Need advices. As many as you can bear.

[sibley]

 So I went to my first day of work today.

Here are my overall impressions:
-people don’t seem very happy… someone who was new got fired for not doing her job well, and someone who’s been there for a while was going around with a face so red the more adjusted staff members decided he’d finally cracked
-they do get along with each other though, they like each other and have lunch together with like 8 people at a table… just hate their jobs or something
-the work at my particular job seemed like it was pretty entertaining, and I already think I’ll be better at it than my predecessor
 

 

ISSUE, THOUGH.

It ACTUALLY only pays $10 an hour.  Plus $70 a month for parking and 30% of my health insurance, etc.  I asked the girl I’m replacing and she said she started at 10/hr and got a raise around 6 months.  I just can’t live on $10 an hour for 6 months.  I have 30k in school loans to pay off and only $1000 in my bank account.  Sure it’s a good experience and I don’t have any other options right now… but… it’s impossible.
 

So I can:

-say nothing and quietly look for another job while working for them, but I’d have to try to fit in interviews when I have no vacation time, and I’d have to train someone for a job I don’t even know how to do

-discuss salary requirements tomorrow when I’m supposed to sign my paperwork, explaining that I just can’t live on that much money and that I assumed it would be twice as much, since the average for the city for a paralegal with 0-2 years of experience and no degree is $40,500; then be prepared to either leave or accept the small amount

 

I don’t know what the freakybutt to do =/

[Beka27]

Yikes. That is tough. Are jobs hard to come by in your area? I know they are in many places, but not everywhere is the same.

I don’t particularly like my job, and many of the people I know don’t either, but it’s one of those things where sometimes it’s better to have something, than nothing at all.

I would talk to them and see what they say, maybe they can meet you in the middle somehow?

[sibley]

We’ve had a bad economy for years… you know Kodak? They’ve been laying people off for as long as I can remember.

And I’ve been looking for a job since around March but have only been available to work since the end of May. It just seems ridiculous that I should take a job that only pays $10 an hour when I could make that much after a couple years at Borders or something. And when a temp job would definitely pay more than that.

[babybunsmum]

i would do all of the above. won’t hurt to discuss salary before signing your paperwork. maybe you can negotiate a salary review at a set time, like after your probationary period (if you have that in your area / contract) or at your one month mark for example.

you can still look for another job and maybe schedule interviews on your lunch hour or right after work. i think employers who are looking to hire realize that some of their prospects are employed and may appreciate the respect you give to your current employer by trying to work around your hours.

hopefully the job politics don’t sour you on your position there. where i work right now there is *terrible* attitude syndrome all over. lol. in fact since i’ve been there – only a year next week – i’ve seen 14 people either quit or get fired around me. did i mention that there has only ever been a staff totalling 20 during that time? the thing is… i really like what i’m doing there. it’s great experience too and is allowing me to turn my carrer in a whole new direction after 15 years. i say all this because i try hard every day not to get sucked into the bad attitude while maintaining a pleasant working relationship with everyone. not easy. but aside from all the good stuff, in the end its a paycheque and a girl’s gotta eat!

good luck! update us on how you make out!

[sibley]

I’m living at home and I SERIOUSLY want to move out. I’m only planning on working a year or two before law school (and I’d like to be paying off my school loans, etc.)

but the other thing is I found them through a personnel agency who made me sign something saying I wouldn’t look for other jobs if I accepted the offer. But the personnel agency’s website also says that they place people in competitively salaried positions, which 10 dollars an hour definitely is not.

God, I don’t know what to do. I also don’t want to waste their time or mine training me to have me leave and not be able to train my own successor… I’m polite =(

[KatnipCrzy]

Well I guess I would look at it this way- you can’t afford to work for $10 an hour- but you can afford even less to not work at all.  At least you would have health insurance (which you may or may not have now) and be gaining experience.  If you don’t accept this job what if it takes months to find another suitable interview?

My husband went thru the same thing- he used to make more money and worked 45 minutes away- but after not having a full time job for 2 months he accepted a different job position locally.  It was better for us to have him make less per hour and have health insurance for us than to not work at all.  It was rough not having health insurance for 6 months when you are used to having it.  He works at Wal-greens now- and since it is such a big company there is room for advancement at some point or another and they do on the job training to get him his pharmacy tech cert.  (He went from Paramedic to pharm tech).

