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Old 01-06-2013, 12:43 PM
 
Location: North Oakland
9,150 posts, read 10,860,298 times
Reputation: 14503

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Quote:
Originally Posted by SteelCityRising View Post
Certainly a lot of assumptions going on here. Never once did I say I just randomly look up people's accounts without having a legitimate business reason to do so.
It didn't for one moment occur to me that you look at people's files without a legitimate business reason. My criticism is that you talk about it on a public forum which, because of the info-crumb trail you've left on it over the years, it would not be that difficult for someone to figure out who you are, i.e., your full identity. Anyone who's been paying attention could go to your apartment, read your name off the mailbox -- or just google the address, who knows? -- and know exactly who you are. Then they could figure out where you work, pretend they're calling for a recommendation -- or whatever ruse -- and Zap! Gotcha!

Quote:
Originally Posted by SteelCityRising View Post
Call me whatever names you'd like, jay5835.
Point Misser seems appropriate at this moment.

Quote:
Originally Posted by SteelCityRising View Post
I'm standing my ground that I'm not paid nearly enough to endure the sob stories of people who earn more than I do and still can't break even financially due to a lack of discipline. Let UPMC employees pick up second jobs like many of my colleagues do. Otherwise their employer is NOT unique in undercompensating their employees.
I am not arguing a single one of those points with you. I am actually trying to help you. What I'm saying is stop talking about it online like this or you're going to find yourself without a job someday, and maybe even find yourself unhireable for anything but delivering fruit.

Are you seriously this naive about the way the world works?
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Old 01-06-2013, 12:49 PM
 
377 posts, read 650,762 times
Reputation: 273
Quote:
Originally Posted by SteelCityRising View Post
Certainly a lot of assumptions going on here. Never once did I say I just randomly look up people's accounts without having a legitimate business reason to do so. Throughout the course of each day I have people at their wit's end who are already flat broke the Monday subsequent to their paydays and come to me to complain about overdraft fees. I already know I will be facing a workday replete with this nonsense tomorrow. My sympathy is minimal for those who sit in front of me reeking of cigarette smoke and who incurred such negative financial circumstances through living beyond their means. What business do you have eating at Cheesecake Factory or having a high Comcast bill and then screaming "it's not fair" when you receive a fee for going negative with your account? Unlike a lot of UPMC employees I am fully capable of looking in the mirror when I overspend and assign blame squarely where it belongs---not displacing my anger and frustrations onto others. When I see that these people receive a net pay higher than my own via direct deposit why SHOULD I have any sympathy when I'm capable of living resourcefully on a more meager salary? You just have to love how people assume you make so much more money than they do just because you wear a suit.

Call me whatever names you'd like, jay5835. I'm standing my ground that I'm not paid nearly enough to endure the sob stories of people who earn more than I do and still can't break even financially due to a lack of discipline. Let UPMC employees pick up second jobs like many of my colleagues do. Otherwise their employer is NOT unique in undercompensating their employees.
I am quite sure that your company would not be thrilled that you are on online forum where it is pretty easy to figure out who your employer is talking trash about their customers.
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Old 01-06-2013, 01:08 PM
 
Location: Marshall-Shadeland, Pittsburgh, PA
32,613 posts, read 77,439,770 times
Reputation: 19101
Quote:
Originally Posted by jay5835 View Post
It didn't for one moment occur to me that you look at people's files without a legitimate business reason. My criticism is that you talk about it on a public forum which, because of the info-crumb trail you've left on it over the years, it would not be that difficult for someone to figure out who you are, i.e., your full identity. Anyone who's been paying attention could go to your apartment, read your name off the mailbox -- or just google the address, who knows? -- and know exactly who you are. Then they could figure out where you work, pretend they're calling for a recommendation -- or whatever ruse -- and Zap! Gotcha!

Point Misser seems appropriate at this moment.

I am not arguing a single one of those points with you. I am actually trying to help you. What I'm saying is stop talking about it online like this or you're going to find yourself without a job someday, and maybe even find yourself unhireable for anything but delivering fruit.

