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Boss Decides To Replace Employee To Save Money, Expects Her To Train New Hire
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Boss Decides To Replace Employee To Save Money, Expects Her To Train New Hire

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According to a popular saying, the reward for good work is usually more work. But for Reddit user SkittleALY, it meant getting kicked out.

After a year of diligently revamping the course of the company, she was shocked when her boss announced that he was hiring a woman from the Philippines at a fraction of her salary and started pressuring her to train her replacement.

Feeling frustrated and undervalued, SkittleALY turned to the r/antiwork community for advice on handling this uncomfortable situation in a way that would allow her to stay professional.

RELATED:

    This woman put her mind and soul into steering her boss’s company in the right direction

    Image credits: Tima Miroshnichenko (not the actual photo)

    But then, he decided to replace her with a low-cost remote worker

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    Image credits: nenetus (not the actual photo)

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    Image credits: skittleALY

    As much as it pains to say it, legally, the boss might be within his rights to claim ownership of the woman’s work

    As a general rule, an employer will own the intellectual property created by their employees in the course of their time at the company.

    While each case has its nuance, partner and solicitor at Nelsons Laura Kearsley, who has a strong reputation in all aspects of employment law, says the following circumstances can be indicative of employer ownership:

    • The work was created on company premises or in the employee’s usual place of business;
    • The work was created during the employee’s usual contracted hours;
    • The employee has a special obligation to further their employer’s interests – this is likely to apply to more senior employees;
    • The employee’s job specification requires that they create work of this nature;
    • Creation of the work was specifically tasked to the employee by the business;
    • The work is relevant to the business e.g. a software business is unlikely to own the intellectual property in still-life drawings created by an employee;
    • The work was a collaborative effort between multiple employees; and
    • Company-owned resources were used to create the work.

    “For a number of intellectual property rights, provided that the work (whether that be code, product design, invention or otherwise) was created by the employee in the course of their employment/execution of their duties, the employer will own the intellectual property in question (or be entitled to be registered as the proprietor of that work),” Kearsley explains.

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    Therefore, unless there is an explicit agreement to the contrary, it sounds like SkittleALY’s boss might actually own the fruits of her labor. Even though his move could be described as morally corrupt, legally speaking, he may have the upper hand.

    Now will it translate into a thriving future for his company depends on him and the Redditor’s replacement.

    As her story went viral, the woman joined the discussion in the comments

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    Rokas Laurinavičius

    Rokas Laurinavičius

    Writer, BoredPanda staff

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    Rokas is a writer at Bored Panda with a BA in Communication. After working for a sculptor, he fell in love with visual storytelling and enjoys covering everything from TV shows (any Sopranos fans out there?) to photography. Throughout his years in Bored Panda, over 300 million people have read the posts he's written, which is probably more than he could count to.

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    Rokas Laurinavičius

    Rokas Laurinavičius

    Writer, BoredPanda staff

    Rokas is a writer at Bored Panda with a BA in Communication. After working for a sculptor, he fell in love with visual storytelling and enjoys covering everything from TV shows (any Sopranos fans out there?) to photography. Throughout his years in Bored Panda, over 300 million people have read the posts he's written, which is probably more than he could count to.

    Justinas Keturka

    Justinas Keturka

    Author, BoredPanda staff

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    I'm the Visual Editor at Bored Panda, responsible for ensuring that everything our audience sees is top-notch and well-researched. What I love most about my job? Discovering new things about the world and immersing myself in exceptional photography and art.

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    Justinas Keturka

    Justinas Keturka

    Author, BoredPanda staff

    I'm the Visual Editor at Bored Panda, responsible for ensuring that everything our audience sees is top-notch and well-researched. What I love most about my job? Discovering new things about the world and immersing myself in exceptional photography and art.

    What do you think ?
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    Tabitha
    Community Member
    6 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    So the replacement is in the Philippines, and not where the job is located? Looks like she’s going to be a remote office manager. Oh boy. I see this lasting about a millisecond, especially since OP was an onsite office manager. That company is going to experience a huge slump. No onsite office manager keeping everything in order, plus a language barrier, don’t bode well for business.

    Sand Ers
    Community Member
    6 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    I once had my job relocated, and was asked to stay on for two more months to train my replacement. Got a $16,000 bonus to do it. I was tempted to bail early, but the combination of the big check and the reduced stress (because I no longer gave a shìt) made it worth it to stick it out.

    Janice
    Community Member
    6 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    I was taught a manager should never ask anyone to train their replacement because its natural for people to want to look good and will usually do a poor job of training, or even intentionally sabotage it. Also, when an employee gives notice they're leaving, they should be paid for the 2 weeks, but asked to leave almost immediately and not finish that day. The reasons are (1) most get "short timer's" and generally are not as diligent, but (2) they're bad for morale. Either the employee got a "better" job and in their excitement, talk about it with workmates, or they're leaving because they're not satisfied, so complaining or just making snarky comments are also bad for morale. I know people don't like to hear this, but in my experience, it's true more often than not, but rarely worth the chance. Please bear in mind, I did say pay them for the time they gave with their notice. I usually worded it as a 2 week (paid) vacation and/or time to rest and prepare for their new job.

    Thanos'Fingers
    Community Member
    6 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    I'd love to work for you. Most of my bosses are more like "can you make it a month? By the way I'm upping your hours." Buddy I literally just quit...

    Load More Replies...
    Load More Comments
    Tabitha
    Community Member
    6 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    So the replacement is in the Philippines, and not where the job is located? Looks like she’s going to be a remote office manager. Oh boy. I see this lasting about a millisecond, especially since OP was an onsite office manager. That company is going to experience a huge slump. No onsite office manager keeping everything in order, plus a language barrier, don’t bode well for business.

    Sand Ers
    Community Member
    6 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    I once had my job relocated, and was asked to stay on for two more months to train my replacement. Got a $16,000 bonus to do it. I was tempted to bail early, but the combination of the big check and the reduced stress (because I no longer gave a shìt) made it worth it to stick it out.

    Janice
    Community Member
    6 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    I was taught a manager should never ask anyone to train their replacement because its natural for people to want to look good and will usually do a poor job of training, or even intentionally sabotage it. Also, when an employee gives notice they're leaving, they should be paid for the 2 weeks, but asked to leave almost immediately and not finish that day. The reasons are (1) most get "short timer's" and generally are not as diligent, but (2) they're bad for morale. Either the employee got a "better" job and in their excitement, talk about it with workmates, or they're leaving because they're not satisfied, so complaining or just making snarky comments are also bad for morale. I know people don't like to hear this, but in my experience, it's true more often than not, but rarely worth the chance. Please bear in mind, I did say pay them for the time they gave with their notice. I usually worded it as a 2 week (paid) vacation and/or time to rest and prepare for their new job.

    Thanos'Fingers
    Community Member
    6 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    I'd love to work for you. Most of my bosses are more like "can you make it a month? By the way I'm upping your hours." Buddy I literally just quit...

    Load More Replies...
    Load More Comments
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