Out With The Old, In With The New

Jim has been a Service Manager at a well known dealership for over 7 yrs.   3 months ago he asked his manager for a raise, for some really good reasons.
#1.  The cost of living has gone up drastically & needs have changed.  When he first started working for this dealership we were a family of 3.  Now we're a family of 5.
#2.  He hasn't had a raise in over 4 yrs.
#3.  His sales numbers have continued to rise higher & higher each year.
Jim is one of the most dependable, reliable, competent employee's ever.  And I'm not just saying that because he's my husband.  He almost never calls out sick.  He never takes personal days.  He plans his vacation days around everyone elses.  He is considerate, respectful & responsible.  He is honest & loyal.  Most of all, he is well liked by everyone - coworkers & customers.  He always has a smile on his face & he seriously treats everyone as if they were family.  If there were ever a person deserving of a raise, it's Jim.
Now Jim's manager is not the person who approves the raises, obviously.  The owner(s) of the dealership are obviously the ones who have the final say.  That being said, when Jim didn't hear anything from anyone after 3 weeks, he decided he'd better bring it up to his manager again.  His manager said he would look into it.  A few weeks went by.  Still nothing.  After 2 months of Jim inquiring about what was going on (on a weekly basis) his manager said to him that the owner(s) were going to call a meeting with him to "discuss things" in detail.  A couple of weeks went by & then Jim's manager said to him that he really didn't think he was going to get a raise.  No reason given. 
Jim took it upon himself to print out his sales numbers, which are made accessible to all of the employees.  He went over them again, thoroughly.  His numbers werent up by just a little.  They were up by a WHOLE LOT.
Right around this time an amazing opportunity was presented to him - a friend of his (who used to work w/ him at the dealership) notified him of a position that was opening up where he worked, at Nestle (Poland Springs) in Norton, MA. The position offered better benefits, higher pay & more opportunity for growth.  After much thought & consideration, Jim told his friend that he would be interested in at least going in for an interview.  What did he have to lose, afterall?  His friend put in a whole bunch of good words for him, which led to a 2 1/2 hour formal interview.  Within hours the job offer was sent to Jim via email. The overall package exceeded his expectations.  Working on diesel engines, he would start off making a few dollars MORE than what he's making now and, once he gets his CDL (truck license, which the company pays for!), his pay automatically increases by a few more dollars.
He was given 24 hours to accept the offer.
I think we weighed the pros & cons for 22 of those 24 hours.  The biggest con is that Norton, MA is approx 45 minutes away from us here in Riverside, RI.  The biggest pro is that the job itself comes with a whole bunch of opportunities for growth.  The list of pro's far outweighed the list of con's.  Even still, seeing as how he's been with the same dealership for over 7 yrs, Jim was incredibly hesistant to accept the offer.  It's never easy to make such a big, life changing decision but it's even harder when you have small children & a wife to think about, too.  At the same time, it was clear that he wasn't moving forward at the dealership.  There was no room for advancement there & obviously no opportunity for pay increases either.
So the following morning he threw caution to the wind & accepted the job offer.  After completing the required physical, drug test & background checks he gave his two weeks notice to the dealership.  His coworkers were absolutely, positively, without a doubt, shocked.  They were even MORE shocked when they discovered that he was leaving due to financial reasons.  They were floored that the owner(s) weren't doing everything in their power to keep him from leaving.
Without saying anything to Jim, one of his coworkers ( Shawn, a car salesman), decided to approach one of the owners to find out what his thought process was, because he was so incredibly mind boggled by the entire situation. All of his customers are always saying how much they enjoy dealing with Jim & how happy they are with him in general.  How they always have nothing but excellent experiences with him.  So Shawn went to the owner who said to him "The night shift doesn't bring in enough money.  We can't give pay raises to the night shift people".  Now, keep in mind here, that Jim runs the entire night shift, from 4p-12a single handedly.  On a "good" night he might have access to 2 mechanics.
So the next day Shawn tells Jim about how he talked to one of the owners & what the owner had to say.   Jim turned around & handed Shawn his papers, showing his sales numbers.   3 yrs ago he brought in over $300,000 in sales.  2 yrs ago he brought in over $400,000 in sales.  Last year he brought in almost half of a million dollars in sales.  HALF OF A MILLION DOLLARS, during a 4p-12a shift!  Talk about impressive!!!  Yet, according to the owner(s), he's not bringing in enough money to justify a pay increase?!?!
Jim's last day with this dealership is on Monday.  More than a few people are scratching their heads.  His manager has since asked him "what will it take to keep you on board".  Too little, too late, people.
One of the worst feelings a person can experience is the feeling of not being appreciated, despite all of your efforts.  To selflessly give your all, time & again, and get nothing more than a pat on the back in return is mentally exhausting.  You start to question your self worth.  Your level of confidence decreases.  You feel unappreciated.  I've been in that position before & it's no fun.   With those feelings come a boat load of negative emotions.  Sadness & Anger, just to name a few.
On Tuesday morning Jim heads off to Framingham for Orientation for his new job.  I'm so proud of him.  He's not only putting his family first, but he's also putting his self-worth first.
And maybe, just maybe, the owner(s) of the dealership he's working for now will look back & regret letting the guy that brought in half of a million dollars for them last year walk away.  The guy who their customers know by first name.  The guy who their customers go out of their way to see during inconvienent night hours just because they know that he's not going to screw them.  For they are not just losing an employee.  They are losing business.
It didn't take the big guys at Nestle more than a few hours to see that they had found a "diamond in the ruff" when they met Jim & he won't disappoint them.  He will exceed their expectations, guarenteed.
Congratulations, Jim.  You deserve to be treated with respect.  You deserve to be appreciated.  You deserve this new beginning.  Out With The Old, In With The New.