about two hours ago i was informed that my partial-raise-now,-partial-raise-in-january has been revised. it is now being taken care of all at once, effective september 1st.

background: next month, i will be taking over many of the responsibilities of my supervisor [while still performing my current duties]. about a month ago i was given the aforementioned now-and-later update for compensation of the new duties. however, the "now" figure was what i felt i ought to be earning already, without the new responsibilities [which i had stated in a previous conversation, and pointed out immediately]. to say i was disgruntled would be a gross understatement. also very important to note: this whole salary update was finally revealed after two months of "i'll let you know next week"s and "i'm still working on the budget"s. two months! note to management: don't string your employees along when it comes to their livelihood. it makes them feel highly unappreciated, and it makes them think that you think that they're so stupid, they can't see that you're stringing them along. not good for morale.

background to the background: the last raise i received was in june of 2003, most of which was part of a cost-of-living increase given to all employees. however, a percentage of nearly nothing doesn't go very far, now, does it?

salaries and wages are funny things. clearly, we have jobs so that we can survive; workers earn their keep. i was elated to land this job after months of unemployment/sporadic employment: "i know where my rent is coming from this month! i can pay bills!" but there comes a point when a job becomes more than the means to survival and safety; our motivation changes. higher-level needs come into play. our earnings become tied to our sense of belonging in the company, and our worth to the organization. obviously, i realize that working in a not-for-profit organization nets me much less than i could earn by offering my skills and talents elsewhere... but even so, i feel that i have been undervalued and underappreciated for far too long. [i do process payroll, you know.]

that being said, i doubt that this offer was completely altruistic; they know i have been unhappy for awhile, and floating paper around. i have a lot of knowledge that they need in order to function smoothly as an organization, especially with my supervisor leaving. it's in their best interests to keep me from jumping ship. even so, this revised offer shows me they at least realize i'm an asset to the organization.

anyway. all this to explain that the "good and fulfilling" bit isn't necessarily referring to little green rectangular pieces of paper; it's about respect and appreciation.