Source : THE AGE NEWS
I was wondering about your view on the phrase “stepping up”. In my experience, the term has been used to pressure already overworked and underpaid staff into tasks and roles that push them beyond their available time, job description and even their ability. But there is never mention of extra training or pay increases. The only benefit is that it will be good for “personal development”.
In one case I’m aware of, a colleague succumbed to this pressure, and found the new position was actually two roles combined. It was impossible to do in the set hours. When they raised their struggles with their superiors, they were accused of failing to stretch themselves. They quit, and to add insult to injury, the combined role was then split back to the original two!
It seems “stepping up” is a way for a company to squeeze so much out of their employees that it breaks them. Not only does that seem toxic, it seems inhumane. Is it okay?
Being asked to take on additional responsibilities at work can be an opportunity, but your employer could also be taking advantage of you.Credit: John Shakespeare
“Stepping up” is a corporate buzzword that doesn’t quite have the same stench – in my eyes, at least – as grotesque euphemisms like “right size” or absurd linguistic vapour like “moving forward”. But, when it’s used as a tool for brazen coercion as it so clearly has been at the organisation you work for (or once did), it’s certainly not far outside the pantheon of odious nonsense.
I asked Dr Gabrielle Golding, a Senior Lecturer at the Adelaide Law School, what she made of your question, and she offered an interesting legal perspective.
“‘Stepping up’ is a common phrase used in workplace management vernacular. Yet, from a legal perspective, the requirement for an employee to ‘step up’ in their role is not without some risk,” Dr Golding said.
When a ‘step up’ in role comes without a ‘step up’ in pay or benefits, you may still want to ask questions.
“Depending on the level of ‘stepping up’ required, it may present a valuable opportunity for an employee to display qualities worthy of praise, reward and even promotion. In that sense, it can be mutually beneficial for both the employee and employer.”
There’s a ‘but’, of course. There’s always a but when it comes to management cant. Dr Golding said that a continued requirement to ‘step up’ resulting in a substantial alteration in an employee’s role can ultimately make a position unbearable, as it clearly did in the example you gave.
“In such a situation, the employee may be considered to have been ‘constructively dismissed’ – in other words, their role is made so unbearable over time that they are left with no other choice but to resign through no fault of their own,” she says.
“The legal position in such circumstances is that the employment relationship was brought to an end due to the employer’s conduct, even if it was actually the employee who resigned themselves. If an employee suspects they have been constructively dismissed in this way, I urge them to seek independent legal advice to consider their options. After all, they may have access to unfair dismissal protection under the Fair Work Act.”
Keep in mind that even if the job doesn’t become unbearable, when a ‘step up’ in role comes without a ‘step up’ in pay or benefits, you may still want to ask questions.
“Another possibility is that an employee who is required to ‘step up’ has their role so substantially adjusted that they are no longer classified correctly and are potentially being underpaid. Where that has occurred, the employee may have access to an underpayment claim, and a possible claim for breach of the relevant modern award or enterprise agreement covering their employment – whichever applies,” Dr Golding explained.
I know this isn’t relevant to your situation, but Dr Golding also said that things are slightly different for people on larger incomes.
“Matters become a little more complex for those who earn above the ‘high income threshold’, currently indexed at $175,000, since they will only have a claim for breach of contract,” she says.
“Nevertheless, if an employee suspects they are now incorrectly classified in their role because of being required to ‘step up’, and are not being paid appropriately, they should seek independent legal advice. The Fair Work Ombudsman also provides an excellent resource to support employees in such situations.”
Send your questions to Work Therapy by emailing jonathan@theinkbureau.com.au
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