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friend is leaving (maybe)

May 3rd, 2010 at 07:27 am

My work colleague/friend might be leaving. T is an apprentice and she qualifies in August. She has always known that when her contract is up, she will go onto casual employment. That is just how our work, and most other hospitality-based businesses, do things.

It is more cost-effective to pay several people to work a permanent roster on a casual rate (which is more per hour than full-time rate). Casuals earn about 25% more per hour, but cannot work more than 30 hours a week (or else earn overtime) and do not get holiday or sick pay. If you don't like that kind of deal, obviously you don't seek out a casual-pay-based job. For someone like me it works fine, because I don't take a holiday every year, and I am hardly ever sick, and I have another job.

So, T decided to give our boss a couple of months notice, because she has been there for 3 years. Her reason for leaving is that she does not think that she could handle her money efficiently while being employed casually. Whenever a public holiday comes up, all of the mature aged staff do not get to work on that day, as the federal award rate that we are paid under stipulates that we are to be paid 2.5 times our normal rate for public holidays. (Which would mean that we would earn over $50 an hour). The business would suffer a loss for the day because sales don't necesarily increase, so instead all the juniors are rostered on to work (as schools don't open on public holidays either). Even though I personally have been working there longer than T, and never got to work on public holidays, T has only just realised that *she* won't get work on public holidays, and it will muck up *her* finances. I love my friend, but I am really annoyed that she only thinks of these things when they happen to her. There have been numerous times when I've mentioned something about not working when a public holiday comes up, or having to 'save' or put money aside for these things, and she has kind of ignored, or not taken in, the conversation. But now suddenly it's about to happen to her, and it's a Big Deal. Which really frustrates me.

At first she was just going to make up some story about why she was leaving, and blame it on 'personal reasons', because she didn't want to 'pressure' our boss. He would not let her go easily, and she is the type of person to make up her mind, and then not be swayed by anyone once she's decided to do something (I've written about this a few times in other entries). I got pissed off about her plan. Only because, well, there are several workers, including a guy who is the sole income earner for his family and supports three children, and not to mention myself, who ALSO have to deal with the dilemma of public holidays. And she is leaving BECAUSE of the public holiday dilemma, but doesn't have the balls to even say why she is leaving, which makes it difficult for things to ever change around here. She's leaving, so why does it matter? Why is it so hard to say the truth, and maybe give the boss a chance to think about how hard it is for the REST of the workers who loyally show up every day for work, even though sometimes his & his wifes methods make it financially difficult for their employees??? Huh?

Anyway. In the end she DID tell him the real reason why she's leaving. And he said he would talk to his wife, and they would all sit down together and try to work out some sort of agreement.

That was last week, on Thursday.

On Friday, T asked him if he had spoken to his wife, and he said no.

Saturday, same thing.

Today (monday) he had finally spoken to her. He told T that they would make a time to sit down and chat.

It kind of makes me laugh, internally, a little bit. Because THIS is what I have had to deal with for the past seven months, as some of you know. Waiting for my boss to do something, which to him probably either isn't important, or doesn't really affect him, and so he therefore doesn't really relate it as being important to someone else. (You know, it's not like it's someone's FINANCIAL SECURITY and their FUTURE CAREER PLANNING that's at stake! Frown)So atleast someone else knows how it feels. I feel a bit evil, but it's someone else's turn to feel how frustrating it is.

Anyway, so that's the 'big thing' that's been happening at work lately.

I kind of hope that my boss forgets about my whole 'fast tracked apprenticeship' while he deals with possibly losing T, and subsequently thinking up ways to make her stay, so then by the time he remembers about me, I can say 'Sorry, you left it FAR too long, and I have applied to university... Maybe if you did something *six months ago* things might have been different'. (I've been told in confidence by another co-worker, that my boss and his wife have said that if my friend T, or myself, ever left, they feared the place would fall apart. Kind of an ego-boost for me, a little bit. Big Grin)

I'm not doing this to be mean, I just feel burned that's all. A normal apprenticeship is THREE years. I've been there for about five years now. I know I've gotten a heck of a lot more in pay than an apprentice, and worked less hours per week, but I've always worked extra, always been reliable, always covered other people's shifts when they've been sick, and worked a lot harder than a lot of people who work there, and maybe if my boss had gotten his sh*t together, I'd atleast be halfway toward a qualification, which I kind of see as just a little something that I deserve for what I've put in. But hey, that's something I have to let go. I can use the skills I've learnt in my future self-employment business plans, and that's all. I can't use it for other employment opportunities (I could, if I were qualified...) so instead I will now focus on my plan B (Accounting), safe in the knowledge that the only thing holding me back from THIS particular qualification, is my own motivation Smile.

2 Responses to “friend is leaving (maybe)”

  1. gamecock43 Says:
    1272886249

    I think the change is good. For both of you. I know T is a good friend of yours- but branching out will really add some depth to your careers. It sounds like you have really learned all there is to learn at this job and now its time for a new challenge.

  2. frugaltexan75 Says:
    1272910394

    I agree with gamecock. The changes that both you and your friend are looking at doing will be good for both of you. It also might be a good wake up call to your boss to change his ways in the future -- then again, maybe not. In the end though, you can only control what you do -- not what others do.

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