Job advice

[Smileatalltimes]

My 19 year old daughter started a sales job with a well known retailer a couple of months ago, which she mostly enjoys, and gets on well with her colleagues.
Her probation ends soon and she's been told today that she is likely to fail for 2 reasons:

1. Her figures for up selling things like extended warranties are slightly below target (1%). Since her recent review she's worked hard to improve this
2. She took one day off sick when ill in bed with flu. Apparently staff aren't allowed to take sick days while on probation!

She is now on holiday for 2 weeks (booked before she started the job) and her manager has said that due to this she won't have time to increase her numbers, and therefore should consider resigning rather than being sacked due to failed probation.

What should she do? Best to walk away or should she fight and ask for an extension to her probation to prove herself?

It took ages to get this job, there's just hardly anything around for young people. She really likes working there and is so upset. She is reliable, friendly, tries hard and really cares about doing well.

I think it’s a bit of both: don’t necessarily resign now, because she won’t have a job to go to so what’s the point in resigning? If the point is just to be able to tell future employers that she resigned rather than failed probation, well, I don’t think it makes a huge difference either way really.

But, know when to walk away. There’s no point trying to “fight it” if they do dismiss. They won’t be dismissing her because she’s 1% below target. It will be a considered decision of “she’s 1% below target and we don’t think she ever will be able to improve to the standard required.”

It could be that it was never intended to be a permanent job - maybe they had every intention of getting rid of her after the holiday period.

Agreed. I think if they are so willing to get rid of her any extension to probation would most likely just end up in the same outcome so the only reason to stay would be for her to have more time to find another job.

I can’t help but feel this is a terrible employer! I would be asking the manager if there were any support/training opportunities to assist with increasing targets.

tbh, I wouldn’t want to work in that environment.