Other What's ruining your life right now?

I’m in a hospital for the second time in three days.

This time it’s an uncle. Collapsed after a “cardiac event” yesterday and ambulance brought him straight in. Hasn’t woken up since and is currently on life support. He’d already had major heart surgery a good 10-15 years ago. The nurses “aren’t immediately concerned” at the moment, but he’s still critically ill.

 

Damn mate, hope everything turns out ok.

Been a rough old Christmas period for you. Hang in there bud.

 

Good luck with everything. Hopefully you can start the new year with some good news.

 

I've been in my (new-ish) job for 16 months now, and have had a great time with overwhelmingly positive feedback from external clients and a good rapport with my boss. I'm not a guy who likes to toot his own horn, but the company secured two contracts largely on the strength of my work. I get on really well with my colleagues, and whilst the job is not perfect, it's been a great fit for me. Cue the end of the year, when I got an email from HR / company directors ahead of the upcoming salary review, which is January for everyone, and this is what it said:

"Dear Dave, unfortunately your performance has not met standards we would expect from you, therefore you will not be awarded a bonus and your salary will be frozen for the next 12 months. You will meet with your manager in the new year to discuss how to improve your performance."

Not gonna lie, this has hit me like a truck. It's tanked my motivation to work for the company, and it's making me distrust my boss (who I was genuinely really impressed with). I'm sure that this is not unusual in the corporate arena, but damn does it suck.

 

I'd suggest getting over your discomfort about tooting your own horn and fight your corner when you meet him. Also, what kind of manager doesn't give feedback during the year if there is a problem with your performance?!? My point is this should NOT have been a shock - *IF* your work is below par you should have been informed. He ain't doing his job.

 

I echo what @David says @LennyRhys

I'd want to know why my work was allegedly subpar.
Why was I not informed sooner so I could address any alleged issues.
What examples do they have of the alleged subpar work?

Honestly, sounds like they're just wanting to save money.

It stinks but I'd approach it calmly.

 

Sorry to hear this. Make sure you get them to outline, in writing, exactly what criteria you haven't met, and then prepare your evidence to the contrary. It might be too late in the salary review process to make any difference but you have to try.

I'm slightly surprised that your conversations with your boss haven't previously highlighted any supposed shortcomings - you have been having these conversations throughout the year, I assume? Double check with your boss that they've actually submitted a performance review on your behalf, just in case you've somehow fallen through the cracks and been given a poor review by default. At my work you have quarterly catchups to check that you're on track, and an end-of-year meeting before the salary review submission is made, to try to prevent this sort of nasty surprise from occurring. Did you have an end-of-year meeting with your boss prior to getting that email from HR?

As you've been there 16 months, how did your appraisal & salary review go last year? Anything of concern raised at that point?

As @David says, your boss has either dropped the ball completely or isn't being honest with you, neither of which are acceptable. I think at this point you need to take the bull by the horns, get clarity on what they think you haven't done and then fight your corner to prove otherwise. Use that positive feedback from clients and others as evidence.

One final thing thought: I'm not sure exactly what your job is or what your responsibilities are within that role, but in corporate land there can be a difference between "doing a really good job" and "doing your specific job well" - and by that I mean you can do all sorts of good stuff but not tick the boxes that HR & management want to see ticked. Again, though, this is 100% the sort of thing that your regular catchups with your boss should highlight.

Wishing you the best of luck with it all.

 

Following on from my Flexible Cryoscopy last month I've just had a Flow Rate Test. Apparently I have the lowest Flow Rate ever recorded at Southend Hospital. I'm now booked in for an urgent TURP (Transurethral Prostatectomy) which doesn't sound too bad until you get to the detail 'TURP involves coring out your prostate gland to improve the flow of urine' I'd like to add 'GULP' to 'TURP'

 

Reading this I'm thinking, how long will it be before I need that doing?

 

@David @adidan @bawjaws thank you for the words of support - it means a lot!

I had a performance review with my boss early December which went very well; at no point in the review was it ever said of my work that I've not met standards or expectations... it's always been praise, and on occasion it's been "your work is exemplary." As a senior, I'm already exceeding performance targets: my boss acknowledged that I'm en route to making principal probably in the next year; ergo, I'm already over-performing based on the criteria of my current job title. I've been on the same salary since I joined the company in August '24, despite a very positive "probationary" review last year, so another year without a pay increase is a bitter pill to swallow, especially given that it feels like I'm being penalised. The email from HR makes literally no sense whatsoever.

I get the feeling that management are going to keep moving goalposts and inventing ways in which I haven't done my bit, just so that they don't have to pay me more. Some have suggested that my boss is on a tight leash, hence the reluctance to up my pay or recommend me for a bonus, despite my contribution to the company. I'll be calm and fight my corner (it's virtually a slam-dunk), but I'm not looking forward to the meeting at all. I'll keep you all posted, of course.

 

I assume you have access to your performance reviews?

 

Good luck. Something is not adding up here so I really hope that you can get this resolved amicably and to your satisfaction.

 

Just found out that my next door neighbour was attacked new years eve, his wife sat on a wall while he tied a shoe, and a group of people came out kicking off he tried to deescliate the situation and 3 guys jumped him and put him in hospital. And the police will do **** all !! If he wants to press charges he can otherwise they washed there hands of it.. its only round the corner from where we live, my mums sooo upset and wants to move as its a street we walk down often!! The world is beyond crap hes such a nice family 1st kind of guy!!

 

Second big heatwave of the summer. Absolutely grim in Sydney right now. At least it's not going to hit 48 like Google reckons the last one did.

 

To add a little balance, our marina was frozen over yesterday.

I reckon somewhere inbetween those two extremes lies a very pleasant place.

 

Just spent two hours walking to work, my boots let water in so my feet are soaked for the only person who can let me in before 12 to ring me to say his parents tried to drive to the air port and he went to meet them and is now stuck. Called my boss who said hunker down be with you later.

So currently frozen feet drenched and no where to.go get warm or new socks and boots

 

Got a text from work saying i didnt need to be in with the weather on friday, so set my alarm for a little later. Boss sent me a whats app, not a call, asking me to ignore it and come in as some switches and routers needed configured to get sent out and no one else was in. So i get in, later than normal, and theres 4 folk who could have done it. Wasnt best amused.

 

"Only" 46C for us at the weekend apparently.
Certainly could have been worse...

Sydney