In thinking my manager is hugely insensitive for wearing these things into work?

[Mandarinthyme]

Our department head is very young and glamorous and is fairly new to the company. We know her salary range as it was stated alongside the job advert (a six figure salary whilst the rest of the team are lucky to earn a quarter of that). Every day she swans in to the office like she’s dressed for the catwalk, different designer handbags (the very obvious types - think Gucci, LV etc), Rolex watch, Cartier bracelets, designer belts and shoes. Not to mention the perfect nails, hair and everything else that we just cannot afford these days.

Meanwhile our large team is underpaid and overworked. The recent financial climate means many of us are struggling to heat our homes, worrying about mortgage/rental price hikes and generally having to really cut back. We are all office based and this is something we talk about frequently in conversation, so she’s completely aware of this. She’s previously had the cheek to say that we are all feeling the pinch given the financial situation, which is an absolute insult when she rubs her wealth in our faces 5 days a week.

AIBU in feeling completely incensed by this and wondering how on earth she can think it’s appropriate?! The whole team are upset with this and considering raising it with HR.

Comparison, jealousy is the thief of joy

This very much sounds like “if I can’t have it you can’t either” You sound very childish OP. Concern yourself with your job and not hers

In summary, luxury items can be
fake, bought in charity shops, second hand, on vinted or cudoni, borrowed from membership sites etc.
bottom line it’s none of your business. Everywhere I have worked senior people have to look polished and presentable as they have external meetings and attend conferences. Do you think your company want someone on a 6 figure salary with greasy and unkept hair or rough nails?

You and your colleagues sound jealous and you have too much time on your hand googling prices of her belts. please go to HR and report back 😂

I think you want a male boss

No way would you and your bitchy crowd sit about gossiping nastily about well groomed male boss

jealousy shines out ‘perfect hair and nails’ - these are about effort, not about money anyway

why don’t you go and get a 6 figure salary job, no one is stopping you

teamglamboss

poor woman. I imagine she is hardworking to have gained such a job. Maybe she’s the only there with a ‘heart of gold’ too....

you lot certainly sound nasty, and using work time to gossip- not hardworking ‘hearts of gold’

That doesn't make it any better. You just riled one another up and justified this weird thought process amongst yourself.
Designer pieces last an absolute age. She's probably had them for years. Is she supposed to just sell everything and buy new cheap stuff to make you feel better about your life?

Can you imagine how awful they would be to one of their own who worked their way up?

@Mandarinthyme you don't have to just inherit from your parents, you can inherit from anyone! She may have lost grandparents or brother/sister or husband?

I can see why you weren't considered for the job!

Troll ?

Lolz this is ridiculous! I only wear plain black T-shirts and jeans to work because I can’t actually be bothered to make any more effort

other people come in super dressed up with loads of accessories

nobody at my office gives a shit about what anyone else is wearing or doing or has

its not this woman’s fault tbh

Please don't take this to HR. You will come across and small and bitter. You also come across as small and bitter in your post. I work in a school - should I tell my line-manager not to come into work in her expensive 4 x 4 and eat her Waitrose sushi in my drawn, pale-from-hunger face? And get together with my colleagues and wind each other up into a frenzy of hard-done-by indignation and contempt?
You're not in a school playground, so stop behaving like a 12 year old bully.

"Surely the whole team cannot be jealous? I’m certainly not"*
*
It's mob mentality though. A few people mentioned something and now everyone's on board. Leave her be.

Maybe she's had those things for years, not many people would sell all their clothes, jewellery etc because they're on hard times.

What if her priority was cars instead of clothing, and she’d bought herself a really nice one? Would the suggestion be that it was insensitive to come into work in her big fancy car so she should buy an additional cheaper one for work, and keep the expensive one for weekends?

Yes she must transport to work via a broomstick only!

Just tend to your own fire - stop thinking that other people are building bigger ones just to showcase that they can.
So what if they are? Why on earth are you letting this bother you?

What someone wears for work should not in general be cause for complaint, but comments that are insensitive about money could be.

As for the teacher whose manager has a 4x4, that is perfectly legitimate to criticise in conversation in my opinion.

This boils down to:

”Someone else can afford things that I can’t and I don’t like it”.

Boo fuckety hoo!

Welcome to the world.

Why is it legitimate to criticise a teacher with a 4x4?

Also perfectly legitimate to say those gossiping about what others spend their own money on and judging someone based on this, in a group, at work is bullying.

Why criticise a teacher for their choice of car?

Just because someone earns much more than you doesn’t mean they aren’t feeling the pinch - you live to your means and she may well have a larger mortgage and outgoings etc that percentage wise take up the same amount of her salary as yours. Complaining that she wears nice clothes to HR will get your team nowhere and frankly will be a claim that is sniggered at.

I think the root problem here is the unfairness you can see in the pay gap within your company, but you’re feeling resentful towards the wrong person. The manager just applied for a job (can’t blame her if she was qualified - who wouldn’t want that salary given the chance?) and got it - she didn’t set the pay rates in your company. I’d focus your anger on the people that do set the salaries and campaign for better. I agree that the blatant inequality sucks - sadly it’s everywhere at the moment.

Yabu - is she supposed to not use her handbag because you can’t afford one?!

I’m struggling to believe that this is genuine, but if it is, you are being very unreasonable.

Firstly, it’s normal to have pangs of jealousy if someone has something nice things and you don’t. However, this reaction is totally over the top. She isn’t doing anything wrong, she’s spending the money she earns as she sees fit. Unless she is actively stopping you looking for a different, better paid job or single handedly blocking a pay rise you are due then she is doing nothing wrong.

I also find it bizarre that you and your team would rather she goes out and spends more money on a whole new wardrobe. Surely that would also be rubbing your nose in it as she would be saying “look at me, I can afford to buy a whole new wardrobe pointlessly”. Perhaps she gives substantially to charity or perhaps she donates lots of items to food banks and perhaps she would be unable to do those things if forced to spend 100s of pounds in Next or New Look and perhaps your colleagues rely on those services and so this hate campaign would damage people
in similar positions to yours more than it would hurt your boss.

I thought the thread was about your boss wearing offensive slogans and things

Don't be ridiculous. If I was on her salary I probably would designer stuff or at least a couple of pieces. Perhaps she prefers to invest in a few pieces of designer clothes than fast fashion. As pps have said maybe she gets them second hand.

As for her looks so what she gets her nails done. Several of my colleagues who are also on much less than £100k get their nails done. It's allowed, there's several nail bars in my home town so it keeps the local economy going. Perhaps she forgoes other luxuries so that she can have the clothes and things she has.