Legal/Moral responsibility

DC_SRMT

Morning all, I have a rather long running issue with my employer which I would be interested in opinion on - so I'll try and be as succinct as possible!

Just over 5 years ago I was headhunted for what was sold to me as a "Project Manager" position. I, naturally, negotiated a package that made it worth leaving my old position. In the 5 years I have been here, I have failed to recieve a pay review, or cost of living increase, in which time others around me (I work for a v. small firm of 6-8 employees, 2 Directors) have had 2-3 reviews. I have been told it is because of the package i negotiated BEFORE I started.

It becomes more complicated in that I am not - by my own admission, but not fault (IMO) - fulfilling the PM role as I am continually left out of discussion/meetings/decision making. I have questioned this many, many times and have always been "promised" change, which hasnt materialised despite my constant attempts ( I feel I have exhausted every avenue open to me). My current role could be better described as "Production"; production which we are permanantly outscourcing because of workload (at a rate of 200% of my wage).

I'm sure that legally, at least, the company isnt doing a great deal wrong. Morally.....well, perhaps.

Any thoughts?

Many thanks.

D

PS So not very succinct then!!

smartpicture

Legally, it doesn't seem so. Morally, maybe, maybe not, your job was to negotiate a good package for you, their job is to keep their business costs low - but frankly who cares?

The more important point is that you are not happy, you've said you're not happy and nothing has changed, you're being edged out of the job you should be doing, and you feel they're not rewarding you properly. So the real question is, why are you still there??

Start applying for other jobs, where you can negotiate another good starting package.

DC_SRMT

Smartpicture, thanks for the response. You've given the same advice that family/friends have given, my response being; I work in a very specialised industry, and - as i'm sure you are aware - the job market isnt exactly flooded in general, in 'my' industry, I have zero maneuverability. Plus, I want to do the job I was employed to do.

Yes, I accept a level of responsibilty for my situation - I just wish I had some way of breaking through what is, essentially, a couple of guys out to stunt my progress. Had they told me that I had had 5 years worth of pay reviews before I started (numbers which wouldnt add up, btw), of course I would never have upped sticks. I definitely feel a level of dishonesty at play. C'est la vie.

Anyway, thanks again!

smartpicture

Unfortunately there's no way of making them give you the job you should be doing. If you feel you've exhausted all the 'talking' possibilities, your next option is raising an official grievance and make them take it more seriously. But that brings big risks, and you might find yourself being edged out even more.

I still think your best option is to look elsewhere - I realise jobs are scarce, but it's not like you're you're unemployed and have to find a job NOW, you are in employment, earning a reasonable salary, with a job title that on paper should make you attractive to other companies and you can take your time to find the right opening for you. If your niche job market is small, surely project management jobs in general are more widely available and well-paid?

The bottom line is, you have three choices: raise a grievance, look for another job, or suck it up and accept the job you have. Worrying about their moral behaviour will not help you achieve any of those 3 options and you need to let it go.

getmore4less

DC_SRMT wrote: »

My current role could be better described as "Production"; production which we are permanantly outscourcing because of workload (at a rate of 200% of my wage).

What about a job with the place you outsource to.

bluenoseam

Incidentally, wouldn't it be sensible to think that so long as the law of the land is being adhered to (i.e. your hourly rate doesn't drop under nmw) then legally there's no automatic right to a pay rise unless it's stipulated in the terms of employment laid out in your contract? Further to this, if a review is part of those terms, it's simply that, a review of your remuneration for the job done - after review it's possible they may not see reason to increase your pay, infact, legally couldn't they get away with asking you to take a pay cut?!?

But yeah, by the sounds of it as you're in a "specialised industry" then it could be time to move on, it's not really your fault that your employer has basically ignored the attempts to do your role, if you're worth a better salary then someone will pay you that salary - if you don't ask you won't get. Worrying about morality in business is pretty much redundant anyway - the basic structure of business is to make money in any way possible within the boundaries of law, morality is a nice thing don't get me wrong, but it's not going to improve profits as much as working to the letter of the law!