Elizabeth Davies looks at a tricky life lesson; How and when to be an assertive employee

By Elizabeth Davies

When it comes to entering the workforce, and surviving within it there are a number of things you’re not taught. You figure out what to wear to interviews through a combination of common sense and parental advice. Obviously torn jeans and low cut tops aren’t going to land you a corporate job, just like swearing repeatedly in your interview probably won’t impress your future boss.

You’re taught to read your contract thoroughly before you sign it, to turn up on time, resist the urge to steal things, and most importantly just be grateful you have a job at all.

Over the last nine years I’ve worked a number of part time jobs, from hospitality to customer service to retail. One thing that stands out is the life lessons that are really hard to learn. At no point does anyone sit you down and explain to you how to be an assertive employee, know your rights, and know what you’re worth.

Countless times over the years I’ve been underpaid, had my hours cut without notice, and been treated poorly by employers. Out of fear and uncertainty I’ve often struggled to raise the issue with my bosses. I was terrified that by asserting myself I would come off ungrateful, or entitled, and as a result be fired.

I’ve had some fantastic employers and some not so great ones. New Zealand is filled with wonderful people but there will always be those that will take advantage in any way they can.

One of my former bosses put a potential employee on a practically unpaid trial for eight shifts. He took advantage of the 17 year old’s desperation and used him, with no real intention of offering him a permanent position. I tried to tell the kid he was worth more, but sadly he thought he was being given an opportunity to prove himself.

Another friend started a new job, received her first pay cheque and realised she was being paid on a previously un-discussed trial wage that was never mentioned in her interviews. At the same job she was threatened with a warning for not coming to work, on an occasion when she was genuinely ill, called in advance and provided a medical certificate. Her boss also spoke rudely about her to other staff members within her hearing and understandably she eventually quit.

The somewhat disgusting bottom line is that employers treat people badly because they know that the vast majority of the time they will get away with it. When you work hard and earn very little your sense of self worth plummets and with a lack of self esteem it’s hardly surprising so many of us struggle to stand up to unfair treatment.

This insecurity runs so deep that even when we are in positive work situations we find it hard to ask for pay rises or promotions that we know we deserve, we’ve simply never been taught how to have that conversation. Leading to the question, do our employers undervalue us or just as likely, do we undervalue ourselves?

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Elizabeth Davies is a 24 year-old graduate of the Auckland University of Technology post graduate journalism course. She lives with her partner in Epsom and spends her free time refurbishing vintage furniture and attempting to bake while fighting a daily battle against her bank balance. She writes a weekly article for interest.co.nz on money matters and financial struggles from a young person's perspective.