The Work Thread 2 - Get back to work!

[blackoutHERO]

Nice one. And it's good to know that ONM is playing a larger part of your future despite it no longer existing.

Thank you. The boy was like 'How did you first get into Graphic Design?' so told him about doing the mock magazine covers on the forum and stuff. Was quite surreal.

Interview went well. 3 month contract with a gaming company so it'd be class. Got a task to do for next week so will give me something to work on over the weekend. Never thought Official Nintendo Magazine forum would come up in an interview.

That's great news!

Thank you. Gives me something to work on this weekend.

[Trelliz]

In order to be safe I think you should set up an automated bot that spams them with messages saying "I haven't received your email" every minute that goes by without you receiving an email from them.

You can't be too careful

[DarkRula]

Nice one. And it's good to know that ONM is playing a larger part of your future despite it no longer existing.

Thank you. The boy was like 'How did you first get into Graphic Design?' so told him about doing the mock magazine covers on the forum and stuff. Was quite surreal.

I can imagine the feeling. If only those covers were backed up somewhere to look at. I remember there being a lot of great designs shown off.

[Victor Mildew]

Interview went well. 3 month contract with a gaming company so it'd be class. Got a task to do for next week so will give me something to work on over the weekend. Never thought Official Nintendo Magazine forum would come up in an interview.

Awesome. My shortish stint in the gaming world was the best job I ever had, so if you get this I'm sure you'll love it. Assuming the task is for a second interview of sorts (I had to do one, design a branded set of mobile phone cases and packaging), just make sure to read the brief multiple times, then when you think you're finished, look at your work and make sure every single part of that brief is answered. You'd be amazed what you can overlook in the excitement of it all.

[blackoutHERO]

Nice one. And it's good to know that ONM is playing a larger part of your future despite it no longer existing.

Thank you. The boy was like 'How did you first get into Graphic Design?' so told him about doing the mock magazine covers on the forum and stuff. Was quite surreal.

I can imagine the feeling. If only those covers were backed up somewhere to look at. I remember there being a lot of great designs shown off.

What was your username on ONM? I was more active before my big money move to LLC.

I have some of mine from 2006 so I would have been 13-14
https://imgur.com/a/tZptKCP

Interview went well. 3 month contract with a gaming company so it'd be class. Got a task to do for next week so will give me something to work on over the weekend. Never thought Official Nintendo Magazine forum would come up in an interview.

Awesome. My shortish stint in the gaming world was the best job I ever had, so if you get this I'm sure you'll love it. Assuming the task is for a second interview of sorts (I had to do one, design a branded set of mobile phone cases and packaging), just make sure to read the brief multiple times, then when you think you're finished, look at your work and make sure every single part of that brief is answered. You'd be amazed what you can overlook in the excitement of it all.

Thanks man I'll be triple checking everything. Desperately want the job so it'll be getting my full attention this weekend. It's a shame that I won't get the see the office however if I hypothetically get the gig as that would be really good.

[DarkRula]

Nice one. And it's good to know that ONM is playing a larger part of your future despite it no longer existing.

Thank you. The boy was like 'How did you first get into Graphic Design?' so told him about doing the mock magazine covers on the forum and stuff. Was quite surreal.

I can imagine the feeling. If only those covers were backed up somewhere to look at. I remember there being a lot of great designs shown off.

What was your username on ONM? I was more active before my big money move to LLC.

I have some of mine from 2006 so I would have been 13-14
https://imgur.com/a/tZptKCP

I was CDS on ONM, though wasn't that active until near the end. I think I did get a few things into the magazine, but without an archive, I've got no idea what that stuff was. A few screenshots, perhaps.

Those few mock covers do look good. The minimilist approach works well for the Wii.

[Tomous]

Does she have a contract for the new role with an agreed salary?

[Victor Mildew]

That's some monopoly chance card bullshit

[Jenuall]

WTF? I would be asking serious questions about that.

[Rocsteady]

Does she not have an existing contract where it states her pay?

[Tomous]

Definitely worth seeking independent advice outside the company. And definitely not HR. They represent the interests of the company, not the employees.

[That's not a growth]

Pretty sure any changes in a contract need to be agreed and signed by both parties, which would include wage if she has her current rate in writing. There is no obligation to accept a new contract just because it's being pushed to you in a way that makes its sound 'mandatory'.

She's been there more than 2 years so they can't just get rid of her, from what I'm aware.

I would ask for proof of this error - are there emails they can show her that clearly state the wage was meant to be advertised at a different rate, for example.

She needs to be prepared to stand up for herself on this. Perhaps look for proof that the role is comparatively paid compared to the competition.

Essentially be prepared from all fronts;

- can't force a new contract
- are they trying to force her out, do they expect her to actually be happy with this? How are they justifying it?
- if they say it's mandatory what's the plan if she says no, redundancy?
- if they have proof it's a mistake, how would you want to handle it then?
- do they have a plan on how to make this right in the medium and long term? What career options are they offering her?
- if they try to say it's more than she's/the role is worth get evidence to the contrary - other jobs, and can she ask colleagues what they're on?
- if she's not had a pay rise over this time could it be argued she's added more value to the business over this time so could counter argue that really she's due a pay rise. Might as well go guns blazing

I would kind of approach this with a job interview mind set, but she's the one doing the interviewing. This is just as much about figuring out if it's worth pursuing a future with this company.

[Cheeky Devlin]

If she's not got any written contract stating what her salary should be, and they've been paying it without complaint for three years then I'd be arguing against it.

I'd get her to formally object to it in writing. If she doesnt then it could be argued that she has just accepted the situation.

ACAS is probably a good source of advice on this.

[Oblomov Boblomov]

A couple of years ago a member of my team got sent a bill by Payroll as he'd been overpaid something like £2.5k over the course of a year or so. I reported it to HR and they ended up getting it written off for him.

[Green Gecko]

It may be unorthodox but how would you feel about me sending you some ladies wear items to print on? That way I can be even more selective and effectively put more of my own taste into the design, which would add to the exclusivity.

[Zilnad]

She definitely needs to stand up and fight this one.

[Zilnad]

My employer's just announced that they've signed up to Health Assured and my chronic cynicism is telling me that it's only to cover their own arses in the future, after the whole WFH fiasco. Like I'm expecting to be told "get a referral to HA if you really aren't comfortable coming into the office" once the stay at home messaging ends.

Anyone got any experience with this kind of thing? Either way, if I felt I needed to speak to a professional about personal problems, I'd be speaking to my doctor first and foremost. Not anyone else.

Just waiting for the day that my director tells me I need to speak to HA...

[Green Gecko]

To be honest, private healthcare is often a much faster route to something than the NHS so it's helpful to have it under your belt but yes I suppose they could say "Well you refuse to speak to our occupational health contractor", so it has pros and cons.

[OrangeRKN]

Your health is (in most cases) none of your employer's business

We got private health insurance as a "benefit" (as a taxable benefit it actually costs money, I should probably opt out but I looked into it enough to check it wasn't costing me too much and stopped there) but I have never given any information for it or done anything with it.

[Green Gecko]

Yeah I definitely don't think they can use turning down such services against you because your employer can't force you into submitting your health "account" to a private firm.