The comments are really interesting on this story. They break out into a few types:
- this is a good/bad way to get your $10K
- this is a good/bad way to have a job in the future
- this guy who's out $10K is a douche/everyday hero
- this is really/really not a bonus, and that is relevant because [ ]
- bonuses are forward/backward looking and therefore [ ]
I also see some, but not enough, in my opinion, of the following:
keep your promises, whether they are tacit or formal, expensive or cheap, connected or not connected to some other issue, defensible or not defensible in court. Just keep your promises. Regardless of spin, regardless of how you feel emotionally, regardless of how busy or distracted you are. If you forget, or lag, and then are reminded, apologize and pay up. You can still say the guy is a douche if you want to, or scold him for his bad taste, or bad skills, or whatever. That's really a separate deal.
I feel like there should be a meta-HN app that allows people to categorize and collect HN discussions like this (I often find myself doing that myself). But your analysis is spot on, and it bothers me that so much of the conversation seems to miss the central point: the company promised something, and then broke the promise. This is wrong, and should not be encouraged in our society.
(Reminds me of the gay marriage debate, which too-often ignores the simple fact that these "defense of marriage laws" are exactly like Jim Crow. It doesn't matter if you like gays or not, or why you do/don't like them. You can't discriminate, period.)
- this is a good/bad way to get your $10K
- this is a good/bad way to have a job in the future
- this guy who's out $10K is a douche/everyday hero
- this is really/really not a bonus, and that is relevant because [ ]
- bonuses are forward/backward looking and therefore [ ]
I also see some, but not enough, in my opinion, of the following:
keep your promises, whether they are tacit or formal, expensive or cheap, connected or not connected to some other issue, defensible or not defensible in court. Just keep your promises. Regardless of spin, regardless of how you feel emotionally, regardless of how busy or distracted you are. If you forget, or lag, and then are reminded, apologize and pay up. You can still say the guy is a douche if you want to, or scold him for his bad taste, or bad skills, or whatever. That's really a separate deal.