Ask a Manager

It’s seven short answers to seven short questions. Here we go…

1. Manager wants me to pick up my coworker’s slack

I work at a company that faced serious downsizing a year ago. I was fortunate to not only survive the restructuring but to have become the head of a newly-formed department. My old position was dissolved and split among several staff members, including me.

One coworker has consistently avoided the part of her job that used to be mine, which is convenient for her because it means suppliers keep contacting me when they don’t hear back from her, reinforcing the general opinion within and outside the organization that I am still responsible for this area. (She’s also a department head, and we report to the same person.) I recently approached my supervisor about this issue, and received a very disappointing response. He focused on subjective aspects of the issue, telling me that I am probably treating her like a baby and that’s why she isn’t performing, and that the only way for the job to be done right is to do it myself. I have a huge amount of respect for my manager, but he places such a high value on getting along that he his happy to let the more efficient, energetic employees carry a heavier load rather than confronting non-performers.

Since the downsizing, when lack of performance in this area has become apparent to him, he has turned to ME for a solution rather than the co-worker who is now responsible. I told my supervisor that I am now taking a hands-off approach even if balls drop, and he has endorsed this strategy. However dollars to donuts he will be coming to me when everything stops working.

When people email you because they don’t hear back from your coworker, respond with, “Jane is now the contact for this area and should be able to help you,” and cc Jane (so they have her email) — and your manager if that feels necessary. If your manager eventually comes to you for solutions to your coworker’s failings, you can simply say, “Yes, I’m concerned about that Jane isn’t handling that too, but I don’t have the authority to address it with her.”

And I’d downgrade that “huge amount of respect” for your manager, because he has abdicated some of the most fundamental responsibilities of a manager — addressing performance problems and ensuring that high performers don’t get penalized by his negligence there.

2. Should I tell our new director about our manager never being around?

My department recently changed directors. She would like to meet with us individually to “find out more about us” and to “address any issue you might have.” Our current manager is rarely at work and when he is, he’s not really here, just out to meetings or lunches and can’t be reached. Should I share this info with the new director? There are plenty of other issues that should be addressed as well. When is too much too much?

If it impacting your work? If so, you could say something like, “Sometimes our inability to reach George causes X, Y, and Z to happen. I’d love to find a solution to that.” But if it’s not affecting your work and you just want to report his behavior to her, this isn’t the time — she doesn’t know you yet and you don’t have credibility built up with her.

3. I just realized I didn’t get the raises I assumed I’d received for the last two years

I have been with this company for almost 12 years. Every year, I have received my raise on time and have received the same amount (3%). I did not notice until a couple months ago that my raises had stopped coming and I had not received a raise since 2011. I immediately notified the general manager and found out that my last two years’ reviews had not been completed by my manager, who had just left the company a week prior to my noticing. The new manager submitted my reviews, and not only did I get less (2%), they did not give me retroactive pay for the 2 years I did not receive a raise. Also they still have not gone over the reviews with me.

I don’t think this is fair since it was the manager’s mistake, but what can I do? Am I entitled to retroactive pay? I have always gone above and beyond and don’t think there is any legitimate reason for them to not give me the full 3% but am still waiting to see the reviews to find out why.

No, you’re not entitled to retroactive pay (which doesn’t mean they might not give it to you, but there’s no general entitlement to it). In fact, you weren’t even entitled to raises during those years, unless you have a written agreement that requires them. Raises are generally at the discretion of the employer, so unless your company does automatic raises for everyone (which they certainly might), I’d take this more as a signal that your manager wasn’t prioritizing retaining you … which was her prerogative, particularly since you didn’t push back.

And the thing is, you’re responsible for managing your own pay — if you, the person most affected by this, weren’t paying attention, it’s not all that reasonable to be angry that they didn’t either. And that’s going to make this hard for you to argue — the fact that you didn’t notice it for two years makes it difficult to be outraged.

(I would also give up on getting those reviews. Your new manager isn’t in a position to review your performance for periods when she wasn’t managing you. Sorry!)

