T
29

My dad told me to never talk about money at work and it cost me thousands

He drilled that into me from my first job at a grocery store, saying it was rude and would make people uncomfortable. So for 3 years at my current office, I kept quiet about my salary even when we all did the same work. Then a new hire casually mentioned his starting pay over lunch, and it was 15k more than mine. I asked for a raise the next day with that info, and they gave it to me. That old rule just protects the company, not you. How many other 'polite' things are we told that actually screw us over?
2 comments

Log in to join the discussion

Log In
2 Comments
henry_martinez
Used to think that rule made sense for keeping the peace. Your story shows how it just keeps you in the dark. Definitely changing my view on staying quiet about pay.
1
drew965
drew9651mo ago
Happened to me at my last job too. Found out the new kid was making almost ten bucks more an hour for the same work. Boss told me it was "company policy" not to discuss pay, but that's just code for "we don't want you knowing you're getting screwed." It's amazing how fast that rule falls apart once people start talking. Good on you for speaking up and changing your mind on it.
2