20 replies to this topic

[taikara]

It's rare that I do this, but meh, I need to vent constructively just a little

I know what everyone is going to say when I'm done. That's because I know what the intelligent person would say.

However, I think I must have a mental disorder of some sort, so even though I know the answer, I have a really hard time following through. Perhaps I'm a masochist, or something along those lines.

Anyway... to get to the point, I started a new job nearly a month ago. It's been really hard to find even a crappy job down here in Florida lately, so when I finished rennovating the house I was working on, and the people who bought it said, hey, why don't you work in our store til you can find something else, I thought it was a godsend.

Nearly a month later, I realize it's not so much. My hours are supposed to be along the lines of 5 hours a day. Regularly, I am left alone in the store for 7 or more hours, as they can't be bothered to show up when they say they will. To add insult to injury, last night, they came back in their bathing suits, apparently having spent the whole day at the pool, not bothering to remember they were supposed to come back so I could leave.

To make things worse, they've paid me $60 for the entire month of work thus far, and keep saying, "Ohhh, sorry bout this, we'll pay you this week, things are just tight, you know."

I know I should probably just quit, but I just feel like they're not really bad people, that they would pay if they had more money, etc, and I feel really bad when I think about quitting.

I really do think this is some sort of mental issue. I seem to attract users like a magnet. Even in relationships, I tend to get stuck with guys for whom I will break my back so that they're happy, only to realize that they can't be bothered to do anything but take me for granted unless I'm finally fed up enough to get angry at them, and then, they usually just are mean about it, hehe.

Sigh.

Sorry for ranting. It's been a rough week. Anyhoo, so, should I stay or should I go?

[Kon-Tiki]

I'd say drop it, as you could've spent the time you spend there on getting a job that actually pays. If they can't pay due to things being tight, they would've been looking for ways to make ends meet instead of wasting their time at the pool. Not to mention that that incident from yesterday definitely proves they don't really care 'bout what goes on in the shop and puts all those other overhours into a light of them neglecting their responsibilities.

If you're really not sure 'bout it, though, you could try to find out why the previous people that had your job don't work there anymore (either by asking regular, long-time customers or, if you have the luck of meeting some of them, asking them in person) It might give a better perspective on the whole matter.

Still, I say drop it, or at least till they pay what they still owe you and you've got some way to be sure they won't neglect coming over when it's time for you to leave, nor that they'd neglect paying you on time in the future.

[A. J. Raffles]

Tai, they may be nice people, but they're taking advantage of you nevertheless. If you like them and would like to stay, you might try talking to them first and politely reminding them that these aren't quite the working conditions you agreed on (you made a proper contract, I hope?). If that doesn't help - and I'm afraid it probably won't - it might be better for you to quit. I'm not suggesting you should walk out there tomorrow, of course, but you're only going to make yourself unhappy there in the long run. Remember you're not doing charity work, you're supposed to be employed by those people. That ought to be a two-ways affair, though: they expect you to fulfil your part of the contract, of course, which is to look after the shop, but you can expect them to fulfil their part as well, which is to keep their appointments and to pay you. If they are so "hard up", maybe they shouldn't have offered you the job in the first place, but simply using that as an excuse to withhold part of your salary is a breach of contract, and they have no right to do this.
So my advice would be to go, but to try and find out WHY your employers have been treating you like this first.
Good luck, anyway.

[Doc Adrian]

The others have a very good point.

Small businesses may not have alot of money, but if they can't afford to pay you they really shouldn't give you the time...and be late coming back to send you home.  That sort of pay might work if you are a family member helping out someone and its more of a favor than a job, but not a good thing if this is your main job and source of money.
In truth if business was really that bad, they wouldn't be hiring anyone at all and they would be at their own store all the time trying to make ends meet and not hiring someone else probably.
They seem to be taking advantage of the situation, and I would suggest talking over your terms again, and if you don't get some resolution after that..I would leave and not feel too bad about it.  You might get some perks being at the job but are they enough to compensate for your losses..stuff like that to consider

[Flop]

I think I know how you feel, since I've been in similar situations. Sometimes it's a lot more appealing to try to avoid a confrontation and just hope things are gonna get better. However,  in my experience they don't get better, and if you don't do something now chances are things might get worse, since they'll feel they can get away with walking all over you.

