8 ways the economy is still affecting the job market by Alison Green on January 8, 2014 Depending on who you ask, the U.S. economy might or might not be on an upswing. But talk to job-seekers, and it’s clear that any recovery still hasn’t been fully reflected in the job market. Job-seekers continue to find a much harder market than they did before the financial crash of 2008. Here are eight ways that the economy is still making things tough on workers looking for a new job. 1. There are still often hundreds of applicants for a single opening. With nearly three times as many job-seekers as there are job openings, employers are often overwhelmed by the response for even low-paying jobs. The good news in that sentence? Four years ago, that number was six job-seekers for every job opening. 2. Employers are a lot pickier about who they hire. Because employers have so many qualified candidates to choose from, simply meeting the job qualifications isn’t nearly enough these days. That also means that it’s much harder for less perfectly qualified candidates to stretch up to a job that in previous years they might have been able to get more easily. Relatedly… 3. It’s still difficult to change fields. No matter how transferable your skills might be, the reality is that employers have plenty of well-trained candidates who meet all the job’s qualifications and have already worked in the field. That means that even though you might feel that you could excel at the job if just given the chance, employers don’t have much of an incentive to take a chance on you. 4. Job seekers are still often applying for jobs far below their qualifications. Whether it’s newly minted college grads applying for retail or coffee shop jobs (and praying they’ll get them, because they often don’t) or lawyers and PhD’s applying for entry-level research jobs, the job market has forced many workers to lower their sights. These days, candidates often must aim for jobs well below the ones they would have been competitive for in past years. 5. Employers still have the upper hand, and they act like it. Job-seekers reported a dramatic increase in rude treatment from employers when the economy first crashed in 2008, and it’s become increasingly entrenched since then. From interviewing applicants multiple times and then never bothering to get back to them with a “yes” or “no” to forcing applicants to use malfunction-filled online application systems that won’t let you apply if you don’t submit your salary history and even your Social Security number along with your resume, many employers have stopped caring about whether candidates feel treated well. 6. Temp agencies aren’t the answer they used to be. While signing up with a temp agency used to be a dependable way to generate income in between jobs, it’s no longer that same reliable safety net. With so many people out of work and competing for the same income sources – even temporary ones – many qualified job seekers find that the agencies they register don’t call with any work for them. 7. Job searches still take a long time. In the past, you might have expected your search to take a few months, but today, job searches take much longer; many people search for a year or even more – sending out hundreds of applications – before finding a new position. This is particularly tough for workers who lose a job without time to get a new one lined up first; they can often find themselves employed for long stretches of even a year or more. 8. Companies still expecting people to do more with less. Many companies have laid off staff and/or implemented hiring freezes in the last few years. Even without formal hiring freezes, it’s not uncommon for companies to decide not to fill a position when someone leaves, in order to save money. And then, rather than reducing workload accordingly, frequently employers simply expect the remaining employees to cover that work in addition to their own. The result is fewer openings being offered – as well as overworked employees who feel stretched thin. I originally published this at U.S. News & World Report. You may also like:job seekers are ghosting us on interviews and job offersyour non-compete isn't illegal after all (at least not yet)how do I balance my labor shortage sympathy with annoyance at the inconvenience it causes? { 97 comments }
my interview was canceled 10 minutes before it was supposed to start, what to do with company swag, and more by Alison Green on January 8, 2014 It’s five short answers to five short questions. Here we go… 1. My interview was canceled 10 minutes before it was supposed to start Is it a bad sign if my interview was cancelled 10 minutes before the appointment? I was just ready to get out of my car to walk into the building when I got the call. He said, “Are you already there?” I said yes. He said, “I’m sorry to do this, but I am at another location today. Can you reschedule for another day?” Maybe, but it’s not conclusive. It absolutely could indicate disorganization or inconsideration, but it could also be a one-time fluke. I’d take it as a heads-up that there might be issues with this employer (or this manager) and make it your job to confirm or refute that during the rest of the process. And if he seems mortified and goes out of his way to reschedule at a time that’s convenient for you, those are points in his favor. If he seemed cavalier and not especially concerned about inconveniencing you, those are strikes against him. 2. Contacted by a company I interviewed with multiple times last year I’m in a weird situation. A year ago, I emailed you to request some help on a job interview. The employer asked to meet my boyfriend and take us out to dinner to mingle and see what the fit was. Well, I didn’t get the job. They told me they prefered the other candidate. Yesterday, I received an out-of-the-blue phone call from these people, asking me if I was still interested and saying that a position had become available. I went home to discuss it with my boyfriend, and he said I should at least see where it goes, so I called this morning and set a date for tomorrow to meet with them over lunch. Well, I got online and started looking around to see if they posted the job and they had. They did it this morning. I have already had 3 interviews with this company last year, one lasting almost 2 hours. I had assumed that the meeting tomorrow was to offer me something. Now I’m not so sure. I find it difficult to believe that they would actually make me compete against other candidates again, a year later. I’m hoping they’re just covering their bases. I don’t know though. I wanted to get your take on it. I would not assume that they’re planning to offer you a job at the lunch. It’s possible, but it’s more likely to be either a real interview or a more casual conversation to reconnect, refresh their memory about you, and explain the role they’re hiring for. Don’t be offended by that — offering someone a job is a very, very big deal, and it’s reasonable that they wouldn’t to offer you a position without having talked in a year and that they want to consider you against other candidates as well. Their job is to hire the best person for the role; it’s not personal. (Plus, you know from their request for a dinner interview with your boyfriend that they take fit very, very seriously.) That said, it’s also possible that they will offer you a job tomorrow, and the ad is there in case that doesn’t work out. It makes sense to assume it’s the first option I mention, but to be prepared for either. 