Disheartened!

Community
1

Hi Friends,
Today I am here to discuss a personal issue with you all.
I am a Junior web developer in a start-up company …with a degree in computer science.
I am a very hard worker, i am crazy about web development and I am very very intelligent…ok now , I am not boasting abt myself…
I secured the third highest position in engineering school , with a distinction in every other subject , during my years in college…
recently I joined a start up company , and have been working for that company since about a year , had my salary reviewed in december , though wasn’t increased much…
I am still working for about 5 $ per hour(Work from home)…but since my salary has been raised , I am feeling my employer is being a bit harsh on me…during the last month I was given a project to work on using CakePhp…
I started the project around 15th of feb…I was completely new to cakephp and had to study from scratch …my employer knows that…even then I managed to set up the project and complete the task by 28th feb…less than 2 weeks…

more important , my employer gave me the address of the wrong repository folder twice, so i set up the project thrice during 5 days…so it took me 5 days to set up the project…

I worked day and night studying and working on the task like crazy people …even affecting my health…and completed the task in 9-10 days…

moreover I didn’t charge him for the time it took me to study Cakephp…charging in total only 39 hrs …for the complete setup and task…

Even then I was not appreciated and was told I didn’t work on the other projects , when I was assigned No tasks from the other projects during the 2 weeks at all…

If you are still reading my post …and not bored by my story, I would like to know…how much time is required on average to learn CakePhp and finish a task of medium complexity by an average person…

and how much per hour charges should a person get on average for a cakephp project when working from home.

Ps: I am from melbourne and 5$ is just nothing, I have been working for 5$ just to learn and enhance my career , while keeping the stress level low…
Thanks.

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I can’t say much about your specific project. “Medium complexity” means different things to different people. But if you’re unhappy in your job, then my simple suggestion is to start searching for a different job. There are many different companies out there, and some are more appreciative of their employees than others.

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I couldn’t tell you about how long it takes to learn CakePHP. Though to me it looks like you are allowing your employer to ‘take advantage of you’, obviously I am only basing it on this thread. Supposedly you are capable of the work and regularly meet deadlines, etc.

Like Jeff said, you might be able to find somewhere much better. That type of wage is close slave labour or bottom-feeder if the location is Australia? Obviously there is also a communication issue if the employer thinks you should be working on “other tasks” and you don’t, and sends you links to the wrong material. Presuming you have a reasonable skill set and are now more experienced I’d seriously consider looking to move on… :slight_smile:

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I agree with everything stated above and will add another option (if you find it worthy to stick out).

If you truly like the company and the work you are doing, then you need to have a face to face sit down with your boss and his boss. You need to discuss what is required of you as their employee, what their roles are (such as assigning you tasks), etc. Once the roles are laid out and clear, you need to monitor it for 2 weeks and if anyone (including yourself) is not performing to those roles, you need to have another sit down and discuss it.

Now I’ll be honest, some companies appreciate the employee doing the above, others do not. So the tension may rise and you may begin to feel less comfortable with the company, if that indeed happens, be well assured, your boss feels the same and it is best for both of you, that you look for a new job and get one as soon as you can.

Sounds like you are capable to meet deadlines, requirements, etc. Your getting paid worse than a job at a fast food restaurant (based on where I live). The experience will be nice, but there are many other companies that will pay you more for your current experience level if you show the determination to learn what you don’t know.

Best of Luck

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All i could understand by your tale is that you have overburdened yourself and looking for a way out. I would agree with Jeff Mott here that you should look for the options you can go with on the long term basis and, more importantly, conveniently.

Best of Luck
Chera McCabe

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I say your employer takes advantage of you, so you should start looking for a new job, and fast. Good Luck!

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Politics are in every office. you have to decide you want to be a part of it or not. If you are not supported or comfortable their working. You can quit and start searching for a good one. But, Everywhere there are same person around. This time you have to decide that still want to be a part or want to fight for your respect.

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There’s something I do not understand… was it you who decided a salary of 5$? Since you live in Melbourne, that’s not much precisely :wink: (of course, in some other country that would a fortune but Melbourne is a bit more expensive than that)

I’m asking you because you mentioned that you work for that salary just to enhance your career… it is more like you’re the start up company, a freelancer trying to get jobs in order to meet new customers. You said that you have an employer and that your salary has been raised to $5… just because you work from home?

Your degree and results prove that you can be constant and capable, that’s true. But, don’t feel offended by this, that doesn’t mean that you’re intelligent. How can that be, when with a degree you manage to get such a low salary?

It doesn’t matter how long it takes to learn CakePHP. For each person is different. You may be extremely smart and learn PHP very well but then get stuck with something stupid and take ages to learn that. It happends even to the best.

Again, how long it takes to do a medium or complex project is different for each person or team (exactly as it is the definition of medium, large, easy or complex)

Your work should never risk your health. Start with that.

Then start looking for another job… because you’ll need to talk seriously with your employer and rise that salary to at least 12$ per hour. And if your employer doesn’t accept it, then you should start working somewhere else.

You need to start to plan ahead and decide what you want of your life. Studying is part of this business… you’ll be learning all your life so it is good that you’re passionate about it. But you shouldn’t be burning you out. There’s more to life than work, and you don’t know if you’ll die in the next minute. It is important that you enjoy every single second of it. And yes, all jobs have its ups and down, its good things and bad things and not everything is enjoyable. But as a whole, it should be.

When you have decided what you want, then build a plan to get there and set small goals that will drive you towards your final aim. If that means to work for someone else, so be it

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Well, I suppose we have SitePoint Forums: Spot the Error 3: Calling all Sleuths! Competition running this week. :tup:

So if you want try and hone your skills? Give it a go; try spotting some markup errors you can enter that. You’ll soon learn such Basic code samples can have a multitude of complexities. I strongly suggest you enter the SPF Competition regardless of skillset.

So far three people have attempted and they have not found all the errors, yet… It’s quite a simple piece of code I personally wrote but you will learn a lot in the process if you enter.

Like Nuria said, you might have qualifications and experience but might not have the right aptitude. I certainly wouldn’t settle for the scenario you have let yourself get into - you have been working for around 12-month or more and aren’t gaining traction. Communication is less than perfect between you and the Boss (Matt suggested how you could address that) and the wage an absolute pittance for [Oz]. I do hope the “experience and training you are receiving” is more than worth its weight in Saffron? Doesn’t sound like it is too me… :eye:

By three methods we may learn wisdom: First, by reflection, which is noblest; Second, by imitation, which is easiest; and third by experience, which is the bitterest.

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In Melbourne, as far as I know a wage of $5/hour is illegal. There is a minimum wage here, and that’s way below it. You are being taken for a ride, seemingly in a dodgy operation. Are you being paid cash in hand? That’s the only way I can see your employer getting away with this. Anyhow, I’m afraid you haven’t landed yourself a real job yet. Best to take the advice above and look for a real one. :frowning:

Currently the full-time minimum wage is $15.96 per hour or $606.40 per week. This means that most employees in the national system shouldn’t get less than this.

Source

PS—Make sure to report your employer to the authorities. There is a cosy little cell with iron bars waiting for him. :slight_smile: