I am so grateful!

Recently I have had a pay dispute with my employer. Although it was a ‘dispute’ it was raised and handled quite amicably. Basically when I left Wellington last year I resigned from my job in this organisation. At the same time an opportunity arose in our Auckland Operations as such I was able to negotiate a 12-month contract job with them. At the time I negotiated my contract, I got a significant pay rise on the grounds that 1) I seemed to be the perfect person to fill in a role which at the time was quite crucial 2) it was a term contract as such it usually pays more than a permanent role due to impermanence.

This happened in May and I started my new role in June. At the time the work union was in the process of a negotiation with the organisation for a pay rise. After months of negotiation, in October an agreement was finally reached and the organisation offered each permanent employee (as of 30 June 2005) a pay adjustment based on the number of years served and each individual’s pay scale.

As you can imagine, I missed out on this pay adjustments= as I had resigned as a permanent employee as of 30 June thus relinquished my entitlements as a permanent employee . However, considering I have not left the origination during this period and my contribution in my contract role made a significant difference, I somehow believed it’s worth lodging a dispute in that I, too, deserve a pay adjustment as if I were a permanent employee. After all, I had worked for the company for over six years continuously. During these years I have been treated well so when I lodged this dispute I felt very positive despite my awareness that I had no legal backup.

Five weeks passed and nothing seemed happened. I started to think that perhaps I had no case. If they told me to stop dreaming I was prepared to forget about this matter. After all, I am not a Union member and have never involved in the months-long negotiation.

However when I walked in yesterday a letter was left on my desk marked ‘confidential’. When I opened it, I was ecstatic to find out that I was offered a settlement!! As a result, I was compensated the equivalent amount of money as if I was a permanent employee!

I have always trusted my employer and have maintained a good relationship with my employer. I love my job and I enjoy the people here. That may explain why after six years I am still here now rolling into my 3rd role! In this incident, I realised again that when you send out positive energy out to the world and have nothing but faith, trust and kindness, you are mostly likely to receive the same back!

Oh I am so grateful!