Manager Loses His 'Best Engineer' After Company Denies 3% Salary Hike

In another account of corporate hierarchy messing up with the company's structure by letting go of a valuable asset, a manager has gone viral for his passionate defence of an ex-employee. In a now-viral Reddit post, the manager revealed that his best engineer quit the company over a Rs 1.84 lakh ($2,000) raise. The manager said the employee felt insulted after he was handed a measly 1.5 per cent salary increase and immediately handed his papers.

The manager explained that the company imposed a strict cap on the salary hike, which meant his hands were tied, and deserving employees did not receive the appraisal they were entitled to.

"Despite the company doing well, we were only allowed a set 1.5% increase per employee no matter how well they did or didn't do, with no room for negotiation. I brought this up to my director that it's going to leave a sour taste in some mouths, but I was told I could not ask for more for my team," the user wrote.

"So today, my best engineer quit. No notice, no explanation besides that he felt that 1.5% is an insult, so he started looking for jobs immediately and got one that will pay him about 10% more."

Quizzed what would have made his stay, the employee said a three per cent raise, amounting to $2,000 extra, would have made him stay.

"He was the lead on many projects and built a huge knowledge silo and custom workflows. All of that leaves with him. There's a massive hole in my team. All over $2000. I hope the shareholders are happy."

The manager said he did not blame the employee for leaving, adding that it would have cost "peanuts" to keep a great worker, but the company did not listen.

Check The Viral Post Here:

My best engineer quit today over $2000
by u/Crispy--Lettuce in managers

Also Read | Zerodha's Nithin Kamath Criticises 'Invasive' Permissions In Banking Apps, Says He 'Doesn't Use' Them

Social Media Reactions

As the post went viral, social media users said the employee took the right call and lauded the senior for not standing in his way.

"I'm glad you're advocating for your team member. I'm curious what your boss's logic is," said one user, while another added: "It is insulting, and I can easily see why he left. A top performer can only eat just so much sh*t before they say enough. If your company isn't smart enough to pay to retain talent like that, there's always another company that will take them off your hands."

A third commented: "I feel you. Companies are penny-wise and pound-foolish - they pay more for acquiring talent than retaining it, and they wonder why people job hop every 3-5 years."

A fourth said: "Let everyone above you know what happened, so they know the cost of their miserliness. Write in your report that you support him, you understand his choice, and you're glad to have worked with him."