Are you seriously this naive about the way the world works?
After living in Northern Virginia and getting royally screwed through collusion I am most certainly not "naive about the way the world works". I realize life is very unfair. At the same time you can be responsible and make life work by slashing expenses, sharing living space, picking up an additional job, etc. to make it work or you can rely upon people like heartchya to help you make excuses and deflect blame onto your employer. Expecting UPMC to pay janitorial staff or secretarial support staff more than other major employers are paying people like financial consultants simply because UPMC has deeper pockets isn't economically responsible.

I've already had someone from this forum harass me in real life, going so far as to slander me to my current landlady while posing as a representative from my former apartment community's leasing office. I would have pursued the matter further had the Fairfax County Police Department not told me that no crime occurred. I won't let mentally unstable people scare me away from a forum I've loved for six-and-a-half years. I'm also not going to censor myself from speaking freely as long as I'm not violating the forum's terms of service.

Quote:
Originally Posted by heartchya View Post
I am quite sure that your company would not be thrilled that you are on online forum where it is pretty easy to figure out who your employer is talking trash about their customers.
I haven't mentioned my company by name. I haven't mentioned any specific clients by name. I haven't mentioned my own name. I haven't listed any particulars about any specific client that would reveal their identities.

Explain to me how I am "talking trash" just because you happen to disagree with my assertion that many who claim to be "struggling" are largely in such a condition because they are somehow living beyond their means. What I can adamantly say is that my hourly wage is less than those quoted by UPMC employees in a recent Post-Gazette article regarding employees who proclaimed they couldn't afford food. At the same time I have no trouble feeding myself. Imagine that. You may have to split your living quarters and/or work two jobs, but you can make it work.

As far as my employer is concerned if UPMC employees are brazenly identifying themselves to the media and attempting to unionize without repercussions, then why would I be fired for a vague rant about the inability of society at-large to understand budgeting, which caused our recession in the first place?
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Old 01-06-2013, 01:18 PM
 
Location: Penn Hills
1,326 posts, read 2,003,026 times
Reputation: 1638
Quote:
Originally Posted by SteelCityRising View Post
As far as my employer is concerned if UPMC employees are brazenly identifying themselves to the media and attempting to unionize without repercussions, then why would I be fired for a vague rant about the inability of society at-large to understand budgeting, which caused our recession in the first place?
Uh, because every employer is different and every employer has their own prerogative. That paragraph makes no sense. It's extremely bad PR for a non-profit hospital system in this local political climate to fire people for trying to unionize, when they're already under fire for being a 'monopoly,' not paying property taxes, and other issues. The only thing protecting those employees is that UPMC doesn't want to deal with the ****storm that would come from it, it's not worth it to them. It's called picking their battles. You are, however, just one low tier cog in the wheel at your bank, and you're in an at-will employment state. One thing has NOTHING to do with the other.

It's like me saying, how come these people aren't being fired but my friend (an RN) was fired from a different hospital for the grand crime of becoming ill for a longer period than FMLA covers, and now she's destitute and has lost everything (and is still desperately sick)? Because one makes the news, and the other doesn't, one company cares about PR, and the other isn't facing a PR battle. Jay was right to call you naive.
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Old 01-06-2013, 01:27 PM
 
