Ditching a job the second you sniff greener pastures is disrespectful

Claudine, a girl who used to work with us quit in May, just two months after she’d been hired. She told HR she had to leave for personal reasons but we all know she got a better job. The boss wasn’t too happy, and rightly so because it meant they’d have to re-interview, and that costs time and money. In a recent meeting, he made his thoughts clear. He wants everyone to honour their contract and while even he admitted that there’s not much the company can do to stop people from leaving, he asked that we at least give notice, something Claudine and a couple of others who left before didn’t do. We’re all on the lookout for better paying jobs, scholarships and even a move to another country, or continent to further our careers. That’s okay and we have every right to do so but we also need to do it right. If someone offers you a job, they are in effect trusting you to take on certain tasks that have a bearing on the company’s overall performance. Ditching the job the second you sniff greener pastures is not only disrespectful but causes disruptions too. You signed a contract detailing what’s expected of you for a defined period so to turn around and run to the next best thing is unfair. I understand the need for people to opt out when working conditions aren’t ideal. An unsafe workplace, poor pay, physical or sexual harassment. That’s reasonable. But when people just move for money, it’s not right. Like Brendan Rodgers, I’m furious at Luis Suárez. A part of me wants this egotistical racist cannibal to go so the rest of us don’t have to deal with all his negativity but the other part wants to see him suffer the same way he’s causing the club grief. These overpaid footballers need to learn something about loyalty. I look at Steven Gerrard and wonder how his impeccable discipline hasn’t rubbed off onto Suárez. Are 26-year-old is too old to be spanked, because I think a good beating would straighten him out. Like I keep telling my friends, money is not everything. You’ve got to have values. When you make promises, you have to keep them. It’s like marriage. I don’t know why some people even bother taking vows they don’t intend to keep. That’s why I stopped making contributions to every John, Peter and David’s wedding. A guy gets married and three weeks later, he’s sleeping around. Why con us of our hard-earned money? I’m proud to say I know a thing or two about loyalty. I may not be famous or rich but I’m glad I have not betrayed anybody. I’d never go after a married man or run my mouth off to the boss about a colleague siphoning funds from the company. The network company I subscribe to is not the most reliable. You will not get a good signal even in some areas within Kigali. My bank’s service isn’t the best either and I know I could join any other bank because there really are better options but I’ve chosen to stay with them. I have used the same brand of toothpaste since I was a child. It’s not in any of the shops here and I have to stock up every time I go back home or make sure I send someone coming to visit. I have gone to the same saloon for years and going somewhere else would eat at my conscience. I know I said I’d like a better paying job and if the opportunity did arise, I’d take it but I’d never disrespect the one company that has essentially kept a roof over my head all this time. And that’s the difference between me and Suárez. He may have a lot of money but even that can’t buy him morals and in two or so years, you’ll read about his antics again.