4. I don’t think I can do the job I’m interviewing for

I applied for a job recently and have an interview. The job is ICT system manager in a local high school and will involve managing my own (if small) ICT team and having overall responsibility for the schools ICT infrastructure and systems. I’ve only ever done ICT technician work (mostly in the schools sector), but I am aware — due to a shining reputation in the local school/public sector and numerous unrequested endorsements — that I’m well in the running, if not the frontrunner for the job.

But I’m having second thoughts, I’m not convinced my skill set is up to the job, that I’m mature and if I’m mentally ready for the new challengers that the job presents. I’m 25 and only been working in the ICT support industry for 5 and a half years. Also if I was to take the job I would need to excel. I would find it very demoralizing knowing people were thinking I’m inadequate for the job. I would hate to be “that guy who doesn’t know what they’re doing”.”

I’m looking for advice on how to decline the job should I be offered it. Is there an etiquette? Am I at risk of damaging my reputation or future job prospects in the area? Should I pull out of the interview now? I would really like the experience of the interview as its my first management level one.

Well, if you’re sure you wouldn’t accept the job, you can certainly withdraw now (“thanks so much for offering to meet, but I’ve decided to pursue other positions”) or wait to withdraw after the interview (same wording) or simply turn down the offer if it comes (“I admire what you do, but after much thought have concluded it’s not the right fit for me right now”).

But … are you sure? Because what you describe sounds an awful lot like a case of impostor syndrome. Why not simply be open with them about who you are and what you can offer, and believe them if they end up thinking you’re the strongest candidate? That’s not to say that employers never make bad hires, but you seem to be taking yourself out of the running because of nerves and self-doubt, and it might be worth listening to their assessment of your strengths (as well as thinking about what your awesome reputation says about you).

5. Should I tell my boss I’m job searching because I need more schedule flexibility?

I’m currently employed by a job that I dislike, but of course I’m holding on until something better comes along. However, my children’s school hours have changed and I now have to leave 15 minutes early every day to accommodate this new schedule. I spoke with my supervisor regarding flexibility with my schedule, and he was ok with the whole thing but he wants me to make an exception every other Thursday, or at least try to make an exception, in order to work late due to a community meeting. I haven’t gotten back to him, but it’s simply not going to work. It’s been difficult relying on other people to pick up my children and I simply do not want to go through the stress.

So because of this, would it be wise to inform my supervisor that I’m looking for other employment due to a necessary change in work hours and because I need a job that can provide this level of flexibility? I’m my children’s only responsible means of transportation and I cannot expect for someone else to rearrange their schedule.

No. Tell him you’re leaving when you have a job offer that you’ve accepted and not before. You have little to gain by telling him you’re job searching, and plenty to lose — he could push you out earlier than you’re prepared to go, for instance.

However, have you told him directly that you cannot do what he’s asking? It’s possible that he’d be willing to negotiate a different arrangement with you if he knows that it’s not something you can be flexible with.

6. How will my last paycheck be calculated?

I am on salary and am finishing my job in the middle of a pay week. How does that work? If, say, I have worked 27 hours that week, which is my last?

They’ll prorate it. So if you normally make $X in a one-week period, you’d get 67% (27 divided into 40 — because of a normal 40 hour work week, or whatever they use) of X for that period.

7. Why would an employer check references after making a hire?

Just got a request for a reference check after an organization decided to hire one of my (terrific) former employees. Any idea why a company would check references after a hire? The questions they asked were pretty standard — no searching for red flags or anything like that.

Terrible hiring practices, where they (a) treat reference-checks as rubber stamps, like a bit of paperwork to be completed as part of the offer process, and (b) jeopardize people’s livelihoods, by getting them to accept job offers (and often quit existing jobs) when they haven’t actually finished their vetting process yet and could technically still pull the offer. It’s a sign of lazy, thoughtless hiring practices.

It’s seven short answers to seven short questions. Here we go…

1. Should I say something to my ex-husband about his false LinkedIn profile?

Long story not so long, my ex-husband (with whom I have a cordial relationship and also two sons) was RIF’d a couple of weeks ago due to a merger. For some reason, he’s created a second Linked In account and connected to me with the new one (in addition to already being connected on the old account). I clicked through, wondering if he’d created a new accound and immediately noticed that he’s listed a degree he does not have from a university he did attend for a few years. I know 100% for a fact he didn’t get that degree (he did go on and complete a degree elsewhere and that is also listed on this new account).

