Well, once again, I got screwed over. Long story short, a job with promotion potential opened up in my division. This would have been an $8,000 dollar a year raise for me. Job was given to someone that I got hired for another job in this division.
Yep, stupid me…was trying to do the right thing and ensure this individual got hired. I knew she could do the job and would be a good fit here. I’ve known her for years and consider her a friend. If it wasn’t for me pushing, she wouldn’t have been hired.
I first came on board at this organization three years ago. I was told that my promotion potential was extremely good and that my path would go along the Commercial Activities route. A little over a year ago, my division underwent a reorganization and I was screwed over and moved upstairs to do the work that three different people used to do. Fine, I’d pay my dues and stick it out. Last month, the promotion potential position opened up and I was referred. Boss called me down today to give me the bad news. He gave the job to HER because she has a degree and I don’t . (Yes, I’m working on one). The kicker is this; I’ve got way more experience in CA. Her degree has absolutely nothing to do with CA. This is a friggin’ govt job on an Army installation! I’ve got 20 years under my belt (unfortunately 17 more to go before I can retire under the Federal Employee Rip-off System).
I guess I should be happy for her, but right now I am so disappointed that I need to mope (at least for an hour or so). She’s out of town, so she doesn’t know how upset I am. By the time she returns, I will smile and congratulate her.
In the meantime, I will get screwed over further and have to continue to work for my spineless team leader (previous rant in Pit; and it was so long ago, I don’t think it’s worth linking to). I will continue to get the shit jobs and have to keep cleaning up a GS-12’s messes.
Well, I’ve bitched now and I feel only slightly better. Thanks for reading.
That sucks. Getting screwed over is never any fun, especially when it’s for someone with that degree. Papa Tiger learned computers at IBM programming school in 1967 and has been working with them ever since and can make any computer known to man sit up and sing the Star Spangled Banner. Yet more and more he’s finding his experience discounted in favor of some snot-nosed nobody just because the SNN has that piece of paper that says he Knows Something. That piece of paper is meaningless in most real world situations, but hiring managers aren’t known for worrying about reality a whole lot, it appears.
That being said, I hope you’ll have some better prospects opening up soon.
Yep. I can do stuff eight ways from Sunday, but I don’t have that little piece of paper. I, consquently, am determined to finish my degree with the least amount of work possible. Cause then I’ll have that piece of paper and be worth hiring, right?
Yes, why,why, WHY does paper beat experience? I am an hourly among 4 papered and 2 unpapered salaried’s. I’ll take the degree-less, experience havers any day. I have to trouble shoot for the papers all the time.
On a happier note, I will be a salaried this fall, having proven myself. Hang in there Taters, the good karma you got in suggesting your friend in the first place will get you places that a degree won’t.
Course, the flip side to this is people who have a degree but find it very difficult to get a job at all because they lack experience. I was unemployed for 6 months before taking on a very low paid admin job (<£8k (approx $12k) just to get some practical experience.
Now of course I have worked my way on - and having proved myself academically and practically I’m earning quite a bid more and run my own operation (somewhere else).
See, that’s what I don’t get. You can either work full-time and get the experience, but probably not the degree. Or you can get the degree, but probably not as much experience. Either way, the hiring people look at you all googly eyed.
Gazelle-Don’t think I haven’t thought about leaving govt service. On the other hand, the choice may be made FOR me as our Fearful Leader wants to get rid of us no-good civil servants.
On the other hand, why should I give up something I’ve invested 20 friggin’ years in. If there’s a chance I can stick around until age 56 (minimum retirement age and will have 37 yrs service); why should I go?
Guess my main point is this: To me a degree is nothing more than a piece of paper that states you passed your friggin exams and wrote the appropriate papers. I’m not denigrating a college education and really want my kids to pursue a college education. However, experience DOES count for something; and frankly, there’s a huge difference between common sense and book sense. I’ve seen far too many college “edjamicated” folks that couldn’t find their way out of a paper bag and gotten them out of many a jam.
I am more qualified for the position I lost to my co-worker. Yesterday I was “disappointed”; today I am just good and pissed. :mad: I think this is wrong and so does everyone around me.
I’ll get over this. Maybe something better will come along (God, soon I hope!), and I’ll get out of this sorry excuse for an organization.
Thanks to all of you for your good thoughts and wishes.
