Thought-provoking article and interesting story in of itself.<p>I can't help but think that this is just a VC-funded version of traditional media, where the # of "sufficiently talented" people (i.e the supply) vastly outstrips the number of full-time well-paying positions (the demand), and therefore creates a massive power disparity in the labor market. Most employers will operate in a way like this because they can.<p>What's surprising here is that we'd think of podcasting as new media. Why would really talented people work for Gimlet vs. trying to get their own shows off the ground?<p>Financial security is probably the only reason. In fact, it's cited as THE reason this guy went to Gimlet both times. Holding his nose both times. Even the 2nd time, knowing what the company was.<p>So let's talk about Substack. (Didn't you know? All discussions of online media MUST go back to Substack these days).<p>This is why Substack is genius. Give the producers more direct access to monetizing their creative efforts. Even give the most promising ones an advance on their efforts to create some short-term financial security so they can do their thing. Let the talented people control their output and business.<p>Otherwise, in markets where labor vastly outstrips demand, you are fodder for the people with sufficient resources/capital to take the chance. And minority / disadvantaged folks are more at prey to it.
ME: "I've been supporting your team a lot for the past year. Can I just join your team? You have a lot of interesting projects available."<p>MGR: "Actually, it's really hard to onboard new people right now. We're stretched very thin. Can you do this urgent project for us and then get back to me?"<p>MGR: <onboards some new hires><p>ME: <finishes urgent project><p>ME: "So, any chance I can join the team?"<p>MGR: "Actually, I'm not sure we really have space on the team anymore, I'm really sorry about that."<p>Takeaway: If you're in a meeting with a manager and they sound <i>completely unenthusiastic</i>, and not even making eye contact, and falling back on their basic lead training to feed you non-committal apologies, you have <i>lost hard</i>. I don't know how you messed up or what clues you misread, but there is nothing for you there. Stop hoping to strike gold. Run.
This article provides excellent insight into contemporary recruiting techniques.<p>Contracting agencies are inherently predatory.<p>'Working hard' to get 'hired on full-time' has and always will be a myth. The 'corporate finance' line makes no sense. If the company didn't have the budget to bring you on full-time then they wouldn't have had the budget to bring you on as a contractor.<p>My entire employment history consists of contract gigs like this and they all play out the same way.<p>1) Promise of a full-time position<p>2) Excuses like 'It's not in this year's budget, but we're in the process of renegotiating the budget so we can have some of you contractors brought on full-time'<p>3) Contract's extended indefinitely/you're let go only to be offered another contract position with the same organization several months later<p>Regulations to stop this may be necessary.<p>Hell, one of my previous co-workers has a PhD in mathematics from an Ivy League university and was being paid $15/hr by a contracting agency to work as a programmer while some of our teammates had no IT experience and struggled to figure out how to use their computers.<p>Right now I'm working for a contracting company at a massive healthcare organization (16,000+ employees) as 1 of 9 people on our IAM team where I'm tasked with automating <i>all the things</i> and I'm only making $24/hr while the full-time employees that do less work are being paid double, some even triple what I earn.
I'm sure my view of this will provoke some, though that's not my intent.<p>Wow, the author of this is so drenched in his own racist worldview that he can only blame a situation of his own making on his skin color. In reality, he was taken for a ride by sleazy NY media venture people. (Is there any other kind?) The color of their, or his, skin is irrelevant. If people treat you like crap, they're garbage humans, regardless of skin color.<p>As the old saying goes, "Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me." From where I sit, bringing race into this at all is the worst sort of hateful excuse-making. This was the author's stupid call, and the fallout of his poor decision to work for known untrustworthy a-holes <i>twice</i> falls entirely on him. And has <i>nothing</i> to do with race - a-holes come in all colors.
Some context behind this article for those not in the know -<p>Reply All (the leading show at Gimlet Media) has had something of a public implosion lately, following their reporting on 'Bon Appetit', with accusations of racism (or at least non-diversity) in their hiring practices, and a lack of support for the unionization efforts there. The irony being that this is the exact sort of behavior they were investigating at Bon Appetit.<p>Their co-host PJ Vogt and a producer has now left the show (the interplay between PJ and Alex was the primary highlight of the show, so if it continues it will be a very different show).<p>Following that, there's been a few articles like this one looking at some of the behind the scenes at Gimlet.
There is a lot going on here but I'll comment on just one facet: the seemingly inexhaustible supply of trust that current(prospective) employees have for their employer(possible future employer).<p>One should <i>never</i> rely on a statement from an employer that isn't in writing. Furthermore, even if it is in writing, if it says "discretionary bonus," you should consider that a big fat ZERO. If it says "possible," "maybe," "if," etc. you should consider it to never happen (if it's for your benefit, otherwise, assume it definitely will happen).<p>Only after the above can you reasonably compare offers between prospective employers or value your current job.<p>HR is trained to hire you at the lowest price and say the most that they can without making fraudulent claims.<p>Additionally, if you are a current employee, and you EVER speak to HR, walk in with a pen and notepad and take long long notes and do not hesitate to ask someone to pause while you document. Treat it as a legal deposition. They are not your friends, they are trained to extract or give statements that protect the firm (not you).<p>It's unfortunately a pretty stark reality but it's business. It's even worse if the people involved are your friends - because it will hurt more if you aren't protected or have the wrong expectation. There's a reason that the expression, "never go into business with your family," is a thing.