Normally I’m a mind your own business person on things like this but (a) he’s technology-challenged, and more importantly (b) he’s the father of my sons and when bad things happen to him, whether self inflicted or not, it’s hard on them. So the question is this: do I say something to the ex about getting that lie off his LinkedIn profile or do I continue to mind my own business?

If you have a friendly relationship with him, I don’t see anything wrong with saying something — as long as you frame it as something you’re assuming he did by mistake, rather than assuming that he’s intentionally lying. For instance, “Hey, what’s the story with your second LinkedIn profile? And did you notice you accidentally put that you had a degree from Yale?”

But if the relationship isn’t warm, you risk seeming like you’re just hassling him, in which case it’s not worth it and I’d let it go. As far as a potential impact on his kids, the much bigger problem would be if he’s lying on his resume (since there’s it’s clearly deliberate, whereas on LinkedIn it could be user error) — and that’s something you can’t/won’t really be able to know.

2. Interviewer suggested I was lazy for not looking for jobs outside the company

I recently attended an internal interview at the company I work for. Although the interview went well initially, I was asked a very strange question halfway through. When he had established that I have extensive and varied experience, the interviewer asked me if I had looked outside the company for a new role. When I answered that I hadn’t, he asked me, “Do you not think that’s a bit lazy?”

I am frankly shocked that he asked me that. I would have thought that an employee who stayed with a company for several years would be considered loyal, not lazy.

This guy sounds like a jackass. If he’d be your manager if you got the job, I’d be very wary — he just told you something very revealing about how he thinks of employees.

3. Explaining why I’m looking for a new job after four months

I recently took a job simply because I didn’t have one. I’ve been there about 4 months and I don’t hate the work, but the salary is so low that I am barely covering my bills and I rarely leave my apartment because I am so in the red. I have been applying to jobs and have set up a few interviews. I am asked on almost every interview why I am leaving my current job. I have tried “I am looking for new challenges,” but I am usually met with a “But you’ve only been there a couple months” response. How should I go about explaining myself to a potential employer? Is it okay to tell them I don’t make enough money?

Yeah, think about that answer from an employer’s perspective: Someone who’s looking for new challenges after four months is someone pretty damn flighty. If employers believe you, it’s usually going to be a deal-breaker. If they don’t believe you (and instead think you’re covering up the real story), you’ll look naive for thinking that answer wouldn’t be a huge concern for them.

There isn’t really a good answer here, because the fact is that you accepted your current salary — and most employers will think that you shouldn’t have done that if you were just going to keep looking (unless the job is a minimum wage type job, in which case most people will find it reasonable). You’re probably better off leaving this job off your resume while you’re looking, since you haven’t been there long enough for it to help you and it’s going to keep raising red flags.

4. Do I still have a job?

I have had a part-time job since 2011 at a radio station I really love to work at. At the time of my hiring, I was a high school senior, so the few hours I worked was fine by me, mostly during high school football season, and maybe a few games in the basketball season. However, late last year, I’ve started to lose hours because the station was downsizing and shifting the employees around. I hadn’t received a “you’re fired” or “We have to let you go” (the former is least likely since I was always being told how well I was doing) type of statement, but I haven’t had any hours since November/December.

The job already had rather irregular hours, but when I was needed, it was always until about January before my hours dwindled. Now it’s September, when I’ve usually been working since August, and I haven’t had any hours, but still considered (I think) an employee. To keep myself busy, I’ve asked my supervisor at the local library if I could volunteer more hours there (I’d been there since 2009.)

I’ve been looking for other work, and keeping busy already, but should I leave my current job despite all advice against looking for work while not employed?

Why not ask them what’s going on? Frankly, I’d consider you “not employed” in the most literal sense, since you expected to receive hours starting in August (it sounds like) and haven’t, but that doesn’t mean those hours aren’t coming — but you certainly can’t count on them. Talk to them and ask them directly if you should expect hours, and if so, when you should start seeing them. Then make your decisions from there.

Read an update to this letter here.

