Salary/bonus conundrum.

[IrishSea]

Some background:
I work in the financial sector and was relocated to a small regional office 2 years about. At first I was the only person in my department and reported to my boss (DW) in London. About a year ago we hired new staff and there are now 12 of us. I have a fraught relationship with the most senior person (BS) in my office but (thankfully) I still report to DW.

DW and I used to have a good working relationship but since my new colleagues joined BS has made it very clear that he does not like me and is constantly bitching to DW about me, my ?attitude? and my work (some of it was outright lies ? ie I talk down to a junior member of staff and she might leave because of the way I treat her, we actually have a good relationship, but London wouldn?t see that so he can say what he wants).

Unfortunately I?m not particularly political and I didn?t tackle this when I had the chance so it has festered. The downside is that it now appears DW believes BS?s stories (despite an excellent 2 year working relationship prior to this).

To top this off there are 4 other (male) colleagues at the same grade as me and they are all on the same amount which is 20% more than I get paid. I have let this slide for the past year as I made the assumption that this inequality would be smoothed out at bonus time (I?m on a London contract which includes a discretionary bonus, they are all on fixed amount contracts). I have now discovered that my bonus will only close the gap by 4% because I have been ?below par? this year. I have been made aware of this unofficially (someone let something slip) so I can?t let on to DW that I know. I will be officially told this on 23 June after which it cannot be changed.

My question is what, if anything, should I do about the bonus? I like my job and I use to think my salary was okay, it just feels incredibly unfair that I am on less than all my colleagues on the same grade as me. I can?t really leave as the job market is non existent here. So do I have to ?suck it up? and learn to live with it?

TIA
Irishsea

PS I?m posting here because I have received some good advice on how to deal with BS in the past.

Um, is your wife your boss? Or is DW the initials in this case?

ops, sorry, they're his initials. Sorry for the confusion

It feels incredibly unfair because it is incredibly unfair. Have you kept a log of these events? Is your employer not obliged to provide evidence of this judgement that your performance has been 'below par' (I realise you've not had a chance to discuss this yet, but surely you have some right of reply?)

It sounds to me like you have grounds for a legal challenge on grounds of sex discrimination (solely on the pay issue if nothing else), although it'll be quite understandable if you don't go down that road.

I'm really sorry you're in such a rotten, unfair situation IS.

Thanks Proles. I?m kinda use to it at this stage, but this bonus issue has jolted me out of my stupor of acceptance. I had my annual review with my boss in March. I tried to explain my side of the story but I was also keen to move past the personality clash with BS and concentrate on how I can do my job better so I don?t think I defended myself very well. DW has put a lot on the line building up my office and its success will reap a lot of reward for him. At the moment I am the ?bad apple? and there is no upside for him to keep me happy over BS.

I thought I should call the HR director and raise the pay issue with her, but I can?t decide if I should call before the 23 June or after when the bonus is official but then can?t be changed.

This whole thing is casting a really negative shadow over my time in the office. I have kept a log, but some of it seems so silly written down (ie eye rolling), it seems quite pathetic.

The individual acts might seem trivial but added together it's creating a hostile environment for you to work in which is far from trivial, so log everything.

Do you think they are trying to push you out?

Are you a member of a union? In your shoes I would be seeking legal advice (via the union or just privately) at this point tbh. To put yourself in as strong a position as possible to fight the discrimination and also for moral support and validation.

I really would consider getting another job. Is that possible?

Yes I do think BS is trying to get DW to push me out. DW is probably reluctant, purely because it would reflect badly on him in head office, not for any other reason. I can?t be made redundant because they have hired people at my grade, so firing me or making things difficult is the only way to go. I think this bonus is one way to make it obvious I?m not wanted (it?s a ¼ of what I received last year).

I?m reluctant to go down the legal route purely because I don?t want to leave my job, I don't want to make things worse here and to top it all off I don?t think I could afford it. I can?t really leave as my sector is contracting at the moment. Quite a few banks in the area have let a lot of people go.

I was hoping I could call HR and appeal to their sense of fairness, naïve I know!

I didn't mean necessarily mount a legal challenge, but seek legal advice on the quiet. You could, for example, get advice on how best to raise this with HR while safeguarding yourself against possible repercussions if HR feed back to the very people who are trying to push you out. Of course it's totally understandable that you want to tread carefully here when your livelihood is at stake!

Ah, okay, that does make sense. I haven't used a lawyer before so assumed talking = suing! Thank you for the advice.
I'm well aware HR work for the company, not the employees so I didn't think an appeal to their better nature would work.

The worst part is that I am a good employee given half a chance, but this whole thing has been really demoralising.

Thanks again for the helpful comments.

I can imagine how demoralising this must be :(

Maybe worth posting in the employment section on here - there may be some MNers with expert knowledge in this area?

Thanks Sittingbull. Annual reviews in my company tend to be more of a box ticking exercise and tend to have vague, hard to measure objectives (akin to ?be a better employee?). So I haven?t missed targets, but I haven?t ?achieved? them either. There was no ongoing guidance ? something I brought up in my review, just a meeting with a HR person and my boss (I was asked to attend with about 1 minutes notice). It was ostensibly about ?communication? in our office but I felt they were trying to get me to bitch about my senior colleague to give them enough rope to hang me.

Bonuses are completely discretionary, there is nothing in my contract. I guess I?m just hurt, because this effectively ?proves? that my boss has taken BS?s side against me after a good two year working relationship.

Anyway, I appreciate your response, and the hug! Did you win or walk away?

IrishSea, I'm trying to figure out the dynamics as it's confusing. Are you the most senior person in charge of the office ?

Sorry for the confusion Ann, I'm somewhere in the middle. There are directors above me and admin staff and trainees below me. My boss (DW) oversees the whole office and all levels above trainee report directly to him.

Hope that helps

Is your bonus purely to do with ''soft' measures or is there a link to profitability of the company/your particular office?

Are you able to have a meeting to discuss remuneration prior to 23rd without letting on you have heard a rumour eg before matters are finalised, can we discuss bonus and salary along with any other performance measures? Then you might hear any 'evidence' they are using .

Thanks Sweet, that's a good idea and had been my plan when my boss was in our office last Friday but he didn't have time for a sit down with me. I'm not sure it's the best subject to raise over the phone, but it's probably a good first step.

Bonuses are linked to both the profitability of the company and the team. We are more profitable than last year (company and team), hence me knowing this is more personal.

Have you got any kind of video conference facility, would that be better than the phone?

I am in HR and if someone wanted to have an off the record conversation with me about how they were being treated and potential inequal pay, then I would certainly nose about and make some enquiries. If I found an equal pay gap that coukdn't be explained by some objective reason, I would make the company take steps to close it. Those actions are in the best interests of the company.

Thanks Hermione, that?s interesting. My limited experience with HR at this company has given me the distinct impression that they are there purely for the company. Eg I discovered that 3 of my colleagues in my office (in a different department) received a special extra payment of 1 month?s pay on their maternity leave that I didn?t get when I took adoption leave. It took me 6 months for them to agree that I should get it too and even then they made it clear that it was only because I ?highlighted? the discrepancy not because they had a duty to pay it.

I?m curious, can I get a written explanation of the difference between my pay and my colleagues, something that might outline the objective reasons? Should I go directly to the head of HR or should I go to his no 2 (a lady I?m on relatively good terms with ? I think)?

Sweet I find video phones even worse than a regular phone, I would be twice as self-conscious! But you're right I do need to have a conversation with my boss