‘Decline the promotion’: Woman says she got a pay decrease to go with her promotion

In another sign of late stage capitalism, a woman recently got a pay decrease to go with her promotion.

TikToker Kells (@cyberspacekelly) garnered over 36,000 views as of publication, when she shared how her job decided she was worth more responsibility but less cash.

How can someone get a promotion with less money?

According to Kells, her manager messaged her on Teams after she earned her promotion, letting her know that HR had made a mistake when the company first hired her.

"She was like, 'Yeah, so they actually weren't supposed to give you that much when you first got hired.' I was like 'How's that my problem?'"

Apparently, the manager notified HR of their mistake when she submitted the request to promote her. Kells explains that instead of accepting their mistake, HR corrected their error by decreasing her pay by two dollars an hour. As an "hourly full time worker" who doesn't "get paid that much to begin with," Kells found herself struggling more than if she'd been kept in her previous role.

"I live paycheck-to-paycheck, nonetheless, in Boston, so it's extremely hard and I feel like I need a second job now," Kells concluded.

What's a standard raise?

According to Investopedia, "pay increases tend to vary based on inflation, location, sector, and job performance." However, a standard pay increase is "around 3% per year."

Unfortunately, Investopedia also reports that the "COVID-19 pandemic caused huge disruptions to the global social and economic systems," which caused an inbalance pay raises and cost of living.

When's the right time to ask for a raise?

The best time to ask for a raise is usually during a performance review. These are meetings with employees to discuss their performance at different set periods throughout the year. Depending on someone's performance, this is the best time to leverage hard work into better pay.

Should someone take a pay decrease with a promotion?

Most users said Kells should find another job.

"It’s telling if your manager isn’t advocating for you to get an increase with the promotion. Not your fault, look for a new job," a user said.

"They set the standard so they need to keep it up. You better find something better," a second suggested.

"I would resign," a third agreed.

Some suggested she take the company to court.

"Nah u signed an offer letter take em to court," a user said.

"Talk to a lawyer," another said.

Others shared similar stories.

"I changed departments bc they told me I would get to keep my pay, but as soon as I was in the new department they cut it," one said.

"Promotion with a pay decrease is happening to me rn, And I’m trying so hard to keep it together and advocate for myself," a user said.

@cyberspacekelly

jobs in this economy be like

♬ original sound - kells

"This happens all the time when hourly goes to salary...why I would never be management," a user remarked.

The Daily Dot reached out to Kells via TikTok comments and email.

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