Mercenary

I never talk about money, mostly because I think it's crass. I also don't want people to know what I make. It leads to problems. That's why nobody at the hospital ever knew exactly how much I was making an hour. The reason was that I started out in housekeeping at a decent rate of money, transferred into the kitchen, where the people started at less money, and I was never dropped in my hourly rate. Therefore, I was making more money than some people who had been there longer, and there's no way I was going to let anyone ever know that. This is because I'm smart.

When I left the hospital for LSI (actually, the temp company was who I worked for first), I took a huge pay cut, and I worked for a few months at bargain basement rates. Then I was hired on at Level 3, which was reasonable money for how new I was. I had to fight tooth and nail for level 3A, and then while on first shift was bumped up to Level 4 along with Starr fairly easily. And I stayed at Level 4 for the next four and a half years. That's a good level, and it means that you know your job and you're good at it, but it was also a dead end. Unlike at the hospital, where you get a merit raise every year (even though I got shafted during my last one), at LSI everybody at the same associate level went up the same amount. So Starr and I were making the exact same money, which was fine. But I hit that level in 2002, so anybody who started in 2005 and got to that level by 2007 was making the same amount as we were, and that never set well with me. I gave a long oratory on that subject to Sue (that day that she and I had the first two big dust-ups) and then repeated it for Bob later on. I'm not all about the money--respect is more important to me--but I do like to be paid what I'm worth, and I was worth more.

After seven years at LSI I was making $12.75 an hour. That isn't terrible money, but you'd expect something more, wouldn't you? After seven years? I don't remember what I was making at FMC when I left, but it was up there. While I thought I could do better elsewhere, that was just enough to make starting over somewhere else a little scary. I interviewed at Rugers and they offered me $9.50 an hour to start in assembly. Between the travel, and the getting up in the middle of the night, and that $3 pay cut, I was really nervous. But the overtime made up for the paycut, and there was talk that after the 90 day review there would be a pay review. So really I only had to make it through the summer, and then I'd see what happened.

Today Mike summoned me into the office and I found out about my new pay rate. Starting this week I'm making $11.50 an hour. It went up two dollars (TWO DOLLARS! I WANT MY TWO DOLLARS!), which to my mind is pretty damn good. I don't think I've ever been shot up $2 in one shot ever.

So let's review: LSI after seven years--$12.75. Rugers after three months--$11.50. I took a scary chance, and it worked out in every possible way.

I've also had four hits on my caller ID from Dartmouth-Hitchcock over the past two weeks. Since I don't have an outstanding bill or anything from them, there's only one reason they'd be calling. Back during my five days of unemployment between LSI and Rugers, I filled out an application online there for housekeeping. I'd applied there a few times before, like when I first moved up here, and they never got back to me. I figured I ought to have a back-up in case Rugers didn't pan out. But three months later, I really like it at Rugers, and Hitchcock is just too little too late, I guess. Nice to know they were interested, though.

I've come a long way since I started at Stop N Shop in 1987 for $3.55 an hour.