Put people before profit
Have big companies crossed a line in their quest for bigger returns on investment?
Loyalty gets you nowhere these days. I remember my first job as a teenager. I worked in a small store owned by a family who all worked there too.
They’d owned it for years and were a fixture in the community. I got to know many of the customers quite well and in my last week before heading to university, I was showered with meaningful gifts from some of my favourites.
I’ve still got a pen one of them handcrafted for me.
It’s my bosses I remember most, though.
They were good at what they did, the shop was a well-oiled machine and they treated everyone in our small team with respect and kindness.
They were such an asset to our town and I’ll always look back on those years with fondness.
I’ve not had a job like that since. That’s not to say my other jobs have been bad – far from it.
I’ve worked for amazing people and have greatly enjoyed some of the roles I’ve held, but one thing has always held true – I’m a small cog in a big machine.
That’s how it goes, these days. More people are working for more big companies because, well, there are more of them.
And what can go hand-in-hand with working for one of those big businesses is a lack of loyalty to that company.
Back in the day, if you worked hard, your employer would value that and reward you with pay rises, responsibilities and perks.
Now though, there’s a good chance you’ve never even met the head of your company. They’re shareholders, CEOS and boards.
It’s possible they’ve never been to your office or maybe even your country.
That can make it hard to negotiate the terms of your wages.
You can ask your manager for a raise, but they’re unlikely to have the final say in whether you get it or not.
That person might be someone you’ve never met and therefore has no real idea of your work ethic.
In theory, that makes it more equal for everyone, but it could also mean that the most valued person in your office – the one who helps their colleagues out on their lunch break, offers a workmate a shoulder to cry on during their divorce, willingly volunteers for less desirable tasks, and puts the dirty mugs in the dishwasher – may miss out on recognition for their hard work and loyalty.
On paper, they contribute just the same as everyone else in their team because how do you quantify loyalty and commitment?
Some career advisers are now encouraging people to “job hop” to move up the ladder.
I’ve worked for amazing people and have greatly
enjoyed some of the roles I’ve held,
but one thing has always held true – I’m a small cog in a
big machine.
Why stay at the same job year after year, gaining small pay raises in line with a big company’s pay bands, when you can apply for a new position, negotiate a higher wage before signing on, stay there for a few years and then move on again for more money?
Plus, as management consultant and Ask a Manager blogger Alison Green says: “workplace loyalty is largely a one-way street. Employers don’t tend to sacrifice their own financial interests to protect their employees.”
And workers are starting to
realise that.
Imagine spending all day stacking shelves or operating a checkout and earning just enough cash to pay your rent and buy the most basic of foodstuffs, then seeing headlines that your industry is earning $1 million in excess profits every day.
That sure wouldn’t make me feel very loyal.
It’s because of those reported profits that the Government has ordered supermarkets to stop anticompetitive behaviour, including outlawing restrictive land title covenants and caveats that seek to get rid of competitors.
Countdown has historically asked for caveats in its leases, particularly in large shopping centres, that prevent competing businesses such as butchers, florists and pharmacies from opening there or having their leases renewed.
Those competing businesses include the mum and dad shops that used to make up the fabric of our towns, the ones that valued their staff members and supported their neighbourhoods while turning a modest profit.
It would be remarkable if the local florist was selling enough flowers to put a supermarket out of business.
Yeah, it’d put a wee dent in the supermarket’s earnings if but I’m pretty darn sure they’d still turn a healthy profit.
I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: businesses exist to make money. If they’re not making money then they’re failing at their purpose. And that’s okay, I’m not insinuating it’s wrong to make money.
But there comes a point when the pursuit of wealth causes harm to the people around you and, in my opinion, that line is crossed when a big business uses its power to close its competitors down without even the illusion of a fair fight.
We can make money, heck, we can even grow wealthy without pulling other people down to get there.
In my opinion, a business should be allowed to succeed or fail on its own merits, and not because a big corporation is calling all the shots.
Sonya Bateson is a writer, reader
and crafter raising her family in Tauranga. She is a Millennial who enjoys eating avocado on toast,
drinking lattes and defying stereotypes. As a sceptic, she reserves the right to change her mind when presented with new
evidence.