Betrayed by boss

[Maud]

This isn't strictly pregnancy related but, as it has been stressing me out hugely, I hope it's ok for me to have a rant on here.

I've just found out that my boss has been stringing me along for the last six months about getting a payrise.

I had a salary review earlier in the year in which I was told that I would get a decent payrise by Christmas just gone if I met certain targets. I more than met those targets but, despite chasing him for confirmation on when the payrise would start, it hasn't happened.

Fed up of being fobbed off by my boss telling me it wasn't his decision, I just had a meeting with the HR manager to ask what is going on. She tells me that my boss has never had any conversations with her or the rest of the powers that be about my getting a payrise at all, let alone the targets, figures and timescales that he had discussed with me!

I am so angry with my boss. I have been loyal to him for years and I worked hard to secure targets in excess of what was expected of me, happy in the knowledge that this would result in my finally earning a more appropriate (although still below average for the industry) salary for what I do.

HR have promised me they will look into this but I just feel so betrayed.

 

[Mummybexee]

Don't be shy here - have you any emails that refer to changed targets etc that would back up your storey?

I had lots of broken promises for sometime at my old job- so I tuped to our sister company after 2 years and now the department is falling apart as everyone else is leaving -

Always look out for number 1 - business is business and pleasure is pleasure - I've learnt the hard way like you

Hope HR look Into it

Keep all your emails etc which chase him about a pay rise - if he hadn't of discussed it with you he should have replied instead he ignored which is your corner of proof in some respects

 

[Maud]

Thanks for the support. Unfortunately the discussions were verbal as we're a very small and informal office, although I have my e-mails to him. I'll have to wait and see what happens after they speak to boss. The trust has gone though

 

[Maud]

Well not only am I not getting a payrise, but my employer is merging with another company. While my job is obviously safe due to TUPE, I have to essentially start a new job just 4 weeks before I'm due to start my maternity leave. I've already been struggling with stress and I'm now really worried how I'm going to cope with this upheaval at such a late stage in my pregnancy.

 

[mylullaby]

I would be scheduling a meeting with your boss and HR if I were you - sounds like the lack of pay rise is linked to your pregnancy and I'd want to have it out with him with HR present so he at least has to answer your questions in front of them. I wouldn't be shy about mentioning your legal position either - that if this decision is in any way based on your pregnancy, you would have no choice but to take things further with the advice of your solicitor.

Don't back down just yet - and don't let this company merge overshadow the real issue here - that you had a verbal agreement with your boss about a pay rise if targets were met and it hasn't happened despite those targets being met. You're inclined to think it's due to your maternity leave as you can't see any other reason for the agreement to change. Keep pushing and make an appointment with the CAB for advice about your situation.

 

[Maud]

Thanks, but it isn't due to my maternity that I didn't get a payrise.

I'm not happy about the merge, as I'll be keeping my existing salary (which I know is lower than my new colleagues will be on) but at least I'm going to have a job to come back to at the end of my maternity leave and I've been assured the new employer has proper pay review procedures so this shouldn't happen again.

 

[mylullaby]

Do you know for sure that it's not linked? Just trying to work out if it's a convenient excuse that he's using in light of your pregnancy even though he's not admitting that...

 

[Maud]

No I'm satisfied my pregnancy had nothing to do with it. It sounds like it was a choice between merge or close so a payrise was never going to be possible whatever my boss had led me to believe.

At least I have a job and in theory it has better prospects. It's just weird having someone else choose where I will work and not being able to negotiate my own salary!

 

[mylullaby]

Well at least that's something. Still a crappy thing for him to do, but at least you know that when you go back to work they'll have proper pay review procedures in place to make things much more transparent.