3. What to do with company swag when you’re leaving your job Over the course of my time at my current job, I have received several clothing items on which our company’s logo is prominently embroidered. My last day is quickly approaching (thanks for your advice on the transition) and I am left wondering what to do with all of the clothes they have given me. The person in charge of ordering company apparel has no taste, so most of the clothes still have tags or have only been worn once. Should I take them in on my last day and leave them in my desk? Offer them to coworkers? Is it a bad idea to donate to charity since all of the items have our logo? I wouldn’t just leave them in your desk — that sort of sends the message “now that I’m leaving this place, I want no memories of my time here — these mementos repulse me.” As for offering them to coworkers … is it likely they’d want them? I mean, sure, if they’re highly sought-after, go ahead and see if anyone wants them. But if they’re typical company shirts, totes, etc., I’d give them to Good Will or another charity if you don’t want them anymore. 4. I caught an employee taking a soda that was meant for customers My small business offers customers soft drinks while they wait to be helped. I have made it clear these are only for customers, yet I have caught an employee taking a can from the fridge. She’s been on my team for over a year and is proficient at her work. How do I handle this? Is there any reason not to just let it go? It’s fine to have a policy that the sodas are for customers only, but you can have your own private addendum to that of “but the occasional soda by an employee is no big deal” that you don’t publicize to your staff … because you don’t want to be in the position of scolding otherwise good employees for having a Coke when they were thirsty one day. Sure, if you see someone abusing the policy regularly, speak up. But a single occurrence? You’ll get more good will for just letting it go. (Obviously, if you have other concerns about the employee, you should address those. But a single soda on its own shouldn’t have to be a big deal.) 5. I feel slapped in the face by my Christmas bonus In July, 2009, I started working for a very small company. It was me, one other person, and the boss. That Christmas, I received a card with $200. In 2010 I received $300, and in 2011, $400. Gradually the business grew and there were many more employees. In 2012, I received $200. I was disappointed but attributed it to the growth of the company and a Christmas budgeting issue. Now we have 17 total employees, business is better than ever, and this year I received $100. We have one person who started 2 months ago and I feel fairly certain that he would not get less than $100. I would like to mention that I have always been a part-time employee, the company offers no benefits, I’m a woman, a senior citizen (the oldest employee), and one of my jobs is one that no one else working there can do. Even though the cards always say how much she appreciates me, etc., I feel as though this is a slap in the face and can’t understand why I should have fallen to the bottom of the barrel after almost 5 years. I know others are getting larger gifts or at least the same as last year. Am I wrong to feel this way? How do I handle this or am I not supposed to look a gift horse in the mouth? It’s not unusual that bonuses might get smaller as the company took on more employees; they now have more people to provide bonuses to, after all. It’s also not unusual that a part-time employee might get a smaller bonus that a full-time employee. Neither of these things are a slap in the face. Plus, given the amounts, these sound more like holiday gifts than bonuses, and in that case it’s really not appropriate to complain that your gift wasn’t enough. If you’re unhappy with your compensation in general and feel that it’s out of line with the market rate for the work you do, you can absolutely put together a case for why your work deserves a raise. But that’s where I’d focus, not on how much money was included with your holiday card. You may also like:am I supposed to confirm interviews the day before?what's up with surprise phone interviews?how long should you wait if someone is late to a virtual meeting? { 250 comments }
why should your references be managers rather than peers? by Alison Green on January 7, 2014 In last week’s open thread, a commenter asked, “Why is a manager or supervisor always a better reference than a coworker? I ask because often I’ve had a better idea of the quality of work of my coworkers than I think the manager does.” In some cases, it can be true that your coworkers know the nuances of your work better than your manager does. But in general, employers would rather talk to manager references because: * It’s your manager’s job to assess your performance. It’s unlikely that your coworkers were probing into what you were getting done and how you were operating in the same way that you manager should be. (Of course, not every manager is good at doing this, but the assumption is still that they’re more likely to do it than your peers.) * Your manager should see the big picture about your performance in a way that your coworkers don’t. For instance, your coworkers might see that you’re fantastic at X, Y, and Z — but when I talk to your manager, I might learn that the biggest goals for your role were A, B, and C, and you floundered at those. * Your manager is better positioned to know certain types of things than your coworkers are, like how you respond to feedback, or that you’re an incredibly helpful sounding board when she’s thinking over strategy questions, or that you were almost let go for performance problems last year, or what kind of management you work best with. In addition to the above, when someone offers up a coworker as a reference, it’s much easier to cherry-pick someone who will say positive things. When a candidate offers