5. School wants me to teach for longer each week, without extra pay

I have been working as an adjunct instructor at a small technical college for five years. In addition to my regular classes teaching microbiology, pathology, and psychology, I have (on very short notice) taken classes because other instructors quit before the first day of class; I have taken a class during mid-semester because the instructor was hospitalized; and I am ahead of my faculty file; everything from continuing education to required webinars etc. is in order, to date, filed. I am rated every semester (observed by my superior) and receive the highest grades in every field. My students’ evaluations are among the highest of all instructors. In five years, I missed one day of work. I love my job.

About six months ago, they told me that my microbiology class will change to a higher level, from a 200 class to a 300 class with more prerequisites. No problem. However, the class will be held 45 minutes longer each meeting time, so twice a week, meaning 90 minutes of extra work. The problem: They want to pay me the same amount I get paid now. What is your take on that?

My take on that is that it’s time for you to negotiate for a higher rate. Don’t assume that you’ll be offered more when you deserve it; in many workplaces, the onus is on you to raise the issue and negotiate for what you want. (No surprise that you’re a woman, by the way — women negotiate far less often than men do.) It’s time to tell them that you believe the extra work is worth more. (With the caveat that adjunct are notoriously underpaid.)

6. Asking employer to pay for your desk and chair when you work from home

In work from home situations, do you think it is reasonable for the company to cover expenses related to the work-from-home setup, including office furniture? I recently started with a small, but growing, company and it is a 100% work from home gig. I already had internet access at home, so the company just had to cover my work laptop. We’re transitioning between selling a home and moving into a new home (in an apartment while we build), so there were no other office set-up expenses initially. Now that we’re getting settled in the new home, I think it is worth asking my employer to cover expenses related to a desk and office chair. (I’ve been using a chair from our dining table set, since space was limited in the temporary apartment.) My husband thought that was a little unreasonable to ask, but said I knew my company best and left it up to me. I think the company has a pretty sweet deal already with not having any overhead for employee workspace – no rent, utilities, etc. So covering a few hundred dollars on some office furniture would be perfectly reasonable. Additionally, the way I asked was to say “would you consider covering…” and “what we’re looking at is $XX. If you would be willing to cover a portion, we would certainly cover the difference” giving my employer plenty of options to say no, we’re not covering that, yes, we’ll cover X amount or yes, we’ll cover everything.

What do you think – reasonable or not?

It’s fine to ask, but whether they’ll approve it or not depends on your company. You have to know the culture there. In many nonprofits, this wouldn’t fly — the assumption is that you’re benefitting in lots of ways by getting to work from home and that you get that they have limited resources. In plenty of other organizations, though, no one would bat an eye at this. So you really need to know your employer. But if you’re going to ask, the way you worded it is fine.

7. Is there a French or British Ask a Manager?

I’m a recent graduate of an American college and grew up in the U.S. I also moved to France three weeks ago because I have always wanted to live here for a few years. I have dual-citizenship and no visa issues, but I am having trouble trying to get my first professional job (but not my first job ever! I’ve had about five). Part of the problem is that I’m worried my cover letters are too informal. I know that both France and the U.K. expect a more formal tone, and that makes me worried that conventions that are outdated in the US (“dear sir or madam…”) are still the best way to go here.

I know that you specialize in the U.S., but do you know of a blog or ebook comparable to yours, but meant for job-seekers in France or the U.K.?

I don’t, but I’m throwing this out there in case readers do.

It’s seven short answers to seven short questions. Here we go…

1. Can I ask employers for advice on how to get a job with them?

What’s your opinion of directly asking the organizations/companies that I want to work for in the near future advice on how to increase my chances of being employed there? Would that show initiative? Or desperation and naivete?

It depends. Some will give you helpful advice, and some won’t. Anecdotally, I’d say that smaller organizations are more likely to give you a personalized response than larger ones, but it really depends on the employer, as well as on the specific person you happen to reach out to. To maximize your chances, be very specific about the type of work you want to do (don’t just say “a job”) and include information about your background. Be prepared for most responses to be focused on experience — you’re more likely to hear “we look for candidates with a background in X, Y, and Z” than to hear “we only hire people the CEO likes” or “we reject a lot of people for talking too much,” even if both are true.

