Finding a Job During the Coronavirus
I took a calculated risk, and it worked.
The COVID-19 pandemic changed all of our careers in some way. We were either laid-off in the initial wave of austerity, had offers rescinded for similar reasons, transitioned to a 100% remote work model, or saw pay cuts.
For those of us with fortunate to keep our jobs, we were left with an unsettling dynamic. Suddenly, talks of promotions and raises flew off the table and were replaced with an unspoken rule: don’t be ungrateful.
It’s incredibly tactless to imply workers should be happy to have a job. Besides the cost of time and training new employees, true leaders will recognize talent and do their best to nurture it. It’s a net good for them.
This isn’t just when times are good: even in times of freezes and uncertainty, a leader can encourage career growth. There’s an argument for doing so in the latter situation — it shows employees that whatever the organization is going through will not be permanent and that there is a bright and prosperous future ahead.
For over a year, I had been doing the work of two people. For almost half a year, I discussed with my manager the need to create a title commensurate to my responsibilities, with a pay raise to match. Both he, his manager, and the director of our division agreed this was sensible, and I was deserving. The paperwork was signed, the i’s dotted and the t’s crossed. But nothing happened.
I was given all sorts of good faith promises. I was told to be patient. I was told that, should I decide to take the competitive offer from another company, they would understand. My manager even offered to write me a letter of recommendation for this purpose.*
Considering all the work I had put into my role, shaping my department, creating and implemented SOPs, and developing a network of amazing coworkers, I decided to be patient. I waited my turn and saw leaders promote themselves from within. I saw themselves take credit for metrics they did not contribute to. And when the coronavirus forced us to switch to a WFH model, we continued to never miss a deadline.
As a reward, the company implemented a 10% pay cut “until things get back to normal”. I understood most of this was out of my direct manager’s hands. This was a greater leadership call. It was also a signal that either the business was worse off than anyone was willing to admit, or that leaders were cutting corners, or some awful combination.
After nine months of being patient, I leveled with my superiors on the promises that had been made. Their response informed my next steps.
Instead of taking my concerns seriously, I quickly found myself on the backfoot as the pandemic was leveraged against me, as well as larger organization issues within the company. Things I had no control over. My direct impact on the company, the work that came as a result of my capabilities, was disregarded. Instead, I got an earful of vague anecdotes about higher-level meetings and concerns.
With the pandemic in full swing, I began the interview process for a new job. It was an interesting process, but it nonetheless catapulted me into a line of thinking influenced by my experience above.
The above journey taught me two very valuable lessons. One: in order for good-faith promises to mean anything, there has to be evidence of follow-through. Otherwise, it’s just placating words. Two: If someone is going to do something for you, they’ll so in an immediate manner.
I looked for these signs in my interview process and was shocked at the follow-through, transparency, and ease of communication displayed. The company passed my interview, and I was glad to accept their offer.
*As with other promises made, this did not come to fruition.