a peer reference, I assume they’ve picked someone who loves their work, and maybe someone who they consider a friend as well (which introduces more potential for bias / shading the truth). When candidates are required to offer managers as references, it’s a lot harder to do that kind of cherry-picking. And sure, this isn’t a perfect system. Some managers are incompetent, or bad at assessing performance, or had personal conflicts with the candidate. (And a good reference checker will take that into consideration, talk to multiple references, and look at the overall pattern.) Some coworkers know their peers’ work and work styles intimately and can provide insightful and nuanced feedback. But in general, the points above are true enough of the time that they justify employers preferring to speak with references who actually managed you. Now, not every hiring manager feels the way I’ve described, of course. There are some who will accept references from peers and not think anything of it. But you’re still better off offering up managers to begin with if at all possible, because for the managers who do care (and that’s the majority), the mere act of submitting a reference list that doesn’t contain managers is a red flag. I’m immediately going to think, “Hmmm, she doesn’t want me to talk to past managers for some reason. I wonder why.” That doesn’t mean that there might not be a legitimate explanation, but it does create a concern on the part of most hiring managers, and you want to avoid that if you can. You may also like:what to do if your references aren’t availablecan you ask a reference what they said about you?pushing back on unreasonable reference requests: a success story { 109 comments }
my boss wants me to lie to coworkers about my commute by Alison Green on January 7, 2014 A reader writes: I work in a team of about 20 people within a large organization in a big city. I generally like my job and get on well with the people we work with. However, my boss has recently been asking me to lie to colleagues about my commute to work! Her problem is that we both commute into the city from the same train station, but I have only been doing this for a few weeks following a move. We are the only two members of our team who commute in along this particular train line. My boss is often late (we have flexi-time and can arrive any time up to 10 am, but she still doesn’t seem to be able to get here on time) and has always blamed the trains being cancelled/late/etc. However, now that I use the same train line, it’s become obvious to me and my team that boss is lying, because I’m making it in on time just fine. Recently, we had some stormy weather and the train company announced the day before the predicted storms that trains may be delayed the following day. They were delayed, but the frequency of the trains on that line meant it didn’t really matter (e.g. I went to catch the 8:10 and found it was delayed by half an hour, but the 7:45 was also delayed by half an hour and so arrived 5 minutes later). I got to work on time, but boss was late and made a huge show when she came in of saying “Oh, how did you get here? I had to wait hours on the platform!” etc. Normally this doesn’t bother me and it’s just a bit of a running joke in our office that boss is never to be seen much before 11 am. We all roll our eyes at her excuses, but it rarely affects us in any real way. However, boss and I went to a meeting on Friday and while we were alone in the meeting room (waiting for other attendees to arrive), she brought up the topic of our commute and suggested that I “not mention my journey to colleagues because it might be misleading.” I didn’t know what to say so I didn’t really say anything and then other people showed up for the meeting so the topic was dropped. It’s not like I regularly discuss my commute with colleagues, but I don’t want to lie to them, especially as they do sometimes ask how my journey was when boss has phoned/emailed with her excuse about terrible train service. Also, sometimes I see boss on the same train as me (sometimes even have conversations with her), but then she won’t turn up to work until an hour or more after I get there. There’s nothing wrong with that, of course (she’s not required to go straight from train station to office), but it often means she is late and will call in with some excuse that I know is a lie. Any advice as to what I should do here? Wow. What is your boss doing in the mornings between getting off the train and arriving at work that she’s so desperate to protect, I wonder? In any case … I doubt she really expects you start making up stories for your coworkers about how the trains are often late or delayed. She’s probably not thinking about the fact that people might ask you directly about the commute, and instead is just hoping to get you not to volunteer anything about the commute proactively. (Not that it’s not still an incredibly weird request for her to make — it is.) Obviously, you’re under no obligation to abide by that request or to in any way lie or shade the truth about the train line you both use. I suppose it’s worth thinking about whether your boss is the type to retaliate against you for saying anything that might jeopardize her story-telling. (Hell, some people might even argue that you have something to gain by making a point of keeping her secret, but obviously if that requires outright lying that should be a no-go.) If she is the retaliating type, you probably have bigger problems, so I’m going to assume for now that you have no reason to worry about that. However, in general, I wouldn’t go out of your way to blow her cover — that has too high a risk of ending badly, and ultimately it’s none of your business anyway. But I’d still continue to answer questions honestly when coworkers ask you about your commute — without drawing any conclusions like “so obviously Jane is BS’ing us all.” And realize that you have a boss with a weird habit and a willingness to lie in at least one ongoing situation. You may also like:are two-hour commutes normal?my coworker is really aggressive about commuting home with mecan I wear a backpack with a suit? { 221 comments }
