Get Right or Get Left...The dangers of being taken for granted in the workplace

Today, I came across two news articles that had me flabbergasted...

1. Hawaii's current struggles in retaining its teachers, even during the unstable economy. Hawaii? Really?
2. A recent survey shows more American employees (1 in 5) are considering changing jobs as, in their opinion, the economy appears to look more optimistic.

In addition, according to the second article, employers need to be more aware of this now than ever before.

This number is important to watch as the economy continues to improve...Employees are more likely to stay with their company during lean times, and so companies have taken them for granted. When the economy strengthens, experience tells us that employees will begin weighing their options and considering other jobs. Since it takes up to 12 months to improve employee engagement, companies need to plan ahead and take the proper steps to ensure their employee retention rates remain high.

In fact, in early Spring of this year, according to a third news article, employment figures showed more people were quitting their jobs than being lay-offed. Interesting...

In addressing this, I will stick with something that I know oh too well...teacher turnover.

Teacher shortage, caused mainly by teacher attrition, has been a problem for many years. However, even in the midst of budget cuts, layoffs, and furloughs within the profession, teachers, like myself, are still opting to leave the classroom. I know, at my former school, about 10 of us quit. It was risky, but I, at least, have no regrets. Most of us left because we felt we were being taken for granted, even during the worst of time. To us, it wasn't worth riding the wave, especially when central office wasn't coming along...that's another story for another day.

After reading these articles, I immediately thought about something one of my classmates/former colleagues vented about her recent pre-planning experiences as we were driving to grad class together one weekend last month:

If someone else tells me one more damn time "I should be thankful to have a job", I will politely tell them "F*** you!" The only reason I stayed [at my current job] because I have a mortgage to pay...

While I am forever empathetic for those teachers who have to do what they must to live and take care of their families, this "being thankful" crap is for the birds. It is one thing to be content; it's another to be comfortable with being screwed over because the powers that be can. To those powers: you better think again...real soon!