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Would you take this "promotion"? (long read)

I

Inquisition8

Member
Hi All,

I'm at a bit of a crossroads with my job. Been here almost 3 years, it's a customer support/IT role at a SaaS company. Generally like it here - good people, good atmosphere, good benefits.

Starting salary was really lowball (asked for $50k, got $35k), but I had to take it on account of being self-employed (failed business) for 2 years prior and a bit of jumping around before then. It stopped the bleeding at the time on some dubious financial decisions and I had no other options lined up.

Year 1 was a doozy at the company due to acquisition/layoffs/restructuring. Raises were low all around, so I only got up to $38k.

Year 1.5 into year 2 I basically said I need overtime (since position allows for it) or I have to start looking - it's just not paying the bills. This was allocated as we had a ton of work and not enough people to do it and the department in general is a revolving door. It requires a unique skillset and some thick skin and it's generally not the first choice for someone out of college in a relevant field, so it's been understandably harder to hire.

Year 2 until now, I was bumped to $43k with essentially unlimited overtime, which I have taken full advantage of, doing 55-60 hour weeks. At the end of this year I will have earned ~$65k in a year.

I've been asked and somewhat guided into applying for another position. It's essentially a technical implementation role which would require a significant skill increase and came up out of necessity when one of the people who was there unexpectedly left.

I interviewed and got an offer later the same day. I said I need some time to think about it and we decided on talking next week after the holidays.

Here's my problem.

I was offered $50k, with no raise next year since it's "rolled in". So I'd be stuck with this salary until mid-2020. I was also told that "we had no idea you were working this much overtime and it's going to be cut down since it's a slow season". I don't buy the first part at all, as I've had that conversation with several people in management over several months.

Although compensation was not discussed prior to the interview or offer, I suspected it would be a drop from what I actually make. I just didn't realize it was going to be this significant of a drop with no real leeway. I would likely accept it for $60k ($5k drop in exchange for a good chunk of available free time), but no less. Given the conversation that was had however, this is extremely unlikely.

Sounds like a demotion all around to me.

I feel like it's a ploy just to fill the gap and pay less. It doesn't quite make sense. Yes I would stop dealing with customers for the most part (which I don't mind as much as some do) and I would be learning more technical skills, some of which would be more widely applicable, but equally as many which are company-specific so somewhat useless otherwise.

Running the numbers, even if the overtime was dropped to the figure I was roughly told and I stayed at my position and worked those hours, and got a reasonable increase next year, I'd be making just as much at my current position as this new position if not more, for roughly same amount of hours worked (average 45/week under this new condition).

I also know that although we're slow now and really slow in December, come mid-January until around June we are slammed (as my 3 rounds of this have consistently illustrated). In other words, I think it will be reinstated if it's even dropped. That is, if it's purely a power play.

My final objection is this: it's a serious position, in the sense that it's harder to replace (and why they are scrambling to fill it). It's a significant commitment and if I had to guess, anyone in this position would be there for 2-3 years at least. So if "all goes downhill" and I need to look for opportunities elsewhere, I would be leaving on a bad note (just got a promo and now leaving). Whereas if I stay in my current position and things seriously degrade, I would have a solid reason for moving on. This is something else I want to be careful with, given how interconnected everyone is now. I don't want to burn bridges should things not work out.

I have a few days to think about it and I'm going to discuss it with family as well. My mind is generally made up, but I still wanted to run it by others who may be able to lend another viewpoint or at the very least present considerations I may have missed.

TIA
 
Sometimes to move up you have to go back. When I moved from hourly to salary 9 years ago my pay went down with the same expectations of time commitment. I took it instantly. Now I am making almost three times that much as I was and if I had remained hourly I would not be in management today with much more room to grow.
 
basically you don't want more responsibility...even though you will be working less hours and making the same amount of money as your last position?
 
Mayne said:
basically you don't want more responsibility...even though you will be working less hours and making the same amount of money as your last position?
Click to expand...

That's not what I said. Both positions at the current offer would result in essentially the same hours worked as my current position, after a raise next year, would actually end up being more (assuming ~45 hours/week average for either hourly or salary).

The bigger issue is I don't know how long I can sustain on 50k given certain unavoidable expenses - certainly not til mid-2020. On a 15k paycut I would need to either look for something on the side (really not ideal due to possible conflicts of interest) or look elsewhere.
 
Sorry, my reading comprehension sucks. I don't know man. Gonna have to go with your gut instincts on this one.
 
What industry and how big is the company? The pay is AWFULLY low for SaaS implementation, and the fact that they're not willing to work with you on it is suspicious to me. I also doubt you'll be working significantly fewer hours, particularly if you're not paid hourly.

Now, the flip side is that technical implementation is a great title bump, and could set you up for a $75-100k role in your next job. If you can do a year at 50k and then leverage it up would it be worth it to you?
 
I would lean toward taking the "promotion" if I could rationalize the near term reduction in income as an investment in moving my career in the right direction. I get the impression, however, that you are unsure you can afford to make that kind of investment right now. If so, then I might thank them for offering me the opportunity to move my career forward, but then politely reiterate that my "current financial obligations" prevent me from considering a different position that seems to offer lower annual pay.

FWIW, this problem is not all that unusual. Hourly employees that get paid for their overtime often end up earning more than some supposedly higher valued salaried positions (with no overtime pay). It is often hard to justify the jump to a salaried position on income alone.

Good luck with whatever you decide.
 
Of course, if you turn the job down and tell them it’s because it pays less than you’re currently making with overtime, they COULD always cut your overtime way back....
 
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