One of my colleagues is actively searching for a new job and I feel as I’m being nudged out of my position, as well.
The owner of the company has an abundance of early-twenty-something children and relatives who are quickly filling the small office. Otherwise unemployable, these entitled dimwits have found their place. In exchange for an assortment of menial tasks, they get to take home a living wage and add some work experience to their resume. I’m currently training a 21-year-old part-time model how to audit processes, systems, and inventories. If she takes over my position, I have very little hope for the future of the company. I’m not brilliant by any means, but I’m competent.
Additionally, the owner has discovered the miracle of cheap foreign labor. Why pay a local employee $35 an hour when a consultant in Malaysia or Myanmar can do the exact same thing, at the same quality for a small fraction of the price? I understand. If I were running a business and the choice between paying $35 or $2 for the same thing, you can bet I’m going to cut costs to boost profit.
I suppose the issue is only problematic for the expensive, non-familial team members who worked hard to earn their position and their pay grade. After four years of hard work, long hours, and loyalty, I suddenly feel vastly unappreciated.
I joked with my colleague the other day that we’ll soon show up to the office and find a sign on the door reading, “Family members and cheap foreign labor only. Everyone else go home.” She chuckled, but we both knew I was only half-joking. We are slowly but certainly being replaced by cheap and inept cogs who prefer to be micro-managed.
Though I’m dissatisfied with the ongoing organizational restructure, I’m in a tough spot because I can’t afford to loose my health insurance, even for a month. Besides, I’ve already met my maximum annual out-of-pocket and, after draining my emergency savings, would prefer to coast out the remainder of the year with no further medical costs. Quite frankly, even if I were to find another position, I don’t think it would be wise for me to take on a new, high-stress change while in the midst of acute illness. So, for now, I continue to train the dummies to the best of my ability and start plotting my eventual escape.
Have you ever been affected by an organization restructure, incompetent employees, or outsourcing? How did you respond or adjust?
existential ergonomics 