It's been over 4 months since I left my (unhealthy for me) corporate job. While I know it was the right decision for me, I feel a little stuck on what's next. I know writing and teaching yoga will be a part of my future work but I'm not sure which of my other ideas to pursue.
When I first left, I thought I'd be writing about and calling out corporate greed but decided against this since I didn't want to be in such a negative space all of the time. And many people are already doing this in very clever ways. But, working as a personal stylist, yoga instructor, technology recruiter, and talent acquisition strategist has given me the unique experience of working near the top of the ladder and at the bottom, often simultaneously. I've seen and learned a lot and I can't stop thinking about sharing these experiences.
My interest in understanding corporate greed and the associated behaviors started several years ago when I was working as a contract recruiter and mentor at a publicly traded company. I was hired because of my technology recruiting and process improvement background and was open to helping this organization however they needed me. Shortly after I started they experienced quite a bit of turnover in their recruiting department so I found myself working with a variety of areas. One minute I'd be interviewing tech leaders and the next I'd be interviewing warehouse workers. I loved the variety and it helped me learn the business more quickly.
One day, I was at the offer stage with two candidates for two different roles. One of the offers was for someone who'd be heading up merchandising for a struggling brand and the other was for a warehouse worker who was an internal candidate - this new position was a bit of a promotion. Or so I thought based on the job description overall pay range.
The merchandising candidate shared his salary expectations which were thankfully right in the target range - this rarely happens. The internal warehouse candidate was simply looking for another dollar or two per hour - according to my calculations that wouldn't even bring him to a living wage in his location. I often wondered how low-paid, often exploited workers got by and this scenario brought those thoughts back.
I thought both of these offers would be simple. The merchandising one was super easy - the HR business partner who made offer decisions in partnership with the hiring manager suggested an offer $20,000 over the candidate's desired salary but it was also above the target range which, from experience, could cause issues down the road. I was confused but also selfishly happy as I knew the offer would be accepted. It was. On the spot. This was a bit unusual as most leadership candidates like to review the details and sleep on it.
The warehouse offer was not easy at all. The HR business partner suggested a lateral move in terms of compensation. What? No pay increase? This person received the offer for being the top candidate and was a proven performer. I did not feel comfortable with this offer so, me being me, I asked if we could go any higher and outlined a brief business case. I got a quick no. I tried again. How about 50 cents? Nope.
Ugh. I didn't want to extend this offer. But, I did. The candidate (who was initially excited to be getting an offer) was immediately deflated. He asked if we could increase the offer. I said I would be happy to try and increase it. I went back to the table - got another no. I asked for 25 cents. Nope.
I was so confused. How could we just throw around $20,000 for one position and $0 for another? This is where my countless hours of reading about corporate greed started. This situation was just the beginning.
So, I've decided to write some sort of an exposé (this could be a documentary if I had those skills - do you know anyone?) on an industry that is rife with treating workers at the bottom of the ladder like crap. I am going deep with my research - I've discovered that being a writer requires a lot of this and I absolutely love this whether it's for a paid or personal project.
This work feels controversial at times - which is so bizarre to me. I know that publishing whatever I write will cause me personal risk in terms of future work but I am okay with this. I often say I'd rather live in a van down by the river than go back to working for a profit over people company. How have we become a nation where being kind, compassionate, and wanting everyone to be able to afford to live is wrong? Is this personal greed? Ignorance...or even worse, apathy? Maybe. Propaganda? Yes. I've fallen for it myself.
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