I am fiercely loyal to you and your company, until you prove you are in no way loyal to me.
This is a statement that should apply to every single employee working for someone else. As an employee, it is our job to do our job well, with excellence and honesty, to the utmost of our abilities. We need to earn our paycheck. We will support the company that employs us, respect our employers and our co-workers, and give our time and effort to the product.
BUT. That loyalty should ALWAYS come at a price. Yes, sometimes it is literally a price, and your work should be compensated accordingly. There is more to it than that, though. Every CEO, president, executive, and manager must treat the people working for them with respect. Not some people. Not the people they like enough to invite to dinner. Not the people who have been there the longest. Everyone.
And in case the term “respect” isn’t understood in this scenario, I’ll spell it out: Stop treating your workers like tools, and remember that they’re people. It’s bad enough that the government takes 40% of our paycheck and we can barely afford a place to live. We don’t need our boss acting like we’re human garbage.
If there is a regular mistreatment of workers, employers cannot possibly expect anyone to work their hardest or best. Actually, I would actively encourage an employee to decrease their work output when this issue arises and is not dealt with after being submitted for review. Terrible managers get away with this for years because they feel in charge, and they’re right in some respects. What we shouldn’t give them is any more of our hard work. Either leave for a better job, or stop working so hard (and then leave for a better job).
At the end of the day, you deserve what you get. Loyalty from happy employees, and dirty looks from the ones you mistreat. Plain and simple. And if it sounds like I’m sharing a lot of information, it’s because this has happened to me more than once. I’ve dealt with the problems differently each time, and for the most part they’ve worked out well. I’m in a good place now, with smart leaders and amazing people who care about each other. It’s what I’ve wanted for a long time.
Don’t let anyone tell you that “no job is perfect.” I’ve had plenty of perfect jobs. It was the awful people who ruined them.
Helpful Tips for the Uninitiated
Here are some common job issues that impede an employee’s daily work, and suggestions for fixing them:
- Honesty is the best policy. If you have a problem with them, say so. Lying solves nothing, and is a terrible way to treat an employee.
- The people in charge of other people need learn the difference between being a “manager” and being a “leader.” A leader is supportive of their team, the first to work and the last to leave, able to take the blame for his teammate’s mistakes, willing to learn from others. A manager is only there to boss others around and get paid more.
- Employees shouldn’t have to navigate an array of cliques, unspoken hierarchies, power plays, and uninformed managers every day. A company that rewards workplace drama and encourages internal backbiting is a toxic place.
- I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again– if an employee approaches a manager asking for a raise, they probably think they deserve it. If they do, give it to them. Hard work and bravery should be rewarded. And really, why wouldn’t you give them a raise if they deserve one? Because, guess what– if you don’t, they’re going to leave. Why wouldn’t they? They worked hard, and you didn’t compensate them properly. If this is surprising to you, maybe you shouldn’t be a manager.
- Managers shouldn’t be chosen based on if you like them more, or if they’re being groomed for upper management, or if they dress snappily. They should be someone their team looks up to, respects, and trusts. Purely political advancement never helps anyone.
- Stop making arbitrary rules.
- Quit micromanaging.
- Enough with the rhetoric.
- Just work. When you’re done, go home. Anything more, and you make work more important than people.
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