacy Lindenberg, owner of Talent Seed Consulting, an organizational development company.
The solution, says Lindenberg, is simply to ask and be specific. Sit down with your supervisor and restate your desire for advancement. Ask about the anticipated trajectory, timeline and benchmarks.
Possible valid reasons this happens:
Again, the employee may not perform as they promised they would. It’s not always the employee’s fault, per se. Even if you’re doing your very best, it could be that you just wouldn’t be an effective supervisor. A company is going to put big responsibilities into the hands of the folks they feel have the best chance of success. Also, there are times when a company doesn’t grow in the way the founders initially hoped. The advancement opportunities may not actually be there.
Another thing that happens sometimes is that a busy employer (one of the honest ones) simply forgets. They can get caught up in the whirlwind of constant work and overlook the fact that there’s an awesome person standing there in front of them who is ready and eager to step up and help them. Remind them that you want to advance.
How to avoid this:
Be direct with your employer before accepting the job offer. Ask if they have a formal process in place for employee advancement.
3. Work-Life Balance
This is, to me, the most blatant lie. The first two lies can sort of sometimes be explained away, but this one? They know from the beginning that they’re lying to lure you in.
From Monster:
Work-life balance? is a hot buzzword in business these days because people are tired of giving everything to their employer and losing time with family, friends and hobbies. When a company says it’s important for its employees to have work-life balance, it conjures images of dinner at home every night, weekend soccer games and maybe an annual summer vacation.
Reality is often quite different, though, says Marc DeBoer, a former executive headhunter and current president of A Better Interview, a website devoted to helping job seekers perform better during interviews. Most companies know that their employees will be working upwards of 60 hours per week as there is still so much uncertainty in the economy. Because the economy is in turmoil, companies have been cutting back on resources. Layoffs at your office may have forced people to do double duty for a while.
(cough cough ** BS on those last two sentences ** cough cough)
Possible valid reasons this happens:
There are no valid reasons for this whopper of a lie. Yeah, yeah, employers may genuinely WANT employees to have work-life balance, but they will rarely work to actively make this happen. If they do, it’s usually because it benefits them. If you’re happy and healthy, they have a better employee.
The Bottom Line — YOURS, not your employer’s.
I’m not in any way suggesting that it’s always the company’s fault. We’ve all worked with people who didn’t pull their weight and who probably didn’t deserve bonuses and advancement. This article is addressed to those of us who do work hard, do our best, and give 100 percent. My intent with this article is to help you prepare for some of the lies that companies will tell you so that you can protect yourself and your family.
And again, I’m not speaking of all companies, large or small. I’m addressing the dishonest ones.
The fact is, sometimes you can give blood, sweat, and tears and come away with nothing but dehydration. Remember this: there is NO corporation that is going to have the best interest of you, your health, and your family as their primary concern. Some companies care more than others, of course, but they’re all mostly about the bottom line.
It’s your responsibility to take care of yourself and your family. If there’s one key lesson I learned from my years in the grind, it’s that a job doesn’t love you back. I’m as hard-working and ambitious as the next person, but that is simply the reality. Do good work, make yourself a valuable asset to employers, but at the end of the day (I’m using that cliche deliberately in this case), what matters is what you have going on at home with people who love you.
