separating from debt

Bonnie is 26, a factory worker and she's also newly separated. Her brief marriage was a mistake - a costly one - but she's now enjoying her newly reclaimed freedom by sharing an apartment with two female co-workers and watching her pennies.

"My ex-husband got me into debt - he was a gambler," explains Bonnie, "and my focus from now on is getting my financial affairs in order and making sure that I never lose my personal integrity again."

"When the factory management asked us to take a pay cut," says Bonnie, "I was disappointed to lose money and thought I was being screwed all over again but after considering my options I went along willingly with the company’s request."

"I work for monetary reward just like everyone else," explains Bonnie, "but some of my girlfriends work primarily for the most money they can get and preferred to quit rather than accept a pay cut."

In today's globalized, off-shoring economic climate, Bonnie believes that people are lucky if they still have a job, so quitting a job that requires you to make a salary sacrifice is a bit risky. She feels that the chances of finding a similar job with a salary commensurate with what she wants is not high.

"I feel my girlfriends made a mistake," says Bonnie, "because in the long run they may be forced to accept a position with a much lower pay than the one they rejected."

Bonnie admits that it is not fair that companies are laying off staff or requiring salary sacrifices in order to meet their profit margins, but in an employer's market she accepts that we have very little say in the matter.

"There are far too many people in the world looking for work," says Bonnie, "and there are simply not enough jobs available to employ everybody. If you want to survive and lead an independent life - like I do - you've got to be realistic about these things."

"The jobs my girlfriends are quitting will be quickly filled," says Bonnie, "and probably by immigrant workers willing to work for less than the pay cut rate."

The laws of supply and demand operate perfectly these days to ensure that those who are willing to work for less monetary reward are the ones who are winning the jobs.

Bonnie believes that going on strike will not work, either. If your job is one that can be outsourced or given to an immigrant worker, it will be.

Money is not exactly Bonnie’s key motivating factor in turning up at work each day. Being recently separated she needs the distraction that work gives her. It takes her mind off her troubles. And she actually enjoys the working experience.

"I'm well aware that a lot of people only work for money and cannot get enough of it - not because they need it but because it determines their 'worth' as a human being, " says Bonnie. "My ex-husband was like that."

"I don't judge my value as a human being by the amount of money I have or earn," says Bonnie. "I'll never appear on lists of the world's richest nor do I aspire to be on such lists, and as such I'm amenable to a pay cut as long as the cut doesn't deprive me of the ability to pay my bills - and my ex-husband's debts."

"It's this amenability, and these responsibilities, that keep me in a job," says Bonnie. "I guess you can call me a job survivor."

There are many people who work simply to pay the bills - and have a life outside of work - and just as many who work for the love of working, like Bonnie, and really do not care how much they earn just as long as what they get pays the bills.

Faced with the prospect of salary cuts to keep her job, Bonnie accepted the realities of the current economy. She does not love her job so much that she will put in extra hours without pay to help the company boost its profit margin. She would, however, go that extra mile if the company were losing money.

She accepts that if the company goes under, so does she.

It is in Bonnie’s best interests to keep the company afloat during hard times because when the good times return - and they will - the company may reward her loyalty, but there is no guarantee, of course, that this will happen.

"To put in extra hours without pay in expectation of a reward," says Bonnie, "is not a good idea."

Bonnie worries about her girlfriends because they could be out of work for quite a while and the prospect is very real that they will be required to accept a much lower salary than the one they previously took home.

"I am already paying off my ex-husbands bills," sighs Bonnie, "and I don't want to be stuck with the total rent bill, too, if my girlfriends can't pay."

Bonnie also worries about her own job. Even though she accepted a pay cut, her job may not last.

If Bonnie does end up losing her job then she intends to set a minimum figure at which she can survive, and then she’ll go looking for jobs that are personally satisfying to her.

Earning big money often involves stress, deadlines and time constraints, and Bonnie doesn’t want that.

"There are many factors besides money that can make a job enjoyable," says Bonnie, "and if I set my wages low then I have the perfect opportunity to find a type of job that rewards me in other areas."

"After the divorce," confides Bonnie, "I want to enjoy an truly independent life and do something new."

Time is important to her, so she could try a part-time job. She likes learning new skills so she could try a type of job she has never tried before. There are not many staff benefits where she works now, so she could target a place with a social club and great facilities.

Profit sharing? Bonnie accepts that the idea of companies offering stock options as an employment bonus is a good one, but not at the expense of a basic wage.

"Stocks and shares are for gamblers like my ex," sighs Bonnie, "I'm just not interested in taking risks with money."

"It’s interesting," says Bonnie, "that people who work primarily for job satisfaction reap the benefits of that choice whatever state the economy is in. Those who work for financial consideration, and nothing else, are big losers in economic downturns."

Making a valuable contribution to a company, and being rewarded by praise, is far more satisfying to Bonnie than a fistful of dollars.

"Of course," laughs Bonnie, "if you can achieve job satisfaction as well as a six-figure salary then all power to you! For most of us, though, one thing is usually gained at the expense of another and six-figure salaries often lead to health problems, family and relationship problems and spiritual death."

In accepting a pay cut to retain her job, Bonnie can no longer throw away money on little luxuries, but it is a far better proposition than not having a job. And she feels that her girlfriends are going to discover this fact very soon. If they are lucky and get a better paid job, then they may have to put up with a lot of job-related problems that they did not experience at the old place.

"There are some things that money cannot buy," says Bonnie, "and a pleasant job - and a good husband - are two that I've discovered. What with the sexually transmitted debt I got from my ex husband, I consider myself very lucky to have a pleasant job."

"I won't be trying to have it all again," laughs Bonnie. "From now on it's a single independent life for me."