6 new year’s resolutions for managers by Alison Green on January 7, 2014 If you’re a manager, I wonder if you’ve made any new year’s resolutions related to management. Unless you’re a perfect manager — and I’m pretty sure that none of us are — there are a ton of different areas you can resolve to work on. Here are six to think about. 1. Set clear goals. It might sound obvious, but too often managers simply tread water or get pulled in too many directions instead of figuring out what’s most important for their team to achieve and focusing there. Try this exercise: Pretend it’s a year from now. Looking back on the previous 12 months, what would your team need to have accomplished for it to have been a successful year? Now ask your team members the same thing. Do your answers match? If not, that’s a clear flag that you’re not on the same page about where people should be spending energy and what success will look like. It’s far better to find this out now, at the start of the year when you can fix it, then to discover it in June. 2. Think about what your team shouldn’t be spending time on. There are probably all kinds of ways that you and your staff could spend your time, many of them quite worthy. But some will have more of an impact than others, and those are the ones you need to focus on – which necessarily means saying no to the others. Ineffective managers frequently say yes to anything that sounds like a good idea. Effective managers are rigorous about asking, “Is this the best possible way we could be spending our time and resources?” Vow to be in the latter group this year. 3. Delegate more. If you’re like most managers, you’re probably not delegating enough and instead are holding on to projects that someone else could do because the work is comfortable or you don’t trust anyone else to do it right. But refusing to delegate means that you won’t free yourself up to take on bigger and more important pieces of work, which will hold you back. This can also hold your junior colleagues back too, by denying them the ability to grow into the work you currently do. So start off 2014 by vowing to delegate more to your team, Of course, that’s easier said than done, so how do you choose what to delegate, especially if you don’t trust anyone else to do the work as well as you would? Well, if you ever took Econ 101, you might remember the principle of comparative advantage, which says that you should be spending your time in the areas where you’re much better than your staff – not just a bit better – because the pay-off will be greater. In other words, you might be a bit better than your assistant at doing initial client screens, but given your experience and role, you’re probably far more effective than she would be at managing accounts, and as long as she can do those initial client screens well enough, your time should be spent on the pieces that only you can do. 4. Give more feedback. One of the most powerful tools you have as a manager is providing direct feedback, both positive and corrective. You should provide feedback on a constant, ongoing basis, in order to reinforce behavior you want to see more of, prevent bad habits from becoming ingrained, and foster an atmosphere of open communication. Providing feedback regularly can also allow you to address potential problems while they’re still small, rather than telling a staffer that something she has been doing for months is wrong. But too often, managers don’t give regular feedback. In 2014, vow to give feedback at least weekly to each person who reports to you. Making feedback a regular part of your conversations with staff members (such as making it an item on every weekly check-in agenda) will help “normalize” it so that staff members won’t see it as a scary conversation that only occurs occasionally. Remember, too, that giving feedback shouldn’t be a monologue; it should be a two-way conversation where you share your thoughts and solicit the staff member’s input. Make sure that you pause to hear your staffer’s thoughts and ask for her assessment. You might ask questions like: “What do you think?” “What’s your take on that?” “What do you think happened there?” “How could you approach it differently?” 5. Actively manage the makeup of your team. Managers often assume that the team they inherited – or even the team they built themselves – is the team they’re supposed to keep. But the makeup of your team has an enormous impact on your ability to get results, so it’s crucial that you’re proactive about shaping it. That means that you should put significant energy into getting, keeping, and developing high performers – as well as letting go of people who don’t reach a high bar. That isn’t always going to be easy, but it’s a critical lever in what you will be able to achieve. Speaking of which… 6. Make sure that you retain your best people. As a manager, retaining your best people is a critically important part of your job. Since having the right people on board is key to great results, you need to make sure that your best employees stay. That means that you need to be strategic about retention, in the same way you’d be strategic about anything else you don’t want to leave to chance, like product development or financing. Treat your retention efforts like as much of a priority as anything else you care about, and include retention on your to-do lists or in your quarterly plans. Even just writing “do everything I can to keep Katie” on your plan for the quarter can help keep the goal on your radar screen. From there, you can develop an individualized strategy for each person you’re working to retain. That strategy will vary from person to person, since different people are motivated by different things, but will usually include making sure that the person feels valued, is compensated competitively, has opportunities to grow, and feels a sense of progress in their work. You should also talk directly with the people who you most want to retain, telling them explicitly that you want to ensure they’re happy, and even asking directly, “How can I make sure that you stay for the next two years?” I originally published this at Intuit QuickBase. You may also like:interviewer wants me to write a fake performance review for my future selfhow can I tell if I'm a good manager?how much socializing at work is too much? { 30 comments }
