‘You’re not there yet’: Singapore employee says manager overlooked him after hiring former teammates

SINGAPORE: A Singaporean employee has claimed that his manager hired several former colleagues from his previous company, gave them higher-ranking positions, and assigned them the most high-profile projects, leaving him feeling overlooked despite having nearly a decade of experience.

In a post on the r/askSingapore subreddit, the employee shared that he joined the company in a permanent role last year, while his manager came on board about a month later.

According to him, the relationship got off to a rocky start almost immediately. During their very first introduction, the manager allegedly referred to him as a “junior” after learning that he had around nine to 10 years of work experience.

The employee also recalled asking for more challenging work, only to be told, “You’re not there yet.”

He said the situation became even more frustrating earlier this year when his manager brought in three former teammates from his previous company.

“Earlier this year, he brought in 3 people from his ex-company on contract (because there was no available permanent headcount, but they came in as higher rank) and gave them all the high-visibility assignments,” he wrote.

The employee also alleged that his manager consistently favoured the new hires, shielding them from less desirable work while passing those tasks to him.

“My manager is very protective of these people, and when there are some work which doesn’t have high visibility, he will say that these people have no bandwidth (when these people are barely here for 3 months) and asks me to do them..lol.”

Curious if others had been through something similar, he ended his post by asking, “Anyone facing a similar situation, and what did you all do?”

“Find another job and leave”

Many commenters said the employee’s experience, while frustrating, is actually quite common in the corporate world.

They explained that when senior managers move to a new company, they often try to bring along trusted former colleagues they have already worked well with. 

From their perspective, it is easier to build a team with people whose capabilities and working styles they already know.

They also pointed out that the employee appears to be outside his manager’s inner circle, which could make it difficult for him to secure high-profile assignments or career progression under the current leadership. 

Even so, many advised him against making an impulsive decision driven by frustration.

One wrote, “You’re not in his inner circle. Accept it. You can either choose to stay or leave. Without more info, either option are valid. But don’t make an emotional decision.”

Another explained, “It’s pretty common for high-level managers to want to bring in their own team of people they trust. A good manager will have an open mind, assess the existing team, and identifying who is worth keeping. However, some managers will already be set on replacing everyone with their own people. It sounds like you are in the latter situation.”

Others felt the writing was already on the wall and advised the employee to start exploring other opportunities sooner rather than later.

One said, “Fire off your resume. He’s stacked the team against you.”

Another added, “Find another job and leave; try to do it on a good note, you won’t go far given the dynamics and politics.”

In other news, a man took to social media to share that his elderly parents have spent S$100,000 paying off his younger brother’s debts after he allegedly borrowed from loan sharks to support his foreign wife’s lavish lifestyle.

Posting on Reddit, the man said his 35-year-old brother, who works as a technician in a factory, has been supporting his Filipina wife for years.

Read more: ‘My mum spent S$100k repaying their loans’: Man says brother’s debts have devastated his family