Was This Fair?

[nin_ninja]

So, my dad's friend has worked for the same big finance company in Toronto for almost 25 years now and is the vice president of the IT department. When he (my father's friend) joined in '86 he had dropped out of university because he needed to join the workforce. He quickly rose the company latter because he was intelligent until in early '00-01 his boss told him he was now required to finish University if he was going to climb higher. He finished his last few courses online and got his degree, but to me it seemed unnecessary because as far as I know he learned nothing new or related to his job.

I can understand not wanting to higher someone new who doesn't have a degree, but when someone has worked for a company for a long time and obviously does not now need the degree, it seems silly to send them back.

Should he have needed to have gone back, or was it a waste of time?

EDIT: I'm not against getting an education, in fact I think its one of the best things to do, but I'm against unnecessary bullshit like this.

 

[Katherine Kerensky]

It was a waste of time, but as it is, a formal education and the results to prove it are often required, and likely will be for quite a while.

 

[zfactor]

Seemed like a waste of time. If he already knew how to do his job, why did he need to learn how to do his job?

 

[Gilhelmi]

Sometimes the employer policy for higher Jobs.

I do not know if it is fair or not, but it is a reality of our modern society.

 

[drbarno]

I find it silly that people cannot trust others unless it has been placed on a piece of paper by someone else saying they could do that thing.

 

[Raven's Nest]

It's got nothing to do with fairness really. Just a bit of pointless bureaucracy ...

Did they say they'd give someone else the job if he refused to do the degree or simply asked him to gain a qualification that anybody new to the role would be expected to have. That said his experience in the role should have rendered the request moot, but hey thats bureaucracy for ya.

Also, did the company pay for his education?

 

[SnootyEnglishman]

This is just silly bureaucratic nonsense.

 

[KeyMaster45]

As one of my professors once told the class. "Your degree does not prove you are capable of working well in what you studied. It's proof that you know how to study and put up with trivial bullshit."

 

[nin_ninja]

It's got nothing to do with fairness really. Just a bit of pointless bureaucracy ...

Did they say they'd give someone else the job if he refused to do the degree or simply asked him to gain a qualification that anybody new to the role would be expected to have. That said his experience in the role should have rendered the request moot, but hey thats bureaucracy for ya.

Also, did the company pay for his education?

No, no, and maybe.

Point is is that I know this was all bureaucracy, but his boss knew it was unnecessary, his company knew, it was just a matter of making everyone "equal" and not playing "favourites".

 

[Daedalus1942]

I find it silly that people cannot trust others unless it has been placed on a piece of paper by someone else saying they could do that thing.

I don't. People lie. People always lie.

I agree but in this context it is just stupid.
He had already proven for years and years that he could do his job eficciently and skillfully.
-Tabs<3-

 

[Jesus Phish]

Alot of the guys in my class have been working for their companies for years. I think the majority actually. They all want to try keep their jobs/advance in their companies and have been informed the best way to do so is to get the next level of qualification.

Most of them dont learn anything new in the classes and are only there for the piece of paper. It's a waste of their time and their companies money (they're lucky in that the company pays for it).

It also has a negative effect on me and the guys who havent been in the industry for years. Our lecturers often feel they can gloss over details/use industry terminology without explanation because most of the class are experienced, were as a few of us younger guys haven't left college yet.

 

[Daveman]

So, my dad's friend has worked for the same big finance company in Toronto for almost 25 years now and is the vice president of the IT department. When he (my father's friend) joined in '86 he had dropped out of university because he needed to join the workforce. He quickly rose the company latter because he was intelligent until in early '00-01 his boss told him he was now required to finish University if he was going to climb higher. He finished his last few courses online and got his degree, but to me it seemed unnecessary because as far as I know he learned nothing new or related to his job.

I can understand not wanting to higher someone new who doesn't have a degree, but when someone has worked for a company for a long time and obviously does not now need the degree, it seems silly to send them back.

Should he have needed to have gone back, or was it a waste of time?

