Four months ago I got hired by a state government. Government outsourced payroll to temp agency. State recruiter informed me that hiring range is $2-10 phr ( for convenience) but offered me $3. I was unemployed at time so I gleefully accepted without negotiating.
3 weeks later I got my paycheck and was surprised to see $10hr. Against my conscious but with advise of friends and family I kept my mouth shut.
Three colleagues hold this particular position. During my second week, a colleague went and requested a “raise” because it was “unfair that a younger, new employee was making more than him” . they were hired at a lower pay scale than I. Raise was granted. Supposedly we all were making same pay now.
Today I get a call from temp agency and the lady informed me that my pay was actually $3 not $10 and that her boss said that she “goofed” . I am now required to not only suffer a 23.3% pay cut but they will recoup the “overpay”
Mind you the reason why the salary got adjusted and reposted at a higher rate was because they were not attracting enough qualified position. Position required CPA certification and for a while I was the only employee who passed the CPA exam until a new employee got hired a month ago.
Do you honestly think you should get to keep the overpay? If the numbers were reversed, you were supposed to get $10 but only got $3, would you have kept your mouth shut and just accepted your lower pay? Of course not, you would have been on the phone with HR immediately. The only course of action you have is to give the tax payers their money back. If you want to try to renegotiate your salary going forward, that’s fine, but you accepted money you knew you weren’t entitled to.
$3 pay was for illustration!! was trying to keep it simple…
Everyone in the same position assumed we were all making the same amount. Like I said when my coworker found out what I was making, it wasnt a secret, he renogotiated his pay with my boss. Even my boss assumed that this was the fair rate considering my qualifications and approved everyone else’s salary based on my pay.
Just got off the phone with my coworker and he is upset because if I do get a pay cut that means he will suffer the same fate because the only reason they got raises because the new guy, me, was hired at a higher rate.
Just to add that my salary is within the hiring range . Plus the offer was verbal. I never got anything in writing stating my salary. I assumed they went back and adjusted the pay based on the fact that the positon was open for months without any qualified candidates applying.
I haven’t posted in forever any maybe its because these treads are becoming just to absurd. This is an analyst forum people… and today we have two woe is me posts where people refuse to take any sort of responsibility for their financial decisions.
*When you sign loan docs you are given the terms.
*When you agree to $3 an hour that is “fair” - you agreed to it.
*If your bank credits 10k to your account in error they will take it back and its not because they are a “big bad bank”
…what is happening here… i feel like I’m in the twilight zone.
Terrible place to “keep it simple” as it was the one detail in your story that kept me reading, in spite of terrible presentation otherwise. I’ll show myself out…
I got the fact that you were using fake numbers for illustration, doesn’t change the fact that you were knowingly accepting money that wasn’t yours. You even mentioned your conscience and that your family and friends had to convince you not to say anything.
As for you Intercum…dont really have time to fool with you…I am being gready no doubt but before you bestow your morality on me how about your attitude towards women!!!. Keep your judgments to yourself.
I need suggesttions to help me navigate this predicament I am in. If you feel this is beneath you keep it moving!!
This section is called water cooler for a reason!! I apologies for my grammer/spelling …govertment only allows 15min breaks Sir wats your face HIGGMAN I think
^I wasn’t aware proper grammer was so time consuming. Good point, educating the regulars on the proper usage of the forum on your 7th post. Good luck with your prediciment, you seem to have it all figured out. Iteracom, you’re a bad man.
In other news I had some chicken for lunch. One can get a Subway Salad for $5. I got the oven roasted chicken and loaded that bad boy up with every vegetable they had. It makes for a very productive afternoon since the food coma does not come after a green plate.
Blackie, I suggest you go and do likewise. Let the haters hate while you save some skrilla by eating salad.
Stormy, at $3/hr, I suggest you hit up a bodega for some packaged goodies. Subway is a bit too high class for a CPA like yourself.
I don’t recall commenting on grammer or spelling. In fact, I didn’t point out the fact that you misspelled conscience (until now), I merely spelled it correctly. Was I supposed to spell it incorrectly as well so as to not hurt your feelings?
^ I’m a fan of the meatball marinara sub on honey oat with provolone. Although people keep telling me the cheesy bread is best, I like to keep it simple.
Prices are pretty nice if you want a simple snack, and I agree the “no food coma” is a big plus
…you “gleefully” accepted the $3 offer. I imagine since you were unemployed you realized $3>0. Perhaps you also thought as a qualified professional once you got your foot in the door you would be able to prove your value and renegotiate this rate to something closer to your goals.
Shortly thereafter you noticed the error; you hushed you conscience and let your greed override. Now you have 4 months in the hole as you assumed no one would ever notice the error and you would laugh all the way to the bank. Now you have twisted these facts into something completely different to validate that you were somehow “Jacked”. The market rate and fair/ unfair were not part of your processing the decision of accepting the offer when you ‘gleefully’ accepted. Now they will be your excuse.
Again- don’t know why I’m having such a visceral reaction and giving this thread so much attention but it makes me want to throw up in my mouth. I hope you cover ethics a couple more times before level 1. And next time you are greedy at least admit it and own it and don’t throw yourself a pity party when it blows up in your face.