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I'm increasingly stunned at the lack of empathy for what it's like to be an employer here on HN where, ostensibly, people are trying to learn about what it take

by crusso 13y ago

I'm increasingly stunned at the lack of empathy for what it's like to be an employer here on HN where, ostensibly, people are trying to learn about what it takes to become a successful startup and employer. As an employer, I've dealt with helping people transition out of a job that has disappeared or turned out not to be right for them. I tried to do what this woman did - give the employee some extra time on my dime to find new work. If during that time that I'm paying them to hunt for a job (which costs me thousands of dollars a week, typically), if I need them to lift a finger to do something, I should feel guilty to even ask? If I took the flip side of the attitude of a lot of people in this thread, I'd just fire an employee with minimal severance the moment he isn't making me money. That would suck.

wigsgiw 13y ago
As an employer, I'd consider it out of line to ask an employee to help in a crisis out of hours, unpaid. More so if they'd been effectively fired weeks before. As noted, the time to find other work isn't out of the goodness of her heart; it's the law in Belgium. Employees giving their time for a panic, outside of their normal hours, is a privilege earned by employers through treating people right. Expecting those who've been shown the door to do so is twisted.
wazoox 13y ago
As an employer myself, I'm stunned at your lack of understanding of how unequal, unbalanced the employer/employee relationship is. As an employer whatever you do, you'll oppress your employees. There's no way around it. Don't try icing the shitcake and pretend the system doesn't suck; that's not about you, but the role you're assuming. That doesn't preclude you from being a decent human being and provide your employee extra time to look for another work. This is just however basic decency, not great generosity on your part.

by crusso 13y ago

wigsgiw 13y ago

As an employer, I'd consider it out of line to ask an employee to help in a crisis out of hours, unpaid. More so if they'd been effectively fired weeks before. As noted, the time to find other work isn't out of the goodness of her heart; it's the law in Belgium. Employees giving their time for a panic, outside of their normal hours, is a privilege earned by employers through treating people right. Expecting those who've been shown the door to do so is twisted.

wazoox 13y ago

As an employer myself, I'm stunned at your lack of understanding of how unequal, unbalanced the employer/employee relationship is. As an employer whatever you do, you'll oppress your employees. There's no way around it. Don't try icing the shitcake and pretend the system doesn't suck; that's not about you, but the role you're assuming. That doesn't preclude you from being a decent human being and provide your employee extra time to look for another work. This is just however basic decency, not great generosity on your part.