My cash comp comes with a bonus (based on company performance) which is of fixed size and pretty sizable (~$60k, ~25% of my cash comp). It was introduced this year as part of me getting new responsibilities (more customer facing on top of standard swe), at a medium sized startup (150 employees and very good funding).
The bonus was not part of any written agreement, but was communicated to me by my boss during my annual review (which also included a small salary bump) as part of me complaining that staying at the startup represents an opportunity cost for me considering the wonderful average offers in SV, where we are based. The bonus was supposed to be paid every quarter but to this day I haven’t received anything. I brought it up several times to my boss:
1) First time (March, end of Q1): he said that the bonus was to be paid at half year and not every quarter.
2) Second time (June, end of Q2): he said that the bonus should be paid the following month (end of July), because our fiscal year is shifted.
3) Third time (July): I was kind of embarrassed in asking again to him, so I sent an email to our HR woman who handles payroll and she said I wasn’t owed any bonus that month.
4) Fourth time (September, end of Q3): reached out once again to my boss and he said maybe the bonuses weren’t paid because of company under performance, and that he’d check and let me know.
Haven’t heard from him ever since, and it really bothers me asking one more time.
I’m a senior swe and have been with the company for a while, the company is doing well but I really think they are shortchanging me of these $60k.
What the hell should I do? Just go look for another offer and leave?
Thanks
TC: 200k (not including bonuses) and a lot of equity currently valued at ~2M, still illiquid and a good chunk of it vested (early employee)
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comments
I really don’t know what my boss is doing over here, if it’s passive aggressiveness or just stupidity on his side.
He is an experienced manager (vp level) and I can’t imagine he’s not considering how bitter people get if they’re not paid the amount of money that was promised. I almost think he is just too naive and busy, but again, confronting him once more makes me very uncomfortable.
Shame on your manager for telling you this, but more on you for being so naive, especially in a startup.
BTW have you even checked your stock options? They maybe thin air too.
Thanks for the hypothesis but wrong diagnosis.
It’s actually more that I think that since last year I was able to liquidate those shares *after* the performance review and the bonus promise, perhaps my boss is thinking that the 60k is irrelevant now, but that’s bs because you can’t mix equity comp, which is for the work done in the past, with current cash comp.