One thing to keep in mind though — if you’re doing this to “show initiative,” I wouldn’t bother because it’s unlikely to be particularly impressive. I’d only spend the time (and the time of the people you’d be reaching out to) if you genuinely want the information. If it’s just an attempt to impress, you should go with a great cover letter and a resume that shows a track record of achievement in the areas they need — which is far more impressive.

2. How can I decrease negativity among my staff?

I have recently been promoted to manage a department of about 20 people within a large organization. It is in a challenging healthcare field and I have been spending a great deal of time supporting my staff through some recent changes. The last manager did not seem very supportive and people used to complain about that, so I decided that I would be very supportive in order to improve morale and performance. I
instigated an open door policy and made it clear that I was there to help with any problems, especially with our patients, who are often stressed by their situation and can be very demanding.

However, I am beginning to suspect that this has backfired. I now seem to have people in my office all day complaining about very trivial matters that I’m pretty sure they could have sorted out themselves. For example, they will come to tell me if a patient has spoken out of turn to them; I expected them to consult me if a patient was offensive, not just bad mannered. Worse still, I feel as if there is even more of a negative atmosphere than before, and one of my (positive) colleagues told me that they often spend their entire lunch breaks moaning about the patients and saying that I should deal with them more firmly. I have to say that it is only two of the staff who do this, with another who joins in, but I’m really worried that this negativity is bringing down the whole atmosphere. Several of the other staff have complained to me that they don’t like the unpleasant things that are being said about the patients. How have I got this so wrong?

People will take their cues from you, and it sounds like you made a point of offering “support,” which they took as an invitation to air complaints and vent. Now you’re going to need to backtrack and make it clear what you want to hear about (issues that require your involvement to reach a resolution) and what they should handle on their own (anything that’s just venting and doesn’t require action from you). You should also make it clear that while you want to hear legitimate complaints, and while everyone needs to occasionally let off steam after a frustrating encounter, it’s not okay to chronically complain, particularly about patients (who presumably are the reason you all have jobs). And if it continues after that, you’ll need to have a more serious conversation one-on-one with the three complainers — laying out the standards of professionalism you expect them to meet.

Your job as a manager isn’t “to be supportive.” It’s to run your department well and get the results you need. Being a supportive person can be part of that, but it can’t be your #1 goal — and that’s where it sounds like you initially went wrong.

3. Rude treatment after I was turned down for an internal position

I didn’t get the internal position that I interviewed for. While I’m dealing with the disappointment and inevitable feeling of hurt, I respect their decision completely. What I don’t respect, however, is the way they handled the situation.

I work in a-15 person office. Out of the 5 people who interviewed me, two are direct supervisors, and two are the president and vice president of the company. After learning of the news from my supervisor, I immediately emailed all of the interviewers to tell them thank you and to assure them that I understand their decision and would join them in warmly welcoming the new person. I got one response. In my attempt to be gracious and make everyone feel comfortable, I was ignored.

I understand if this sort of behavior goes on in big office environments where the HR person facilitates everything. But I’m working in a small office and I see the people that interviewed me everyday, but they are trying to play it off like nothing happened. Granted, they are awkward people to begin with, but I just feel as though this kind of behavior is off. Am I wrong? Their attitudes and behavior are making me feel incredibly resentful and I feel like I just want to leave. Am I being irrational here? Or is this just really bad management?

It’s not ideal that they didn’t respond, but your reaction seems more intense than the situation warrants. Yes, they should have responded to you, because they should want to put some effort into ensuring that you continue to feel valued, despite not getting the new position. But plenty of people (especially busy ones) don’t respond to emails that don’t ask direct questions — and in this case, if they saw your email as essentially a “thanks for the chance to interview,” it’s not outrageous that they didn’t write back.

Speaking of which…

4. I didn’t get a response to my post-interview thank-you note

I had an interview that I thought went very well. After the interview, the hiring manager gave me her cell phone number (she said she was going to be traveling), her office number, and email address. I took this to be a very positive sign that I was their top candidate. A few hours later, I sent a thank-you email to her and the other interviewer and was surprised to not receive a response. Does that mean the interview didn’t go as well as I thought? Maybe they had a chance to talk and realized I wasn’t a great fit. So nervous!

