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An Open Letter to All the Companies Not Giving Pay Raises Right Now
You’re either a part of the economy’s problem or the solution
To All the Frugal, Cost-Cutting Employers of the World:
Let me tell you a story. A story about unfair pay in the workplace.
It was only a few weeks back when I caught my boss in the hallway. The conversation started off with some boring chit-chat, but it quickly escalated to the long-overdue pay raise my boss had promised me last year.
At one point, I told him, “If you’re not giving me a 10% raise, then you’re giving me a pay cut.”
You should’ve seen the smug look on his ugly face.
“We can’t give pay increases right now,” he said in a hushed tone. “We need to keep our payroll low during this economic downturn.”
“That’s a load of crap,” I rebutted. “Inflation is at a record 40-year high.”
I glared at him, waiting for his canned response.
“I’m sorry, Alex,” he said. “There’s nothing I can do.”
Of course he couldn’t! He was only in middle management. He didn’t have any real power in the company, just like me. And in the broader scope of things, he was only a minion…
