Bonus?

A couple of minutes ago, as I was plucking away at e-mails from customers who can't figure out just how to make their computers work with their anti-virus program(s), I heard some "thank you's" and some "great work this past week". A group of higher-ups was walking around the dept, stopping at each mini-cubicle that we inhabit for 8 hours of the day, and giving something to the tech support employees. I'm thinking that it's got to be something not sucky. Maybe a small token of their appreciation for a year's worth of hard work and triumph over adversity time and time again.

When they got to me, I had no idea just how small that token was to be. Five Dollars. American. Five 1 Dollar bills were handed to me, by the manager of our entire division, with a big smile on her face, and then she thanked me for a great job. I looked at her, and holding back, using every little bit of restraint possessed by my being, I uttered the words "thank you". They went on to the next lucky individual and I sat there, on my chair, looking at this money that was just handed to me.

As soon as they left our office, everyone pretty much looked at each other and either started laughing, or started making jokes about how they'd hit the big time. I personally made a crack at how I can send my (non-existent) kids to college now. I mean, it is 5 dollars. This gesture symbolizes just how out of touch this company is with their employee-base. We do our work every day, for pay that is not equal to the amount of effort that we put into it . . . and this is what they do? Forget about approving the raises everyone that got a promotion should have gotten a couple of months ago. No, we're giving you poor, downtrodden motherfuckers 5 dollars . . . so you can almost buy yourself a lunch today.

Gee, thanks. I'll try not to spend it all in one place.