who should attend an exit interview, Toastmasters on a resume, and more by Alison Green on January 7, 2014 It’s five short answers to five short questions. Here we go… 1. Who should attend an exit interview? I handle internal HR for a small organization (less than 20 employees.) I have two exit interviews coming up for exiting employees in two different departments. For one, my manager (COO) wants to be present, and for the other (a finance employee), he wants my CFO to “observe.” The CFO is relatively new to leading the vertical and has not worked directly with that exiting employee. Who is it appropriate to include in an exit interview? I have concerns about my COO being at the first one because I’d expect feedback from that employee to specifically touch on aggressive communications from the COO. For the other, I have no problem with the CFO participating as I don’t expect any of the feedback to be personal, but is it weird to have him “observe” versus participate (or not be present?) What are your general recommendations for including extra individuals in exit interviews? The goal of an exit interview is to get candid information from the exiting employee. The more people you have present, the less likely the person is to be candid. I can’t think of any compelling reason to let someone “observe” exit interviews or otherwise include additional people; the atmosphere you want is one that’s a safe place to talk, not one with “observers” — let alone intimidating observers. 2. Managing an employee who is regularly in the bathroom I have a team member who I supervise who uses the bathroom a lot. Like, at least once an hour, she is away from her desk for 5 minutes or more, with one or two bathroom breaks lasting 10+ minutes. Unfortunately, I know that she is actually using the bathroom during this time, because if I ever go to the bathroom, she’s clearly in one of the stalls having some intestinal distress. This has been the case as long as I’ve been here, about a year. If she has a real medical issue, I think she’s probably covered by the ADA. But she has never disclosed a medical issue to me, and I am not sure if it is appropriate for me to ask. But to that end, I’m just not sure how it would be possible for me to accommodate someone whose medical issue causes them to need to go to the bathroom for 45+ minutes total each day, sporadically taken. I want to help her and be kind, but this issue is frequently disruptive to my team’s work, as she is our administrative assistant and she is not always at her desk and cannot dedicate a full hour to any one project without interruption. It’s becoming more of a problem lately because our work has picked up; I was more or less able to ignore it before but that seems unfair to my other team members who rely on her (and me). If being at her desk without regular interruptions is an essential component of the job, you need to mention it. Say something like, “Jane, I’ve noticed you’re away from your desk at least once an hour for bathroom breaks, which is causing workflow disruptions like XYZ. How can we solve this problem?” This is an opening for her to bring up any medical issue, but if she doesn’t, you can say something like, “When employees have medical conditions covered by the Americans with Disabilities Act, we’re required to make reasonable accommodations for them, starting with a conversation exploring what accommodation is needed.” From there, you’d want to talk with a lawyer about how to safely proceed under the law and figure out what reasonable accommodations you can offer, or whether it would meet the legal standard for undue hardship on your business. (Do not decide something would be an undue hardship without talking to a lawyer; you might be surprised by what the law can require.) However, you want to begin with process of talking with the employee about what accommodation she needs and making a good-faith effort to negotiate something that will work on both sides. 3. Can my employer make me return my relocation bonus if I leave after three months? A little over three months ago, I relocated to a new city for a new job and negotiated a relocation bonus. The situation has been a nightmare and I am preparing to turn in my resignation, but wanted to know what recourse my current employer might have in trying to recover the relocation bonus they paid me. A few things to consider. – They only paid me two-thirds of the agreed upon relocation bonus. – I did not sign any contract or agreement of any kind regarding the relocation bonus or my employment in general. From my standpoint, since there was no agreement in place regarding the sign-on/relocation bonus and it was used to cover expenses I incurred moving, they really have no recourse. I am curious about the outstanding relocation bonus I am owed, but imagine since there is no agreement in place neither party has a legitimate claim. Yeah, if there’s no record of an agreement to repay it under certain circumstances (such as if you don’t remain in the job for a year, a common restriction with relocation bonuses), then there’s no reason to assume that they’d ask or expect you to repay it. And if they did ask or expect it, you never agreed to do that, so they’d have no legal recourse in trying to get you to return the money. 4. How does Toastmasters look on a resume? What do you think of Toastmasters International? If you see Toastmaster credentials on an applicant’s resume, are you impressed? For example, the first levels are Competent Communicator (CC) and Competent Leader (CL). The greatest benefit Toastmasters has achieved for me is getting over my fear (i.e. terror) of public speaking. Although I will never be a polished and professional public speaker, I no longer wilt when called upon to get up and speak, for example, introducing myself. So, there are definitely benefits to investing in Toastmasters; I am more curious from the standpoint of an employer if the credentials are recognized. Sure, Toastmasters is a good thing to have done, and it’s worth putting on your resume. “Impressed” probably isn’t the reaction of most hiring managers — something more low-key than that. More like taking note of a positive, like, “Ah, good, she has some confidence in and practice at speaking in front of groups.” Not blown away, just a good thing to tick off. It’s not likely to get you a job on its own, but it’s worth noting there. 5. When the pay offered isn’t the pay advertised Can an employer change the rate of pay once the position has been advertised for and fulfilled? Wouldn’t do so be false advertising? It’s perfectly legal for an employer to decide to offer a different salary than was advertised or even a different position than was advertised. The candidate can then decide whether or not to accept it. (And there are legitimate reasons for an employer to do this — such as if the candidate has less experienced than was originally envisioned, or the job needs change, etc.) What they can’t do is to change your rate of pay retroactively after you’ve accepted and started a position. They can lower your rate of pay going forward, but not for hours you already worked under a different agreement. You may also like:how can I get out of doing an exit interview when I leave?should I tell the truth in my exit interview?my boss renegotiated my new job's start date behind my back { 175 comments }