Yeah probably, but the fact is the employer needs to prove he was the best man for the job in case there's an accusation of sexism or racism from someone else applying. So he needs that level of education to essentially prove he is as good as somebody else. My dad got embroiled in a case like that where somebody tried to sue him for racism because he hired somebody else. The fact that they're more qualified means you can prove that there wasn't any such bias in the choice.

 

[TPiddy]

Large companies need to boast about things. They need their employees to sound more impressive. It's all about perspective and sales. They wanted him to attain his degree to make him more marketable to their clientele.

 

[Tron-tonian]

It would depend on the degree. If he was sent back to get a B.Comm, BA in Econ. or MBA - absolutely fair. At the executive level, you're dealing with a lot more theory and are more detached from the day-to-day stuff, so that knowledge he gets in university could open up some avenues of thought he hadn't ever considered or known about before. his experience = good. Knowledge + experience = better. ;-)

If, however, he went and got a degree in, say, Fine Arts, then I'd say it's a bad business decision, as it wouldn't add near the value. The company just wants to see some letters after his name, in which case he could have sent money to Diploma Mill Inc. and saved himself years of headaches.

 

[Raven's Nest]

It's got nothing to do with fairness really. Just a bit of pointless bureaucracy ...

Did they say they'd give someone else the job if he refused to do the degree or simply asked him to gain a qualification that anybody new to the role would be expected to have. That said his experience in the role should have rendered the request moot, but hey thats bureaucracy for ya.

Also, did the company pay for his education?

No, no, and maybe.

Point is is that I know this was all bureaucracy, but his boss knew it was unnecessary, his company knew, it was just a matter of making everyone "equal" and not playing "favourites".

I can understand both sides to this, though it is kind of a weird paradox for an unfair act to happen in the name of fairness eh? At least he wasn't undercut by a rookie with a new degree but fuck all experience... That happens all the time...

 

[nin_ninja]

It's got nothing to do with fairness really. Just a bit of pointless bureaucracy ...

Did they say they'd give someone else the job if he refused to do the degree or simply asked him to gain a qualification that anybody new to the role would be expected to have. That said his experience in the role should have rendered the request moot, but hey thats bureaucracy for ya.

Also, did the company pay for his education?

No, no, and maybe.

Point is is that I know this was all bureaucracy, but his boss knew it was unnecessary, his company knew, it was just a matter of making everyone "equal" and not playing "favourites".

I can understand both sides to this, though it is kind of a weird paradox for an unfair act to happen in the name of fairness eh? At least he wasn't undercut by a rookie with a new degree but fuck all experience... That happens all the time...

Well those old people get pretty forgetful after a while, and those new kids have such energy.

Mmmm, energy......wait I forgot what I was going on about.

 

[Sion_Barzahd]

Since its in IT, i can see why they'd ask him to complete his degrees before allowing him to raise beyond where he was at. IT is one of the most dynamic careers there are, its constantly changing. New methods and technologies are being released almost on a monthly basis, and every six month what you know will become outdated. So like i said it might seem like a formality, but its one which was reasonable enough to ask of, after all i wouldn't want someone being in charge when they don't have the know-how or at least evidence of it, even if i'd known them for years.

 

[Frozen Donkey Wheel2]

This is just silly bureaucratic nonsense.

Yeah, exactly. If he's really been working at the company for so long, he clearly didn't need a college degree. This is one of those things that kinds of sounds good on paper(Not promoting people to certain level without a college degree), but clearly doesn't work for every situation.

 

[Nouw]

It's got nothing to do with fairness really. Just a bit of pointless bureaucracy ...

Did they say they'd give someone else the job if he refused to do the degree or simply asked him to gain a qualification that anybody new to the role would be expected to have. That said his experience in the role should have rendered the request moot, but hey thats bureaucracy for ya.

Also, did the company pay for his education?

And the best avatar goes to you xD.

I guess he didn't need to do that as he already knew everything and anything about his job. It's not unfairness, just something else. Still wrong but perhaps it's

silly bureaucratic nonsense.

I think I'll stick with this one!