Letter to My Former Employer

Dear Former Boss,

There were so many positives working for your company: I excelled in my roles; I loved my teammates; I had some incredible managers; compensation was decent, primarily because I was able to combine my salary with my husband's in order to make ends meet; and benefits and time off were sufficient, and sadly much better than a lot of other organizations I worked for. 

When COVID hit, you made sure we were all able to transition to remote work. My team excelled, and my department turned a profit in spite of the economy. I had always wondered how I would like working from home, and I found that I absolutely loved it. And from everything I could tell, whether it was the incredible feedback and reviews our team received from management or the bonuses we all were given after a year of remote work, that we would be able to continue this way indefinitely. 

Then a few things happened: I found out I was pregnant; and soon after that, my husband and I were given notice at our rental. In order to be able to afford our growing family, we decided the smartest plan was to move farther out to a more middle-class-friendly area. See, part of the challenge with your company is that all of your offices are located in the most expensive regions around DC. And your salaries do not match the cost of living in those areas. But since I had every reason to assume I would be able to continue to work remotely, my husband and I felt we had made the wisest choice. 

And thus continued my long and fruitful journey with your company, right? Nope.

See, what we hadn't counted on was the fact that you had no intention of allowing us to work remotely once the worst of the virus had passed. Soon after we moved, you informed our team that we would be required to work in-office two days a week. Apparently the two days was a compromise - and likely to increase in future (and it has - at this point it is up to three days a week). When we asked you why you were requiring us to come back in, your reasons did not actually apply to our roles, though you insisted that they did. You also allowed several other members of our team to relocate hours away, insisting on a distinction between their and our roles that was patently false. It was discouraging to realize that either you didn't actually understand what we did on a daily basis, or you didn't care. It was frustrating to realize that you were willing to exhibit favoritism, and were willing to make up lies to justify that favoritism. 

Thankfully, I was able to secure a note from my doctor that restricted me from commuting once I'd hit my third trimester of pregnancy. This really saved me. My physical state would have significantly deteriorated if I had been forced to make that commute. Sure, I could have saved some time (usually) by taking the EZ-Pass, but the cost was astronomical and we simply couldn't afford it. Oh, and let's not even talk about the completely impossible expense of child care that would soon become a necessity. Anyhow, I continued to do my job from home with full efficacy, as I had been doing for the past year. And then once my maternity leave was finished, I gave you my notice and have not returned. 

Ultimately I don't understand why you chose to make things so difficult for not only me and your other excellent, hard-working employees, but for you as well. You see, your choices affect your employees physically, emotionally, mentally, and financially. AND your choices cost you and your company in all those ways as well - as your employees either continue working with diminished efficacy due to being saddled with the above-mentioned burdens, or leave the company to find a better situation. 

The thing is, you thought you were justified in asking me to choose between my family and my job. You thought I would want to make the same sacrifices you made to achieve what you've achieved. But you mis-read me, because the truth is I strive for balance and for good physical and mental health. And my family comes first EVERY TIME. No exceptions.

Sincerely,

Your Former Employee