am I a grinch for expecting my staff to work from home on snow days? by Alison Green on January 6, 2014 A reader writes: Could you speak to snow day behavior? My staff is half on-site and half remote. We are all expected to be able to work remotely if needed, and snow days fit that bill. I’m happy to accommodate people spending time on family care and snow removal on these days. But, I also recognize that these can feel like a bonus day and that folks want to get personal things done that they weren’t able to do over the weekend. Am I a grinch for expecting folks to work most of the day? We are one of the few departments that work through snow days and holidays. Also, I know that it is harder to work remotely when you are not set up for it every day. I notice things like emails are shorter and work is saved for a return to the office. Any advice for staying on top of things while unable to get into the office? It sounds like you need to get aligned with your staff about what’s expected of people during snow days. If you expect them to work a full day of normal work, just from home, then you need to tell them that. However, is this (a) reasonable and (b) necessary? If people aren’t set up to work from home, then it makes sense that they’re limited in what they can do there. If that’s the case, you probably need to adjust your expectations — and decide whether having them do the small amount that they can do from is important enough that you’d rather they do that than take the day off altogether (in the latter case, presumably using PTO for the day unless your office is closed). One option is to give people the choice. You could say something like, “During snow days, you’re welcome to work from home if you can truly work a full day. If you can’t, please use PTO for the day — either for a full day if you won’t be working at all, or for a half day if you’ll be putting in some work.”* If the nature of the work is such that you really need them to be working and can’t give them the option of an unscheduled day off, then you’d need to make sure that they have the resources to do that — whether it’s a company-issued laptop, VPN access, or whatever else they’d need. (However, keep in mind that you might be fighting a losing battle there, since not everyone is cut out to work from home, particularly once you throw in the challenge of kids home because schools closed too. If working full days from home on snow days is truly a necessary job requirement, then you’ll have to start making it clear during your hiring process, ensure you’re hiring people who can do it, etc.) And that brings us to the question of whether it really is necessary. It certainly could be; there are indeed jobs where the work needs to continue to be covered, and it’s possible that your department is one of those (even though it sounds like the rest of your company isn’t). But I’d start by really questioning that. If most of the rest of your company shuts down on these days, does your department really need to stay open? Obviously it’s better if work can continue uninterrupted, but you also need to acknowledge that sometimes the most practical option is to decide that things can wait a day (particularly when those occasions are relatively rare, as snow days usually are). Practical because of logistics — like whether you have a staff that can work effectively from home — and practical because of what happens to morale when you ask people to do something where (a) it seems doubtful that the payoff will justify the hassle and (b) others in similar roles in the company aren’t being asked to do the same. * There’s also the question of whether you should ask people to use PTO for snow days at all. Certainly plenty of companies do, but there are also plenty that don’t. If you have a responsible, high-performing staff, it’s a nice perk to not make them use up PTO on a day when they’d otherwise be at work but for the weather. You may also like:my boss disapproves of our snow day policyis it insensitive to be excited for snow at work?should I get rid of remote work because our in-office staff thinks it's unfair? { 121 comments }
my coworker constantly asks us to loan him money by Alison Green on January 6, 2014 A reader writes: There is someone in my company who every week hits up people for money. It’s usually between $20-$100 and he promises to have the money after payday, but then there is always some emergency. I loaned this guy about $200 over two months that I have not gotten back. In the spirit of Christmas, I said let him keep it, he needs it more than I do. The other day, he tells me that if he doesn’t come up with a certain amount by the end of the day, he would be arrested, but he could pay me back the next day. I told him that mathematically I do not have the ability to help him and that I am sorry. I also told him that I will not react to this pressure, and that the situation did not get to this point overnight, so it was probably his own fault. From what I am hearing around the office, he has “borrowed” more than $1,000 from everybody, but I do not think the boss is aware of this. He has no money to pay anyone back, yet he is always finding enough money for cigarettes and lottery tickets. It is more of a nuisance, and I am not about to go tell on this guy, but it really is making it difficult to work professionally, because every time he comes around, I figure he wants to talk about money problems. The next time he approaches you about money, say this: “Bob, I cannot loan you money. Please do not continue to ask me.” Don’t tell him that you’re sorry you can’t help, or that you don’t have the money to help him; just say no and tell him to stop approaching you about it. Also, don’t get into telling him that the situation didn’t get to this point overnight or anything else along those lines — that’s just engaging with him on the issue, and what you want is to not have to engage with him about it at all. So it’s a flat no, a “stop asking me,” and that’s it. If he continues after that, then you say: “Bob, I’ve told you in the past to stop asking me for money, but you’ve continued. This is becoming a distraction from our work.” At that point, if it still continues, you’d need to either decide to (a) deal with this whenever Bob is around, or (b) give your boss a heads-up about the situation — not that Bob asked for a loan, but that Bob is constantly asking for loans, and it’s making it difficult to work with him because you’re always braced for being hit up for money. Frankly, I think there’s an argument for doing the latter, if only to prevent him from suckering others into giving him money that he won’t repay. Read an update to this letter here. You may also like:my coworker keeps asking everyone for loansmy coworker constantly asks me for personal favorsmy coworker is crowdfunding for IVF and keeps asking everyone for money { 148 comments }