[Sage Cat]

Them training you – is you getting experience. Therefore, you can go out and look for a better paying job while still working at this place. Really I would not quit because something better may come along. It is far better to look while you have a job. As baby buns mom said perspective employers know that people have jobs that have to be worked around for interviews.
When it comes to getting a job – don’t worry about being “polite” to you currant employer.
And don’t believe every thing the “agency” tells you. They get you a job – they get money – that is all they care abut. That sounds ridiculous that you are not allowed to look for another job after accepting an offer – do you have a copy of the paperwork? – is there a time limit?

I would agree that $10 an hour is way better than $0 an hour. Plus , a lot of people in this country don’t even make $10 an hour. What makes you think you could make more than that a Borders?
My husband is still paying off his student loans, and he graduated 20 years ago.
Don’t judge the whole place by just one day. It could have been an off day.
Wanting to move out – from home – and being able to are not the same thing. Be grateful that your parents are allowing you to stay till you can get on your feet.

I realize this is all tough when you are first starting out. Good luck.

[sibley]

Ok so I’ve just completed my 2nd day. Everyone is telling me to keep the job (you guys, my mother, my boyfriend, my boyfriend’s mother, a couple close friends). So I think I will keep the job and look for another on the side. Actually, my office building is 21 stories high (we’re on the 19th floor) and there are so many law firms in the building that the lawyers have their own parking garage underneath the building (the rest of us park in the garage next door). So I might use my 15 minute breaks to scour the floors and go bug other firms looking for a job.

I left one of the partners (the one I had my first interview with and who I liked… he gave me a job connection for my friend in biomed) a note on his desk this afternoon asking him to meet with me either tomorrow or Friday. I had originally asked the guy who took my employment paperwork and he said to ask whoever hired me. I wasn’t very sure who that was, so I decided to just go to this guy (since I met with him and all…). I’m not sure what if anything I’ll be able to do about it, but I might at least be able to negotiate that I get some cash instead of the health insurance perk (since I’m on my mom’s plan still). And then, yeah… when I get a new job it’ll be paying me $22 an hour, or at least something better than $10 an hour… with even $22 being less than average. I wonder why they don’t care they lose people so frequently at my firm

View from my office:

My office:

See the round top? Now see the regular square top? I’m the second story from the regular square top.

[RabbitPam]

One thing I do every couple of years that I find very helpful is write out a list of my basic necessities, and their current costs.
What you are trying to do is figure out your rock bottom line. That’s your NEEDS, not your wants.
What that can do for you is help know if, despite what you’ve heard is the going rate for the position, you can take a mid-point in between the 10/hr. and the 40K you expect. It may be that you can live independently on, say, 28 or 32 thousand/year if you must move out.

Living with parents, even for the trial 6 months, can help a great deal in saving for apartment security deposits, moving expenses, paying down loans and making car payments. It will give you a chance to see if you’re staying at this firm, or if something else comes up. If you don’t have a lease in an apartment, you have more flexibility in location of the job. You won’t have to break a lease or put up with a new, worse commute.

Try a little budget list: list your current expenses. Food, car, any insurance, bills, loans, clothes, entertainment, gifts, pet supplies. Everything you currently spend money on, then add it up to what it is monthly.
After that, add in the going rate for rent for a small apartment you would be taking in your region, like a one bedroom. A quick online apt. rental search will tell you what you can expect to find. If there’s no laundry in an apartment, add $10 a week for coin op. – that kind of budget details. Add in phone, water, electric, cable, and computer hook up expenses.
If you can do this weekly, multiply it by 52 weeks a year. That’s the minimum annual salary. Divide the weekly figuring by 40 hours and that’s your hourly salary minimum. (If you do a monthly budget, then divide by 4 for the weekly. You won’t spend each item each week, but will spend all of it at least once a month.) That’s what you need, both by living with your folks and by yourself.
When you have that hourly/annual figure in your head, you can do the negotiation with the frame of reference that says something like “I know the average market rate is 40K for my level of experience and education, but I understand times are tough both for your company and myself. I can’t survive on $10/hr., but I can meet my minimum needs at $x, and I believe I am worth the additional salary. I really like it here and would like to stay. Can you see your way to meeting my needs?” If he says no, and you want to keep the job, ask him if you can sit down to review it again in 3 or 6 months. Then stay home and start job hunting.

BTW, do NOT worry about the training another minute. You are not responsible for their next replacement. If they won’t pay a living wage, they will pay in their own man hours by repeatedly retraining new hires. A high turnover is a lesson many employers never learn is expensive. Too bad for them. It’s not your problem.

[bunnytowne]

Wow what a beautiful view.  Wow 70.00 for parking.   Knock me over.

[Author]

Messages