Location: Marshall-Shadeland, Pittsburgh, PA
32,613 posts, read 77,439,770 times
Reputation: 19101
Quote:
Originally Posted by sparrowmint View Post
Uh, because every employer is different and every employer has their own prerogative. That paragraph makes no sense. It's extremely bad PR for a non-profit hospital system in this local political climate to fire people for trying to unionize, when they're already under fire for being a 'monopoly,' not paying property taxes, and other issues. The only thing protecting those employees is that UPMC doesn't want to deal with the ****storm that would come from it, it's not worth it to them. It's called picking their battles. You are, however, just one low tier cog in the wheel at your bank, and you're in an at-will employment state. One thing has NOTHING to do with the other.
So, essentially, if I initiated unionization attempts at my employer in an attempt to secure better compensation and publicized my exaggerated plight of "struggling to buy food" I'd receive immunity because subsequently firing me after such attempts would create a terrible "black eye" for the organization? My employer and UPMC are similar on many fronts. My employer doesn't pay as well as UPMC. Why, then, does the general public hate UPMC so much more when they treat their employees better? I've struggled since moving here to understand why UPMC is hated so much by everyone when they provide so much in terms of stability for the local economy, not to mention cutting-edge research, charitable contributions, and relatively decent pay. Perhaps if I understood why you all hated UPMC so much I wouldn't feel so clueless?
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Old 01-06-2013, 01:49 PM
 
Location: Marshall-Shadeland, Pittsburgh, PA
32,613 posts, read 77,439,770 times
Reputation: 19101
I suppose I just have yet to be thoroughly convinced that UPMC is the anti-Christ because they pay secretaries a mere $13/hr. while reaping massive profit margins. Granted if I was an employer and had a banner year economically I'd share that success with my workforce, but you rarely see that happen anymore with ANY employer, let alone UPMC. Considering many at my own employer, including myself, make less than that per hour and somehow manage to buy food I just can't legitimately feel much sympathy for those who are trying to unionize claiming that they are underpaid. MANY people in Pittsburgh are severely underpaid right now, including many of my friends, especially when you factor in that our cost-of-living has been rising moderately in recent years. It may suck if you're trying to raise three kids as a single mom on $13/hr., but for one to claim that UPMC needs to pay some employees more than lateral colleagues based upon their own family size is unreasonable. As a single childless person I'd organize a mutiny if I found out colleagues were getting paid much more than I was to do the same job, regardless of job performance, just because they chose to have children.

Why aren't single moms working at Wal-Mart garnering this much sympathy from Pittsburghers as those working for UPMC? The witch hunt mentality some of you harbor against this organization is unfathomable. Guess what? Wal-Mart earns billions more in annual profits than UPMC and pays its employees much less. I don't patronize Wal-Mart for that reason, but I bet many of you who despise UPMC for underpaying its workforce still shop at Wal-Mart, don't you? Explain to me how UPMC is any worse than Wal-Mart.
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Old 01-06-2013, 01:50 PM
 
6,600 posts, read 8,948,104 times
Reputation: 4683
Wal-Mart pays taxes.
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Old 01-06-2013, 01:51 PM
 
Location: North Oakland
9,150 posts, read 10,860,298 times
Reputation: 14503
Quote:
Originally Posted by SteelCityRising View Post
Perhaps if I understood why you all hated UPMC so much I wouldn't feel so clueless?
I hate them because of the slathering stations every ten feet. I so don't want to be touched by someone who's just smeared every surface that could possibly come in contact with me with that green goop.
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Old 01-06-2013, 01:51 PM
 
1,653 posts, read 1,581,147 times
Reputation: 2822
PNC is not universally loved either, if that makes you feel any better, Paul. When jobhunting, glassdoor.com is your friend.
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Old 01-06-2013, 01:55 PM
 
Location: Marshall-Shadeland, Pittsburgh, PA
32,613 posts, read 77,439,770 times
Reputation: 19101
Quote:
Originally Posted by ferrarisnowday View Post
Wal-Mart pays taxes.
UPMC is tax-exempt. They aren't required to pay taxes. Even factoring in taxes Wal-Mart still reaps billions more annually in profits than UPMC and pays its employees less. Judging by how packed their parking lots are locally I'm guessing Wal-Mart's employees matter less to most Pittsburghers than UPMC employees. For those claiming UPMC's office environment is more stressful I'd like to ask how many of you have worked for years in retail interfacing with an increasingly boorish general public? I have, and I'd champion the plight of a Wal-Mart associate who made $9/hr. and couldn't afford benefits ANYDAY over a UPMC secretary making $13/hr. after already factoring in benefits deductions.
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