What should I do if I work for a jerk?
American Penelope Trunk has produced a new book called “The Brazen Careerist”. It’s written in the same style as her blog. If you want really direct down to earth advice then take a look. She’s an American columnist, with an IPO (stock exchange listing), bankruptcy and a professional beach volley ball career on her CV
She gets lots of interesting comments, –for example, a recent blog entry on the younger generation earning less than the older generation generated comments on lifestyle choices, to the existence of a “grey ceiling” – older people stopping younger people from career progression
She’s written a “top ten questions” on your career for Guy Kawasaki's blog. These questions are listed below
"How much money does it take to be happy?
Is it more important to be competent or likable?
Should I sue a boss who is sexually harassing me?
When should I ask for a promotion?
Is being a generalist or a specialist the path to the executive suite?
What do I do about the gaps in my resume when I travelled or couldn’t find a job?
Will getting an MBA or any other type of advanced degree be a good use of time and money since I can’t find a job?
What’s the ideal length of a resume in a world where every resume is electronic and not printed out on paper?
How should I prepare for an interview?
What’s the right strategy for the search for a first job out of college?
What should I do if I work for a jerk?"
Here’s the answer to the last question
“Leave. I know there are classic Bob Sutton ( Note: Management guru) examples of revered jerks like Steve Jobs, (Note: Apple CEO) but I wonder about the people who put up with him. Can they not find another visionary to work for who is not such a jerk?
Staying in a job like this makes you look bad. People wonder why you put up with it. And, frankly, you should too. It’s like being an abused wife. The wife who stays always defends the relationship by how much she gets out of it, but to everyone else it is obvious that she should leave. The problem is a loss of personal perspective.”
On the sexual harassment question, she says not to sue unless you’re under physical threat. She suggests you can use it to boost your career!
The American system is very different from the Irish system and we’ve more easy to access legal protections such as the Employment Equality Acts 1998- 2004.
The Equality tribunal,can provide support to make a claim. The total compensation that can be awarded is €6,349 under the Equal Status Act (Average award €565 in 2005) or 2 years wages under the Employment Equality Act (Average award €8,643 in 2005)
If you’re on a minimum wage job this could be a lot of money but if your previously promising management career is in tatters, it’s not so good. This is a really difficult issue I’ll come back to.
For answers to all the questions go to Guy Kawasaki's blog, and enjoy.
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posted by Carol @ 07:43
4 Comments:
Hi, Carol. Thanks so much for writing about my book!
One of the surprising benefits of having some chapters on sexual harrassment is that I've gotten to hear about harrassment policies from all over the world. Great reminder of how complicated the issue is.
Penelope
Jerks get away with it because no one challenges them
I recently went for an interview, There were 3 people interviewing me,one of which was from the HR dept, I found this person to be extremely rude and her questioning agressive.. it was a Job in a not for profit caring organisation. I asked myself afterwards.. if a company allows a person with such bad people skills to work in HR is this a sign of whats to come generally in the company? or am I reading too much into it?
You're right to be concerned. First of all look at what you found to be rude and aggressive. Was it her tone and manner or was it the actual language and type of questions used. How did the other interviewers react to her? This will help indicate whether this person really is aggressive or whether it’s misleading. Generally a company's recruitment process gives a great insight into the quality of that company as an employer, so it does not look great from this perspective. The saving grace is this person will not be your boss. If your potential boss behaved that way then beware and maybe walk away. If you don't work in this sector, it can be hard to break into not for profits (NFP) however so if you're still keen maybe consider a one year stint here in order to break into that sector.
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