More of a WWYD with work

[verasscarf]

I am a bit of a crossroads with my work and hoping for some insight.

I got a job 2 years ago, after being out of the work force for over 10 years, they agreed to the hours I wanted and overall, I dont have a complaint.

About 6 months ago, I was in a meeting, where I got informed I would be promoted. There was no conversation, it was very much a this is happening.

Since then, I have been more or less chasing for the payrise that comes with this promotion, while still doing the job, last Monday I had a discussion with my manager who told me, he cannot authorise any payrise till the end of the year (april) This is now the 6th or 7th meeting about pay I have had with him.

I have been job hunting since the 3rd meeting, which as I work in a small industry he is aware of and I have had one interview but nothing else.

But what would you do

for the record I am in my late 40s, no real qualifications. but I do learn quickly, but for the job I am doing I am being paid roughly 10% less

1. Hold on till the end of the year and see if the promise happens
2. Keep job hunting but in a different field
3. Go fuck it, quit and hope I win the lottery

for the record, we can afford for me to work on the salary I am on, but this is not the point. If I have to start again I can, it just pisses me off.

April isn't far away, I'd hang on til then, while also keeping an eye out for other suitable positions.

I’d wait until April and see what pay rise they offer you. If it’s rubbish then move on.

So you'll be at least 8 months doing the role by then?

I would understand of it was just for kontb or two (we have 2 months where you can't have one, no idea why, but it's always back dated).

I would have a minimum acceptable increase in mind and also ask for it to be backdated.

I would also be pushing for more than 10% because if that's the market rate, that's what they would have to pay a new untested candidate. You have proven yourself capable, don't require a training in period or cost them anything in recruitment cost fees.

Give it's not long, I would wait and see but I wouldn't be thrilled either.

Yes, it would be about 8 months doing the role, I dont think any increase will be backdated.

I am job hunting at the moment, but I am aware my age and qualifications are against me.

Age can be an advantage.

A colleague of mine was worried about applying for a job last year as she was 6 years from retirement & the rest of the candidates were much younger.

We worked on a strong positioning statement- can't remember it exactly but it was something like.

"This could possibly be your most stable appointment within the group. You know who I am and the credibility, certainty & results that have come with it. You have 6 years where you know I will stay in the role. Further progression, career breaks won't be interest me. You won't struggle with backfill because something else takes my fancy. I have had only 3 days sick leave in 27 years. I am a very solid bet & would like to spend the remainder of my career in this role working for you."

They hirer her.

@ThirtyThrillionThreeTrees thank you for that, it made me smile.

depending on things, I still may have 20 odd years in the work force, so for me my age shouldnt be a bad thing, but I am aware that some places may look at it in a bad way, combined with that the no qualifications. Its not a great mix, also the job market looks very different now then it did when I started applying for jobs 2 years ago.

I would stop doing the additional, higher responsibility work. You're not being paid for it, so why are you doing it out of the goodness of your heart?

I think I’m a bit biased because in my area of work, you need to be working at the higher level for a long time before they will actually promote you to that level and pay you accordingly.
But I’d definitely be holding out until April because it’s not long away now. You could also make it clear that if the pay rise doesn’t materialise then, you’ll go back to doing the level of work you are being paid for

Just to add, my issue of holding out till April, is that this has been pushed down the road so many times now, that I am doubtful it will happen and they are getting a lot from me, without putting anything in.

I see what @Cyantist is saying, regarding working in the position, but this is not how its done in my business, if it was, I would be fine with that, prove myself and then go for it.

I had a kind of similar situation a while ago where I was doing loads of work that should have been a higher level. Kept getting told they could t change my pay / promote me officially until April etc. I waited it out and got the promotion but the pay wasn’t what I had hoped for. I eventually left not too long later, but ot meant I could apply for roles and say that my position was officially X and my pay was X, even if it was only a little higher than previously. It meant that my new job ended up paying me a nice chunk more than I had been before the promotion because I had that minimum amount I’d work for, plus I was in a more senior role. So I think it’s worth waiting until April now as it’s not far away anyway and you’ll be in a better position for applying for new jobs. E.g. if your current pay is £20k, you get a payrise in April to £23k, you could very very easily apply for new jobs and be asking for £25k at a minimum for example. If you apply for new roles now whilst still on £20k, you might find it harder to get the £25k (obviously just random amounts there).

I would go back to them and say you appreciate that they can’t start paying the pay rise until April, however you would like the amount in writing prior to that. In the meantime I’d keep looking.

Don't view your age as a barrier to getting another job. Some employers would see that as a positive in that they won't find themselves in the situation of having to cover a maternity leave. Also, life experience can trump formal qualifications.