The movie was titled, "Last Chance Harvey" with Dustin Hoffman playing Harvey. It's a cute movie....not destined to be an ageless classic. However, I caught a premise in the movie. Harvey was at loose ends. He had time to attend his daughter's wedding. Harvey was let go from his company. Harvey looks like a loser in the beginning of the movie. He really wants his job back. At the end of the movie, his boss (or agent?) asks him to come back. They had hired a replacement for Harvey. The new guy couldn't do the job. In the beginning of the movie, Harvey would have grabbed the first plane and went back to his job of composing advertising jingles. He would have come on his knees if He had to. At the end of the movie, Harvey tells the agent to shove it.
Scene two: Richard is working at SCM Corporation. It's a stressful job that requires competency. Over time, Richard and his colleagues become more and more proficient at their programming jobs. Over time, they get raises. Over time, administration notes that these guys are costing the company money. They find a way to let one man go. Richard and his colleagues watch the office politics at work. Administration hires a new programmer at a lower pay rate. Never mind that everyone works like donkeys. There were times when my husband worked around the clock to get the job done. So did the other men. They worked hard and earned their salaries. Never mind that the Supreme Court has ruled that this is discrimination on the basis of age. Never mind that. It happens all the time and it has happened to me several times. Anyways, the new man is now working at SCM. It is quickly shown that He can't cut it. He is slow and inexperienced. Administration determines that this new guy has a job that is too much for him. So, they hire a second man to help the first one.
Now the company has two men that are doing the work that one man did earlier. It took money and company resources to hire and train the new employees. Wouldn't it have been better to just keep the first employee, pay him his worth and trust in his efficiency and competency?
Scene three: I am working at a major insurance company. I am a technical specialist. All the people in my department are very competent at their job ...which is loss control. We have a lot of freedom to map out our own days. We have to meet deadlines for timeliness and for proficiency. Those that were goof offs, have been let go. There is a salary scale that supposedly is fair to all. A quick talk to my colleagues and I learn that none of us have reached the top of the pay scale...even those with many more years with the company. I note that this is a red flag. This is a wonderful company to work for. I put in extra hours willingly. So do my colleagues. The company announces that the company is going paperless. We are all trained on pen top computers. This makes sense, as insurance forms are standardized, so We should be able to input the information electronically. There is a learning curve. It is hard to see the screen when the sun is on it. It is difficult to back up when I find something that should be noted on a different page of the form. Over time, our proficiency rises.
Then, some bean counter in home office decides that loss control is very expensive. They have spent a lot of money purchasing pen top computers and training the staff. They solve the cost problem by closing down our department. Only a few top administrators can find a job in other departments. Some women take positions in claims processing...which doesn't pay the same salary as a technical specialist. We went to school to get certified. Claims processing is clerical.
The best salary I ever earned, was the last year that I worked in insurance. I hated to leave the company. I retired 5 years earlier than I had planned. As I am cleaning out my desk, I see advertisements for new hires in a different department. Their starting salary is the same as my ending salary.
Scene two: Richard is working at SCM Corporation. It's a stressful job that requires competency. Over time, Richard and his colleagues become more and more proficient at their programming jobs. Over time, they get raises. Over time, administration notes that these guys are costing the company money. They find a way to let one man go. Richard and his colleagues watch the office politics at work. Administration hires a new programmer at a lower pay rate. Never mind that everyone works like donkeys. There were times when my husband worked around the clock to get the job done. So did the other men. They worked hard and earned their salaries. Never mind that the Supreme Court has ruled that this is discrimination on the basis of age. Never mind that. It happens all the time and it has happened to me several times. Anyways, the new man is now working at SCM. It is quickly shown that He can't cut it. He is slow and inexperienced. Administration determines that this new guy has a job that is too much for him. So, they hire a second man to help the first one.
Now the company has two men that are doing the work that one man did earlier. It took money and company resources to hire and train the new employees. Wouldn't it have been better to just keep the first employee, pay him his worth and trust in his efficiency and competency?
Scene three: I am working at a major insurance company. I am a technical specialist. All the people in my department are very competent at their job ...which is loss control. We have a lot of freedom to map out our own days. We have to meet deadlines for timeliness and for proficiency. Those that were goof offs, have been let go. There is a salary scale that supposedly is fair to all. A quick talk to my colleagues and I learn that none of us have reached the top of the pay scale...even those with many more years with the company. I note that this is a red flag. This is a wonderful company to work for. I put in extra hours willingly. So do my colleagues. The company announces that the company is going paperless. We are all trained on pen top computers. This makes sense, as insurance forms are standardized, so We should be able to input the information electronically. There is a learning curve. It is hard to see the screen when the sun is on it. It is difficult to back up when I find something that should be noted on a different page of the form. Over time, our proficiency rises.
Then, some bean counter in home office decides that loss control is very expensive. They have spent a lot of money purchasing pen top computers and training the staff. They solve the cost problem by closing down our department. Only a few top administrators can find a job in other departments. Some women take positions in claims processing...which doesn't pay the same salary as a technical specialist. We went to school to get certified. Claims processing is clerical.
The best salary I ever earned, was the last year that I worked in insurance. I hated to leave the company. I retired 5 years earlier than I had planned. As I am cleaning out my desk, I see advertisements for new hires in a different department. Their starting salary is the same as my ending salary.
Labels: The value of experience
posted by gardenbug at Sunday, November 15, 2009
2 Comments:
You know, I find the biggest drains on companies are poor managers who lose sight of the Big Picture. I suspect one day that I will be a casualty of my salary.
I hope not. It is called discrimination based on aging. As you gain more years with a company, of course you will get raises. See what RCA did when your Dad worked there. They were too stupid to value an experienced and efficient worker. Two younger workers could not match his input to the company.
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