E-Mail This Article

View Archive Articles

Making savvy exit without sacrificing
jobless benefits

By Roni F. Noland, Globe Correspondent, 8/10/03

Need advice about managing your career or your workplace? The Job Doc can help. E-mail queries to jobdoc@globe.com or send letters to Job Doc, c/o the Boston Globe, P.O. Box 2378, MA 02107-2378.

I have been working for a bank for 14 months now. The job has changed to require a different skill set that I cannot offer. The bank believes as I do that I am no longer a good fit for this position of product manager. The bank gave me a choice: resign or be terminated. If I resign, they will pay me four weeks vacation. My concern is: The bank has told me that I would not have a problem collecting unemployment and that it would not contest it. Can I resign and collect unemployment insurance?

According to the Massachusetts Division of Employment and Training, your situation is quite common. Often, an employer will notify an employee that he or she is to be terminated, and suggest that the employee might wish to resign instead. In your case, your employer is attempting to seduce you with the offer of four weeks of vacation pay should you choose to resign.

	More from BostonWorks
		Featured Articles: There are other ways to save Balancing Acts Welcome home, dear Climb Have a plan to fight workplace harassment The Corporate Curmudgeon Is anyone really listening? Job Doc Prove that you've changed Transitions Focusing inward View from the Cube Making a case for naps Who's, What, Where This week's promotions The Job Blog Keep up to date with career news from around the web RSS XML Feed (What's this?)

On the face of it, your employer is offering you a dealer's choice: Most people would rather say that they had resigned from a job rather than that they were fired or laid off. In addition, a formal resignation may look better to prospective employers if they check your references. This happens in cases such as yours, where the impending termination is for reasons other than an employee's performance or misconduct.

Provided there was no misconduct on the part of the employee that contributed to the employer's decision to separate the employee, DET states that an individual may resign rather than be discharged and still qualify for unemployment insurance. For more information, see the DET's website at detma.org, or for an in-depth look at unemployment related questions, see the Unemployment Advocacy Guide posted at www.masslegalservices.org.

I recommend that you document your employer's offer to resign. In your letter of resignation, you should refer to the impending termination before your resignation.

You have the opportunity to resign with dignity, receive a four-week severance package and be eligible to collect unemployment insurance compensation. However, you may want to analyze why your skill set became obsolete for your position. Then, consider additional training so that your skill level can be competitive in the banking industry. Your employer may be feeling slightly guilty that it did not recognize sooner that your position was no longer a good fit, which is making your exit from the bank an easy one. It is the individual's responsibility to take charge of professional development and continuing education. Staying current in your field and on the cutting edge in your job contributes to job security and advancement. For an in-depth discussion of this topic, read Pam Lassiter's ''The New Job Security'' (Ten Speed Press, 2002).

How to answer salary questions

What is the best way to answer an HR representative when asked very early in discussions, and prior to an in-person interview, ''What was your last or current salary?'' I understand their desire to quickly qualify candidates, but feel a ''straight'' answer could unreasonably disqualify a candidate. I would like to know how to discreetly answer this question without playing cat and mouse. I am much more comfortable answering, ''What is your salary requirement?'' It allows for further information regarding job responsibilities, benefits, and potential bonuses. It has allowed me to gain a more accurate barometer prior to giving the HR representative a salary range. I am between jobs and obviously have more to lose than someone actively employed.

A question about salary is the equivalent of a root canal for a job seeker - extremely painful but occasionally unavoidable.

If your salary history has been commensurate with your work experience and your level of responsibility, and you are staying in the same field or industry, then you can feel comfortable answering a question about your most recent salary. Even if you are looking for a position similar to the one that you currently have, I would suggest that you say something as vague as you can get away with, such as ''My salary was in the $70s'', rather than ''My last salary was $72,456.27.''

However, there may be several other scenarios in which an honest statement of a salary figure would work to your detriment. These might include:

• If you feel that you were grossly underpaid for the work that you did and the level of responsibility that you had attained. Be prepared to explain that discrepancy, if the human resources representative insists that you name a figure. For example, you might say ''Although I was hired at x level in the company, my responsibilities grew. In addition, I took the initiative to take a lead role in y project, but, as the company was in a difficult cash flow situation - which ultimately led to my being laid off - I was not compensated for my additional work load. I am excited about the opportunity to apply this experience in your organization and to be compensated fairly and at market value for the value I bring to your organization. What is the range for this position?''
   
• If you fear that you were overpaid in your last job. You may be afraid that you will price yourself out of contention for a position, and scare a prospective employer away, even before you've interviewed for the job. In that case, you may need to sidestep the issue of your higher salary and state something like, ''I was well compensated at my last company, because I had been a trusted employee there for many years, and the company offered an excellent bonus structure and compensation package. In addition, I was also hired in completely different economic times. I would not expect a new organization to match that level of compensation, especially in the present economic climate, although I would, of course, expect to be compensated fairly. My research has led me to conclude that the average salary for this type of position in Greater Boston is from $ to $ (giving a broad salary range). Are we thinking along the same lines?''
   
