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Will Truman

Will Truman is the Editor-in-Chief of Ordinary Times. He is also on Twitter.

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13 Responses

  1. David Ryan says:

    That’s total bullshit.Report

    • Stillwater in reply to David Ryan says:

      It is.

      And it reminds me of a hobby horse of mine. Discovery (if that’s the right word), in all its manifestations, is a really big problem here in the good ole USA. I’ve been in this business for a while, but … in the last few months I’ve been helping my wife and her partners start a new business and one of the things that is just astounding to me is that bids are completely non-transparent. We’ve received bids from plumbers, electricians, and HVAC outfits for the work entailed by the rebuild, and in each case I’ve specifically asked for a break down of price for each phase of the work required (since there were obviously separable sections as well as segments of work performed), and in each case I simple get a sum total for the price we have to pay. And in each case, when I compare labor hours to bill rate (including materials) I’m just blown away at the pricing. When I ask the contractors about their pricing they all say the same thing: computer program determines hours/materials and industry standard determines bill rate. I’m actually starting to get really pissed about this. ANd I’m in the business!Report

    • Will Truman in reply to David Ryan says:

      I had forgotten this, but the same thing sort of happened when she got her current job. They flew her out here, had her meet everybody, and she had an offer by the time we flew home. It wasn’t until we got the letter that we knew how much she would be making, and that turned out not to even be the final number (which was, thankfully, higher).

      It might be that more aggressiveness is required on this front.Report

  2. zic says:

    Just remember: Since the price hasn’t been agreed upon, she still has the right to negotiate; particularly if it’s not enough to both cover student loans and support family reasonably well (and I say this knowing that you’re happy with a relatively modest lifestyle). It’s likely cheaper for them to come up on their offer then it is to begin a new search.Report

    • Will Truman in reply to zic says:

      Oh, yeah, we can still negotiate. They’re creating the position for her, though, so some of the ordinary rules don’t apply. Though that they are creating the position for her is significant in and of itself. So there’s that!

      A part of me wants to say “We should poke around Maine and South Dakota” (two places we know about potential opportunities) to have a better reference point.

      The thought of moving again so soon is unbelievably daunting, though. That’s the leverage they have.

      But if we can’t make it work, we can’t make it work, and we’ll have some very tough discussions about it.Report

      • Damon in reply to Will Truman says:

        Just remember that Negotiations are usually within a fine range.

        When the ex was offered a postion at an former employer, an employer that told her “the CEO said he will green light this project IF we hire you”, and she was told the salary range, I told her to go in with a pay requirement of slightly less than the max of the range. They were unwilling to go above 5k more than the bottom end. Some of that is the result of my ex not being a strong negotiator, but her starting salary did represent 30% more from her current job, so….Report

      • Kim in reply to Will Truman says:

        Will,
        if they’re creating the position for her, it’s likely she has some leverage.
        Make it clear that you’re in it for the long haul (aka if accepted, not leaving anytime soon).Report

      • Michael Drew in reply to Will Truman says:

        Just saw this.

        My cousin is doing his residency with his fellow-doctor-girlfriend in Portland, Maine or thereabouts right now. (They were classmates and did the couple-gets-placed-together-geographically residency selection thing). They LOVE IT there. Just FYI. Don’t know which hospitals, but I can try to get any information I might be able to get iff’n you would want me to, @will-truman.Report

      • Thanks, @michael-drew . Portland is probably too large for Clancy to do her things. But medical communities in small states tend to be… small. So you may get an email at some point if we do decide to explore our options.Report

    • Vikram Bath in reply to zic says:

      This story sounds like a tailor-made invitation to negotiate. It sounds like the employer has a hard time getting deals put together and through their process. If Clancy doesn’t take it, they have to start from scratch.Report

  3. Will Truman says:

    A non-update. Still no idea on the specifics.

    I should make clear that I don’t actually think any of this is nefarious. Had her previous employer done this, we would be very suspicious. In this case, it’s the same employer that had her on a two week project only to find out that somebody else was already doing it and having a head start. So, not nefarious, even if aggravating.Report