new year’s resolutions for upcoming graduates by Alison Green on January 6, 2014 If you’re still in college, you should make some new year’s resolutions that have nothing to do with getting more sleep or working out more often. As a current student, you’re in the enviable position of being able to make changes now that will put you in a stronger position to find a job when you graduate. Here are seven resolutions that you’ll be grateful you acted on once you’re out of school and looking for work. 1. First and foremost, get as much work experience as you can before you graduate. Employers are looking for experience, not just knowledge, and so students who come out of school with work experience on their resumes are at a significant advantage to students who only have classes and extracurricular activities to highlight. Do whatever you can to maximize your work experience before you graduate – internships and part-time jobs are often separates the new graduates who get hired pretty quickly from the ones who don’t. And that doesn’t mean doing a single internship during your four years of school – do two, three, four, or as many as possible! 2. Get a practical understanding of what your major qualifies you for in the work world. Too many students pick a major without fully understanding what jobs it will and won’t qualify them for once they graduate, and end up frustrated to learn that the major doesn’t open the doors they thought it would, or that the career paths it opens up aren’t ones they’re interested in. Even if you’re not job hunting yet, start looking at advertisements for the jobs you think you’ll want someday, and see what qualifications it will take to be a competitive candidate. 3. Find good sources of up-to-date job search advice. Too often, students simply rely on their parents, professors, and peers to advise them on how to find a job. Sometimes this works out just fine, but often parents and professors don’t realize how job searching has changed in the last five years and inadvertently dispense outdated and counterproductive advice – and your peers, of course, are generally as inexperienced as you are. So make sure that you’re taking advice from people in a position to really be helpful. (The best source? People who have done a fair amount of hiring of their own.) 4. Talk to people a few years ahead of you. Some of the best mentors can be people just a few years older than you, because they’re close enough to remember the challenges you’re dealing with but far enough ahead of you to have figured out how to navigate them successfully. Find these people and pick their brains: What do they wish they knew when they were getting ready to leave school? What surprised them when they entered the work world? What could they have done to better prepare? 5. Start reading industry news. Your field is a heck of a lot broader than just what you’re learning about in school. Start reading news publications for your field – including industry blogs, which often have the most up-to-date information and discussions. You’ll benefit by being able to talk far more knowledgeably about your field in interviews, and you’ll get a much more nuanced perspective than classes can usually give you. 6. Clean up your social media presence. Do you know what prospective employers will find if they Google you and whether it will stand up to scrutiny? If you’ve been less than discreet in what you post online, resolve to clean up what’s publicly accessible and to keep your professional persona in mind when you post in the future. 7. Create a map of your network. When you start job searching in earnest, one of the best things you can do is to reach out to your network – but to do that, you first need to know who they are. Sit down and map out who’s really in your network – such as friends, relatives, neighbors, coworkers from your internship and summer jobs, plus everyone theyknow too. As part of this project, set up a profile for yourself on LinkedIn, which will make it easier to see your full network. I originally published this at U.S. News & World Report. You may also like:how much does your job in college matter?my interviewer said I lacked "real world work experience" -- what does that mean?should I offer to work for less so that someone will hire me? { 32 comments }
job candidates who won’t talk salary, demoted after maternity leave, and more by Alison Green on January 6, 2014 It’s five short answers to five short questions. Here we go… 1. Job candidates who won’t share what salary range they want How do you respond to applicants who won’t give you their desired salary range? I had two open positions recently, and when I called two applicants to discuss the positions, I asked each for their salary range. One applicant just flat-out refused to answer. Her application indicated she was currently making over $100k, and this job would pay $40-50k a year, so I wanted to be sure that would work for her, but she kept refusing to even give a range – not even to say, “I’m currently making X, but I’m open to something in the Y-Z range.” She just kept saying, “Well, it all depends on the job responsibilities…” I kept saying that I understood, “but the range is A to B. Would that work for you?” She kept dancing around the question. It’s like they were thinking that if they agreed on a range, then they’d have no room to negotiate. I was clear with both that we couldn’t go higher than $50k, no exceptions, and when I asked if that was acceptable, they kept replying, “Well, I think that if you bring me in to interview, you’ll see all that I have to offer your organization.” And I’d say, “That may be; unfortunately, our salary range isn’t negotiable. Is this something that would work for you?” And again both applicants would tell me about all the experience they have, and wouldn’t commit to an answer. I’ve been burned a couple of times with bringing candidates in, going through several interviews, and having them ultimately reject the job offer because it wasn’t in line with what they were looking for. I don’t want to bring a candidate in without knowing this info, and frankly, this applicant’s refusal to answer resulted in my moving on to other applicants. What are your thoughts? Yep, I’d move on to other candidates too, and I’d let them know why. It’s absolutely understandable that candidates don’t want to throw out a number first, because they don’t want to inadvertently undercut themselves if you would otherwise have offered them more. However, you were already telling them what you planned to pay and simply wanted to know if that was prohibitive for them or not. The refusal to answer that is obnoxious, especially combined with that crap about “if you bring me in, I’ll wow you so much that your budgeted salary range won’t matter.” You were being straightforward with them, and you have just as right to be annoyed by this as candidates do when employers play salary games with them. It’s reasonable to confirm that you’re on the same page about salary before spending your time and theirs on lengthier interviews — as long as you’re willing to share your own range, as you did. (It’s not reasonable when employers want this to be one-sided, with the candidate giving a number while the employer stays silent.) 