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Over Worked – Under Paid

I have been in my new job for six months, I like it very much and find it very challenging, but because I am a Assistant Manager I am salaried, the pay is only poor and the hours are very long, I AM CONTRACTED TO WORK 39 hours but each week I do on average 50+ meaning over 11 hours not payed for, so worked out 50+ hours divided into my core wage makes me being on a houly rate less than a sales assistant.
I have spoken to my area manager about this and she said she would come and discuss it with me, I am dreading her visit and hope we can come to some agreement. If we don’t shall I give my months notice there and then without having another job to go, to or do I tell her from now on I will only do my contracted hours, and start looking for something else?
I am 57 years old and have been a manager for 10 years, I feel that I am not being paid what I am worth, but its not that easy to find another job at my age.
What is your advice to me?

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avatar careersurgery 27 October 2006 Career Surgery
  • Charlie

    Don’t Resign !
    Ultimatums never work and you will find yourself worse off than you are at present.
    One way to tackle this dilemma is by having a conversation with your manager about the value you bring to your organisation. When you enjoy a job, you want to do it well; you’re committed to it and you value all that it has to offer. It’s not surprising therefore that you’re working the hours you are.
    So, the conversation you MUST engineer is about your value to your employer. Prepare for this by making a list of all the tasks that you do, including those you may be doing which fall outside your job spec. Next write down what it is you value; firstly from your job; next from the organisation and finally from the environment and culture.
    When you DO finally have that conversation with your manager, make your points to them as you would in asking them for their professional help and guidance over a business matter. For example, start by saying that you have encountered a dilemma which you are struggling to resolve. People are natural suckers for the ‘HELP’ line and will often reject or ignore the ‘PROBLEM’ line. Your positioning in asking for their HELP will find a sympathetic ear.
    So, in summary, focus on getting them to realise and acknowledge the real ‘value’ that you provide and then ask for their guidance on how you are going to be able to keep this up, as it is taking more and more of your time away from your day job.
    It’s a fair dilemma faced by many people everyday. The choice between just doing the job or providing value, since often the combination of the two is just not possible.

  • N Johnson

    Your employer is taking advantage of the fact that you enjoy your job and won’t pay you for the extra hours – furthermore, in spite of so called legislation against ageism, your employer knows how difficult it would be for you to find a new job.
    So much for government bureacracy!,

  • wayne

    You don’t say what industry you work in but it seems that you are being taken advantage of. You could “work to rule” but this will ultimately end-up in an adversarial situation. Alternativley you could raise it with your line manager but if you work in retail or hospitality I think you concerns will fall on deaf ears.
    Whatever you do, don’t resign without an alternative lined-up and don’t go down the “constructive dismissal” route as it’s very, very hard to prove.
    My experience is that despite “talking the talk” most employers don’t care about their employees and “work/life balance” are just buzzwords.

  • Anth

    Charlie is the man…as he was in the “should I speak my mind”. All I would add is that you learn to say no. It’ s a problem I’ve had in the past; I too got so sucked in to the role and really enjoyed it; before I knew it I was spending less time away from the office and my life suffered. I eventually left that job, and haven’t look back – but, neither have I found another job that I wanted to be so involved in. It’s a very careful balance, be open and honest about your feelings; be clear that you want to make a success of the position you occupy. You know the character of the person you will be speaking to far better than any of us, choose your words carefully. Plan it, don’t dread it.
    Good luck!

  • Fiona

    As it appears you are in retail, sadly, low pay and long hours are the norm… I was a Assistant Manager in a supermarket for 9 months when I first left uni, and I too earned less per hour than I had working as a saturday girl! If you have any office experience, get back into that, as most offices open at a set time and close on the nod… If you need to stay in retail, look for employers who are known to take on ‘older’ staff… Asda and B&Q being two, and apply, apply, apply… Don’t resign without a job to go to, as you are worth more on the market whilst you are employed, bide your time etc!

  • derek stocks

    The challenge is to prove what you are doing to add value to the business you are in. How much improvement on the bottom line can be attributed t your leadershaip, management, development of the business and development of people? Put a figure on it. If it is in %, find out the true value in �’s.
    Plan how you can develop your team to take on more responsibility to stop you having to work such long hours.
    When they come with a problem, ask them ‘ what would you do?’, or ‘what have we done before when this has happened?’. You will soon pick out those who stick their heads above the parapet – they are the ones to develop further.

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