• You chose to stay in a position that was not reflective of your ability and your market worth. Due to lifestyle or family considerations, you may have chosen to remain ''plateaued,'' and your salary reflects that. Perhaps you could walk to work, you could telecommute, you had fully paid health insurance, or you had young children at home and didn't want a job that involved travel. Any one of these factors was, for you, ''priceless'', but does not translate if an employer asks, ''what was your last salary?'' Don't be afraid to explain this, and indicate that your situation has now changed (the kids are grown and out of the house; you're eager to take on more responsibility, your spouse now has health insurance, etc.) and that your last salary does not accurately reflect your potential.
   
• If the salary of your penultimate job, rather than your most recent or current position, is more reflective of your worth. Sometimes, the last position is an aberration, a detour on your career path, a poor fit or a poor choice on your part, or if you were in a sales position in an industry that suddenly and unexpectedly tanked, after a long and distinguished sales career that previously had been on an upward trajectory.
   
• If you are changing careers, industries, or job function. As a career changer, your last salary may not be relevant to the discussion of your salary for the job under consideration. Make that clear to the human resources representative, and again, ask for the range for the position you are discussion. Demonstrate that you have done some research - check out salary sites such as www.wageweb.com, www.salarywizard.com, and www.salarysurvey.com - and that you know the general salary ranges of the positions for which you are applying.
   

Timing in the game of salary negotiation is critical. The above comments apply for the preliminary rounds of salary negotiation, if the employer insists on getting the salary question on the table early in the process.

For the job seeker, the longer you can delay the discussion of salary in the process, the better. You will have had a chance to better assess the job, the responsibilities, your role in the organization, the company's solvency, and have a clearer idea of your own worth in relation to the position. When you are asked even at this point in the process about your previous salary, it is best to answer with a salary range rather than a specific amount. Don't sell yourself short; but don't oversell yourself either. With a hefty price tag comes equally hefty expectations of performance, productivity, and profitability.

Informational interviewing tips

Employed people have been inundated by requests for informational interviews - so much so that there seems to be a backlash against agreeing to allow informational interviews. How should an eager job seeker deal with this rejection?

I am not surprised that you are encountering rejection. As companies are leaner these days, employed people are busy and feeling stress. Also, some unscrupulous job seekers have spoiled the process for the rest, by scheduling informational interviews with false pretenses: claiming that they only wanted information, but then actually pumping a contact person for specific job leads. Occasionally uncovering job leads can be a welcome bonus of informational interviewing, but it is clearly not the norm. Unfortunately, at other times a job seeker will have the expectation that a network contact can play ''career counselor'' or seer, and help him or her focus on a marketable career.

Employed people who refuse requests for informational interviews are foolish: They themselves may be unemployed at some time in the near future and will have to call upon those same people who they are now rebuffing. In addition, when properly done, an informational interview is an exchange of information and ideas, about a topic of mutual interest. There is always something to be learned, both for the interviewer and the interviewee.

Let's look at how best to approach an employed individual so that you can maximize the chance that he or she will say yes to your request for an informational interview.

• Be clear when you are requesting an appointment that you are looking for information only, and that you honestly do not expect job leads.
   
• Be clear as to how you got that particular person's name: e.g., ''My neighbor and your golf partner, Joan Smith, suggested that I contact you.'' The closer the referral is to your mutual contact the more likely he or she will agree to an informational interview.
   
• State clearly why you want to meet, and exactly what information you expect to get out of the meeting. This gives the interviewee an opportunity to do some preparation or research on your behalf in advance of the meeting, and/or the ''out'' of referring you to someone else. If you do not have a specific person referring you, but rather have seen that person's name in an article in the paper or in a trade publication, then do enough research on that individual to know their background and position in the organization.
   

Job seekers often wonder whether their initial contact should be via mail, e-mail, or the telephone. There is not one right answer to this question. Vary your approaches to see which works best for you. Whichever approach you use, be clear about how you heard about the individual, what kind of help or information you are looking for, and a little bit about your background and experience.

To increase the odds in your favor, you may wish to add something about how you think you might help the person you are talking with. As a job seeker, you may have more current job market information than the employed person, and may be able to share information that you have researched about current trends in the field. Remember that you have expertise and experience to offer, as well as information to glean. The more reciprocal the relationship is, the more beneficial it will be to both parties, obviously. People do want to help, if they can; it does make them feel good about themselves.

If, even after you address the employed person's objections, he or she still refuses to grant an informational interview, be polite, thank them for their time, and ask for a referral to someone else in the organization. Let the referring person know you were unsuccessful; he or she may suggest someone else. And move on to the next name on your list!

Roni F. Noland is a career counselor and coach in private practice with over 20 years' experience. She can be reached at RoniNoland@attbi.com.

E-Mail This Article

View Archive Articles