At the very least, talk things over with them, and set a date for when you get paid (and make it clear that you MUST be paid on that date). I would also tell them that the next time they're not there, when they're supposed to be, without calling in and letting you know why, you will close down the store and go home.

A conversation like that is not nice to have, but it can be necessary, and their financial troubles is really not your problem (it shouldn't be, at least). If they don't have time to mind the store themselves and can't afford to pay an employee, they should close down the store.

I don't know about USA, but in Denmark it's illegal to not pay your employee on time, and you may want to check what the law says about that, where you're from.

Anyway, I would gather the courage for that conversation, and if they don't agree on your points, you should quit.

I hope it works out for you, and that you get a great job soon.  

[DakaSha]

hmm i wanted to say something but the others have already said it all... and they said it better then i ever could...so...yeah i agree

and like flop says... there *should* be a law or something shouldnt there? at least if you signed a contract

[DeathDude]

Yeah not much more to add to what the others have said, basically they are really taking advantage of you like this, showing up late and whatnot, I say slowly but surely just start looking around again for another job before you drop this one, there's bound to be something around that will definitely prove to be better than this one and heck will probably have some consistency when it comes to pay.

But yeah I'd talk first and go that route like people have said too, give your concerns that are in your mind, be calm about it, but show them that you mean business with what your saying, with luck it may just help the situation or it may do nothing, once you know for sure what's going to happen, that should give you an idea to gauge whether you really want to stay or if you should head somewhere else.

[Microprose Veteran]

Here's my 2 cents:

Of course they are nice and friendly to you. How else could they continue to take advantage of you?

The pool-thing was a dead give-away in my opinion. If they can spend an entire day without working for their money they might as well pay what they owe you.

[Tom Henrik]

As I have said before. Leave.

They are treating you like crap, and let's face it, the swimming pool act was the last straw in my opinion.

[MdaG]

I agree with Tom and the others, leave.

[PrejudiceSucks]

Come to York! There are thousands of jobs here with posts waiting to be filled. Seriously, the only unemployed people are single mothers and junkies.

You'll get good money here too. The average salary in York is about £20,000 a year ($35,000) and that's just office work. On the downside, housing is not cheap and the weather is cold. But you could commute from Leeds or something.

[BeefontheBone]

Commute from Leeds to York? Ouch! You could meet me then though

[taikara]

I didn't sign a contract, I've been so desperate for a steady job that when they said they needed someone, I agreed to be paid under the table

Stupid me.

They said that they wanted someone to watch the store in the off season while they did contracting work on the side to make extra money, but no, I don't consider hanging out by the pool and working on a nice tan as a task that falls within those parameters  

Moral of the story, this is my own dumb fault, hehe.

But today really was the last straw, I think. I specifically said I had to be out of the store by a certain time, and they said sure, no problem. As I'm pacing back and forth several hours later, they finally showed up.

Gah.

But, on Monday, I get to go to my dad's office and fix his network (which is why I needed to be out of the store by a certain time today - we had an appointment to discuss the problem). So, one good thing (I know my dad will pay me... not much, but at least he'll pay).  

[OvErLoRd]

Well, only logical act would be to quit, that's certain. I know it is kinda hard for you to do it, but it sounds to me like they've been using you and underpaying as well.

So, my advice is: dump the job. I wish you all the best!  

[MdaG]

PrejudiceSucks, on Jul 8 2005, 09:02 PM, said:

Come to York! There are thousands of jobs here with posts waiting to be filled. Seriously, the only unemployed people are single mothers and junkies.

You'll get good money here too. The average salary in York is about £20,000 a year ($35,000) and that's just office work. On the downside, housing is not cheap and the weather is cold. But you could commute from Leeds or something.

Is there any work there for a civil engineer? I could easily move to England if I find an interesting job there