AyetoZee Work Series 6: Working for the Man

AyetoZee: How long have you been working at your current place of employment and/or for yourself?

Working for the Man: Nearly 1.5 years at my place of employment

AyetoZee: If for yourself, how long have you had your clients and how were you able to develop this relationship?

Working for the Man: N/A. I work for the man.

AyetoZee: If you work for someone else, how did you get the job? Was it through personal relationships, cold applying, etc?

Working for the Man: Interestingly enough, I found an ad in the paper for this job and decided to apply on a whim. Submitted my resume with no cover letter and totally forgot about it until they called.

AyetoZee: At your job/in your industry, what percentage of people do you think are qualified for their positions?

Working for the Man: For my job, qualifications vary. You can go to school for this but the position will always be tailored to the institution. A lot of it is learned on the fly anyway so you don’t necessarily need a degree. In this industry though you have to be qualified (have a degree).

AyetoZee: What was the starting salary for your job? Based on the expectations for your work, do you think that salary is fair?

Working for the Man: So I did somewhat of a lateral move into this position after the girl who was here before me resigned. She told me that I was making more in my original position than she was making at the time of her resignation. I started with $30,000/year. I don’t think this is enough money considering the amount of work that has to be done, but I also don’t think it’s being super underpaid.

AyetoZee: If you have received additional qualifications during your tenure in your current position, do they qualify you for raises? Or is there a set schedule for raises at your job?

Working for the Man: I have not received additional qualifications while in my current position and I’m pretty sure they wouldn’t qualify me for a raise regardless. There is supposed to be a yearly salary review and appropriate increases but everyone’s favorite line is to reference COVID-19 whenever the topic of paying employees more money comes up 🙃.

AyetoZee: Do you think your manager/supervisor encourages individual promotion or is it a place where you’re expected to stay in your position?

Working for the Man: This is such a funny question because I’m always saying how there is no room for growth here unless I go back to school and get another degree and work in a completely different field in this industry. I am also not interested in the positions above me. Too much work and not enough money I’m sure. To answer, no my supervisor does not encourage promotion as there is nowhere to go.

AyetoZee: Is training available at your job? Do they pay for is or is it something you’re solely responsible for?

Working for the Man: Umm training in the sense that you get shown the ropes kind of and then it’s mostly a sink or drown until you figure out how to swim. There isn’t really a need for official training like workshops etc though I have attended a virtual anti money laundering seminar that was helpful.

AyetoZee: How long do you see yourself staying at your current place of employment? How long do you seeing yourself staying in your current field of employment?

Working for the Man: I originally gave myself 5 years from my start date (2019) and I would be okay with that timeline but if a better opportunity presents itself beforehand I’ll take it. 5 years tops though. I don’t see myself staying in this field after this job unless it’s a stepping stone to get to where I really want to be.

AyetoZee: Do you see your job and/or field as your dream place to be?

Working for the Man: Can I get a no for $500 Alex?

AyetoZee: Is there Human Resources at your company? How do you feel about them? Do you feel comfortable going to them about anything you experience on the job?

Working for the Man: HR is kind of bundled up into management at my job. So there is not a designated HR person but someone who has those responsibilities does exist. I don’t feel comfortable going to them about ANYTHING but sure about SOME things.

AyetoZee: What factors do you think most commonly cause people to leave your job and/or field?

Working for the Man: LOL. The pay, the workload and the treatment I can say without a doubt causes people to leave this job. The workload is immense and the people who would care if you’re drowning can’t because they’re all too busy trying to stay above water themselves. Those who can do something about it don’t care about the little people. And while the pay is better than a lot of places (with pretty decent benefits), it is not commensurate with the workload. All of this on top of what can sometimes be a very harsh work environment just equals the trifecta of reasons why people leave. In the industry though, burnout or political aspirations.

AyetoZee: What is the benefits package like at your job?

Working for the Man: Health insurance (they pay the full premium with 80/20 copay), 2 weeks vacation to start, reasonably lenient with sick days, investment portfolio for pension plan.

AyetoZee: What benefits or work related things do you think can make your work environment better?

Working for the Man: More vacation/dedicated sick/casual days. Better pay.

AyetoZee: Is salary information widely available through your job/industry or is secrecy encouraged?

Working for the Man: Salary information is not readily available at my job or in this field. The industry pay scale is available online somewhere I’ve been told.

AyetoZee: Do you feel like senior management abuses their power at work?

Working for the Man: A hierarchy definitely exists on my job. And while seniority is fine, you know whether you’re a big fish or little fish and if you’re little you are treated accordingly.

AyetoZee: In a perfect world, what changes would you implement to your work life?

Working for the Man:

• A set amount of Work From Home (WFH) days

• Making sure work rules apply to EVERYONE and not just certain staff

• Hire more staff to provide a reasonable workload

• Discouragement of crossing boundaries (calling/emailing outside of work hours and insisting on a response) for non emergency issues

• Addition of benefits previously mentioned

AyetoZee: How long is the maximum do you think that people should stay at a job in 2021?

Working for the Man: Without a tangible salary increase? 3 years. By year 1.5/2 if things aren’t looking like they make sense it’s time to start looking elsewhere.

AyetoZee: What does your dream job look like?

Working for the Man:

• Standard hybrid in office/WFH schedule

• Reasonable salary commensurate with workload and cost of living

• 3 weeks vacation plus sick/casual days

• MINIMAL zoom/webex/teams etc. meetings/conferences

• Flexible work hours, so a job/career that is more focused on the output and less on it coming out between 9-5 (within reason)

• Non toxic work environment where all staff are treated with decency and respect

Each submission teaches me that almost everyone in my age group has a similar feeling about working. We all want more compensation. We all want more opportunities to work from home or work less hours. And many seem to feel like 3 years is the cut off time for staying at a job without progression. If you have stayed at a job for more than 5 years, I’d love to hear from you! Please send me an email and tell me how you’ve made it.