| During my 22 years
in the job, I thought I was the only
permanent part of the establishment. I learned how to make the
system work so that I would never have to return to India
from
New York. I
got so good at manipulating the system and interpreting the rules to my advantage that it was hard to dislodge me. I
gradually moved up the ladder and was hoping that I would retire as
a Director. My husband had built a
successful business in imported parts for
Japanese cars. We were able to
buy our own house in the suburbs, which we
rented out so that the rent paid for the
mortgage
and there would still be money left every year. I lived walking
distance from the office in an apartment paid for by my
employer.
The devastating news came to me in an internal memo
delivered to me through the inter-office mail from New Delhi. The
head office had made a decision to directly recruit officer level staff from outside apart from promoting from within. For
many jobs that did not require handling of sensitive data, for
example, banking with the local governments and businesses, the
company was also going to allow non-Indians to compete for jobs in its offices overseas. The move was touted as a way
to reduce cost, improve quality of staff, and allow non-critical
jobs to be staffed through local hiring. I had not been able to
pass the internal exam for promotion the three times I was allowed to take it but I was now approaching my required 6
years of service in the position so that I could be promoted anyway. It seems that these new rules
would hold me back. The officer-level position would have entitled me to higher
compensation and benefits. I would have also become eligible for a 3-bedroom
apartment - something that my whole family was looking forward to. With two teenagers in the family, we
desperately wanted a bigger place to stay. When I talked to my
peers in New Delhi, the outrage was even more intense. Their hopes were dashed after years of
monotonous work in drab offices. They consoled me by telling me that at least I was in
New York with a much better life than any one of them. All
because of some dirty office politics.
~
We were all watching the developments very carefully. To
make the matters worse, I was even asked to manage the written exam and interviews for hiring in New York.
Surprisingly, many Americans were interested in working for the
bank. It was painful to watch as I orchestrated the demise of my own hopes. On one hand I felt that I should work hard so that I could get the promotion based on the exam,
but at the same time I felt discouraged to even work. On other
occasions, I tried to find something good about the new situation and I hoped that maybe we will have some interesting
people around the office instead of all the boring Indians that
landed at JFK totally clueless about life in America.
Continued: Who gets hired at the bank?
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