Whoa, you’re reading into things all over the place when you shouldn’t be. Don’t assume you’re their top candidate just because you had a good interview and the hiring manager gave you her contact info, and don’t assume that it means anything that they didn’t respond to your thank-you. Neither of those means anything. Some interviewers routinely give their contact info to all candidates at the end of an interview, and plenty of interviewers don’t respond to thank-you notes — it’s a thank-you, after all, and there’s no obligation to say thank you for thanking them. In other words, none of this means anything, you’re trying to read tea leaves when it’s fruitless to attempt it, and all you can really do is wait and see how it plays out. (And meanwhile, do yourself the favor of moving on mentally so you’re not agonizing while you wait.)

5. How can I avoid talking about politics at work?

My manager and some fellow employees love to talk politics. To be honest, I disagree with them, and, as the only American in the group, I sometimes feel like I’m being called on to defend U.S. policies. I’ve tried changing the subject, but it didn’t work. I tried just sitting there and not participating in the conversation, but someone apologized for “upsetting” me, which made me feel like I had to defend myself for not participating in their conversation. I could really use some advice on this one — how can I gracefully decline to discuss politics at work?

Not participating seems like your best bet. And if someone apologizes for “upsetting you,” even when you’re not participating, just say, “Oh, I’m not even paying attention. I try not to discuss politics at work.” Say it calmly and in a friendly tone, and repeat as needed.

You might not ever be able to change people’s minds about what your role should be in these conversations, but no one can force you to participate or be provoked by them; that part is all up to you.

6. How can I tell my coworker about the bad exit interviews she receives?

I was hired as an HR assistant for a contract to replace the HR assistant who was going for a maternity leave (in Quebec, so for more than a year, including training and follow-up after she came back). When my time was almost up, I started getting feedback from coworkers (peers, superiors, workers…) that they would love for me to stay (and from the plant workers that they don’t like that HR assistant because she treated them like **). My boss (the HR director) created a new position for me to stay at that company.

Shortly after the HR assistant left for maternity leave, I started conducting exit interviews. Most people are open with me as they trust me. Now that she’s back, a lot of the exit interviews include very good feedback for the HR team, except her; most people have something bad to say about her.

The thing is, she’s the one doing all the data entering in our HR system and I feel weird about writing a report saying “Marie is a 10 but Sarah is…” — well, let’s say I have to clean up the language a bit. How do I go about that ?

This is something you should discuss with your manager and find out how she wants it handled. Say something like, “I’d like your advice on something that feels awkward to me. In many of the exit interviews I’m conducting, people have great feedback for HR, except for Sarah, who they often have complaints about.” I have to give the data to Sarah to enter, and I feel awkward that she’s repeatedly seeing this. Is there a diplomatic way for me to handle this with her?” (This has the side benefit of alerting your manager to the situation, but you’d also be genuinely seeking her guidance on how to proceed.)

7. Can a criminal background check include broader checks?

If an employer specifies the type of background check they are performing (in this case a criminal background check), does that mean they can look into other aspects of a prospective hire in that check? I ask because I am past the reference checking stage but am still concerned that a “non-rehireable” status from a past employer may affect my prospective employment. The company’s offer stated they would be performing a criminal background check specifically, so should I be worried that the past employer can come back to bite me in the background check despite having no criminal history?

It’s possible, but if you’re sure that they’re passed the reference-checking and employment verification stage, it’s unlikely. If they told you that all they’re doing is a criminal background check (as opposed to using broader terminology, like “background check”), that’s probably all they’re doing.

It’s seven short answers to seven short questions. Here we go…

1. My manager offered to let me use up all my leave time while I’m working for my new company

I notified my current supervisor that I’d received a job offer and am going to take it. In discussing my end date for my current job and beginning date for my new job, she basically encouraged me to use up my medical leave, etc. She also vaguely referred to starting with them while using my leave at my current spot — meaning that I would start working my new job while still technically employed by the old one and using paid leave.

Would this open me up to any potential legal issues? Ethically it feels squidgy, but I hate my old job so much that I want everything out of them possible.

