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Each week, Dr Kirstin Ferguson tackles questions about workplace, career and leadership in her advice column Got a Minute? This week: a salary sacrifice, a painful new commute and some missing former friends.
Should I take a 20 per cent lower-paying role to work in a job that aligns more with my values? The role is in a government organisation and the work sounds interesting, however as I’ve learnt more about the role, it also seems the organisation is trying to get a lot out of the job without necessarily paying for it. I’m concerned that if I accept a lower salary, it will be difficult to move back up.
Accepting a lower salary is not always a step backwards, but taking a 20 per cent reduction is a significant trade-off. You want to be very sure the ledger is balanced in your favour in other ways.
I want you to imagine a day, say 18 months from now, after you have been in the job a while. But by now, the novelty of the job has worn off, and you are dealing with a pile of things to do. The key question to ask yourself is, will you feel resentful you don’t feel you are being paid what you are worth?
Many, many plenty of people move into purpose-driven work and happily accept the trade-off is being involved in sustainable, meaningful work that makes work interesting and rewarding. That is a choice that is admirable and important, but only you will know what price you are prepared to pay for that.
If values alignment is your goal, it may be there is a compromise out there – a better workplace culture or industry, but in a sector or company that is prepared to pay you what you deserve.
I accepted an office role a short drive from home, but I’ve now been told to work in a different location two days a week. The new commute is 90 minutes each way in heavy traffic and my fuel bill hits hard. HR points to a clause in my contract which says I may need to work in other locations, so I can’t contest it. My manager calls to make sure I am there by 9am, and I am getting angrier and more stressed every day. I’m thinking of resigning, but I’m worried about my mortgage and I have almost no personal leave to take time for interviews. What do I do?
Don’t quit just yet, especially if you don’t have another job to go to. However, your mental health does sound like it needs to be prioritised. Given you have already tried to speak with HR without luck, and your manager isn’t sympathetic either, you may need to formalise your concerns.
I would ask for a formal meeting with both HR and your manager. Take a support person if needed, to help you stay focused, calm and objective. I would explain how you are committed to working with the company (remember, you catch more flies with honey) and then, calmly and objectively, explain the financial and emotional impact this decision is having on you. Offer some clear data about the unexpected fuel costs, for example. I think it is completely reasonable to ask whether there is any chance this decision can be reversed, or changed to someone else who lives closer.
If they do not respond positively to your request, then I would be doing all you can to organise job interviews during your lunch hour (if possible) and get on out of there. Good luck.
I was made redundant six months ago. Over time my former work colleagues have drifted off one by one, including my best work friend. Friends tell me that this is what happens in life, but I can’t believe my work friends could be so fickle. How do I deal with these feelings of abandonment, isolation and loss, which are being exacerbated by me still being unemployed?
It sounds like you are grieving much more than just your former work colleagues. Your entire sense of self has been upended – how you felt fulfilled each day, how you anchored yourself socially and even the stability of a schedule.
I don’t think your workmates are fickle, or that you should start to question whether there was a genuine connection. Work friendships often feel deeply personal when we spend so much time together working to deadlines, gossiping, sharing stories and routines. But most work friendships are also based on proximity, so when the workplace disappears, so does the structure that kept the friendship in place.
It sounds like you now have the chance to build a new structure outside of work which will sustain you regardless of what you do next. Look after yourself first and foremost and remember your worth.
To submit a question about work, careers or leadership, visit kirstinferguson.com/ask. You will not be asked to provide your name or any identifying information. Letters may be edited.
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