2. I was demoted after my maternity leave I had a baby a few months ago and just returned to work after 8 weeks of short-term disability, followed by 5 weeks of PTO. Just prior to my leave, a replacement was hired to take over my position as supervisor of a small department of hourly workers. I knew she was being hired and had agreed on a new role with my general manager. I do not get anything in writing, but several other members of management were aware of the change. On my first day back, I was informed I would be assuming the duties of one of the employees I used to manage. I no longer have an office and since I’m breast feeding, I have to utilize the file room to pump twice a day. The assignment is supposed to be temporary, “to help fill a void,” and after a month I will transition to my new role. To add insult to injury, some of the personal belongings I left in my old office (because I was under the impression I’d be returning to it) have gone missing. The new supervisor boxed my things up and dumped them in a supply closet. Is it legal to return from maternity leave and be temporarily demoted? My pay has not changed and I am still considered part of the management team. I have not escalated the issue to HR or anyone at a higher management level because I am concerned it will hurt me more in the long run. You’d need to talk to a lawyer to be certain about the details in your case, but in general, no, it’s not legal to demote someone upon their return from maternity leave — unless the employer can show that the demotion was unrelated to the pregnancy and leave. (For example, if the employer can show they would have demoted you anyway, because of performance or other issues, that’s not pregnancy discrimination.) Absent unrelated reasons, they must return you to the position you held before taking leave or an equivalent position. And that doesn’t just mean pay, but also job status (like authority, responsibilities, and prestige). That said, I’m not sure how the fact that this is a temporary, one-month arrangement might impact the legality here, and you’d need a lawyer to tell you for sure. (But either way, since it’s only for one month, I suspect that you’re right that raising it would hurt more than help you in the long run.) Read an update to this letter here. 3. My manager didn’t show up for a conference call so we proceeded anyway I recently scheduled a conference call with myself, my boss, and a few coworkers who work remotely. After a few minutes, my boss – whose presence was not crucial to the conversation – had not dialed in, so I decided to proceed with the call with everyone else on the line. A few hours later, he forwarded the meeting notice to me with a note that he had been waiting for me to come to his office and had just realized the meeting was a conference call. He is now asking me to reschedule; I guess he thinks we tabled the meeting without him. What would have been the proper thing to do? Ask the others to hold while I track down my boss, or proceed as I did? It varies by culture and by manager. Some managers would have assumed you’d proceed without them; some would be shocked that you didn’t. Absent any information about the culture and taking you at your word that your manager’s presence wasn’t needed for the conversation, there’s nothing wrong with proceeding without him; it might have made a ton of sense to do that. But there’s really no useful answer here without knowing more about your manager and culture, because those are the determinative factors in how this kind of thing is perceived. As for what to do now, I’d simply say, “We figured you got tied up with something else and went ahead and talked over X, Y, and Z. In the future, would you like us to reschedule if you don’t join the call, or move forward like we did here?” 4. What does this email from a hiring manager mean? I finished my final interview on December 17 and it felt perfect. The conversations went very well and I felt confident with each of my answers. I realize that in late December things slow down a bit for the holidays. The employer let me know of this and had told me that she hoped to be in touch before the new year. I ended up reaching out to check in and this was her response: “Happy New Year! Thanks for reaching out. I was hoping to be in touch this week with our final decision on filling the position but unfortunately, there have been some delays. I will follow up with you next week (if not sooner) with an update. Thanks so much for your patience.” My question is how to interpret this. Why would it take so long to hear a simple “we are pursuing other candidates” or “we have decided to extend you an offer”? I would greatly appreciate your insight. You should interpret it as meaning that there have been some delays and she hopes to follow up with you next week with updated information. In other words, it means exactly what it says, no more and no less. It doesn’t say that they’re rejecting you or making you an offer, because they haven’t decided either of those things yet. They might be waiting to interview other candidates. They might be checking references. They might have an offer out to someone else and be waiting to hear if it’s accepted (and you might be their second or third choice if it’s not). They might be resolving questions that came up about the position itself. They might not be working on anything hiring-related at all right now because they have other priorities. Who knows? All we know is what her email said, and you should take that at face value. 5. Disciplined for comments made off the clock Can an employer write you up for comments made off the clock on a break and outside of your building ? They sure can. An employer can write you up because you wore a green shirt while you were home on your couch last weekend, if they want to. That’s not likely, of course. More practically speaking, when people get in trouble for off-the-clock behavior, it’s usually because the employer believes the behavior impacted work in some way, such as harassing comments made to a coworker outside of work, representing the company poorly to customers, etc. You may also like:can I ask for a higher salary if I agreed to a lower range at the start of the interview process?how do I negotiate salary when I'm overpaid?will it hurt me if my current salary is much less than a job's posted range? { 235 comments }