There’s no legal issue here, but you should take a look at your company’s policies. You’re probably not allowed to use medical leave unless it’s for a legitimate medical reason. And if they pay out your accrued vacation time when you leave, then it’s going to have the same impact anyway — because without the deceptive “still working here” when you’re really not. If they don’t pay out accrued leave, then you can certainly take your manager up on her offer to let you use vacation time up before your official end date — that’s her call to make, and if she tells you it’s okay (and it doesn’t violate any clear policies of your employer), there’s no reason you can’t do that.

But if there’s any grey area in their policies, I wouldn’t — if it turns out that it’s not okay and you get caught, you could burn a bridge, which generally you want to avoid.

2. Do raises really depend on the company budget?

I asked my boss for a promotion/raise and they told me they would work on it and that it will depend the budget in the next fiscal year. How much of that answer is true and is that always the case? Other departments have went through a rapid serious of promotions in this company very recently and I’m pretty sure that was not “planned” for.

It’s pretty common for raises and promotions to be dependent on budget issues — just like your ability to pay more for something at home is dependent on your home budget. Businesses have budgets too and don’t generally just hand out money without first making sure that they have room for it in their finances. And while your saw another department do a bunch of promotions, either they had room for it in their existing budget or the money was reallocated for that purpose. It’s always a question of where it gets allocated, which is essentially what your manager was saying to you.

3. References when your managers have died

My mom, at the age of 68, has decided to seek part-time work. She was an elementary school teacher for 30+ years in the local county school system and retired 6 years ago. She worked at 4 or 5 schools through her tenure — and all of the principals have either died, or are in states where they should not be giving references. She’s lost track of most of her colleagues as well.

I was thinking she could call the school system to at least get some of the data in relation to her personnel record. She’s planning on applying for tutoring positions, so I am wondering if they’ve encountered this before. We’re working on her resume, but this really threw for me for a loop. In lieu of direct work colleagues or principals, what is her next best option?

Calling the school district is a good idea, but she should also try to track down some of her former coworkers. Try LinkedIn or Google or the schools themselves.

4. Can my employer dock salaried workers’ pay?

My place of employment has implemented a new policy that if any employee steps outside for a phone call or so forth, all managers will be docked from their salaried pay because they had no knowledge that the employee stepped outside. Basically they expect us to know what the employees are doing at all times. I was under the impression that your salaried pay could not be docked for any reason unless stated in your signed contract. Can they do this?

If you’re exempt, your pay can’t be docked like this. If they do, they risk losing the exemption and having you reclassified as non-exempt, which would require them to pay you overtime for all hours over 40 you work in a week — and that could be applied retroactively, meaning they could have to pay you overtime for the past as well.

5. Hitting and swearing at customers

I work in McDonalds and was just wondering, say that one day a customer wants to take their anger out on someone (that someone being me) and they spit in my face. Would I get the sack for reacting in a violent or self-defensive manner, e.g swearing at them or hitting them?

Uh, yes. Hitting customers is generally frowned upon.

6. A high-ranking person in a field I’m interested in connected with me on LinkedIn

A few days ago, I got a request for connection on LinkedIn. Most have been people I have known, colleagues and perhaps people in my general professional neighborhood in town. I’m not a big LinkedIn maven. That said, out of the blue, I got a connection request from my city communications manager, a rather high ranking person in a position/professional avenue I could see myself in. I connected with him. I am currently job seeking in a related field (freelance writer); is there any way to actual connect to maybe see if there are any opportunities. The curiosity also is — why did he connect to me? Is that something you can professionally ask?

I think it would be awkward to ask why he connected with you (it implies you don’t think there’s any reason to be in touch, which undermines what you want to do here), but you could definitely write to him and tell him that you’re very interested in doing the type of work he does and telling him a bit about yourself.

7. When my employer sends me home earlier than scheduled, do I have to go?

I know my employer can schedule me overtime. Two days a week, I am being scheduled overtime. If on either of these scheduled overtime days they do not need me and they tell me to go home at my regular shift time, do I have to leave? Or can I stay and get the overtime pay?

No, if they tell you to go home, you can’t overrule them; you can’t just stay and get paid when they’ve told you to leave. I think maybe you’re wondering whether there’s some legal requirement that they allow you to work that time since they booked it with you and you cleared your schedule for it, but there is not.