# Objections to raise-request.md
Decider: Pat

## 1. Budget is tight and the ask is a full 13.8 percent
- Fact: "At the July all-hands the owner said budgets are "tight until the holiday season."" (manager-notes.txt)
- Decider's question: The owner said budgets are tight until the holiday season, and the November meeting falls inside that period. Why should I take a $6,700 increase, the whole gap to the median in one step, into that meeting?
- What would settle it: A smaller or phased option, a start date after the holiday season, or evidence that the on-time gains save or earn money that covers the $6,700.

## 2. The case rests on a market survey
- Fact: "Pat once said in a meeting that market surveys "don't know our margins."" (manager-notes.txt)
- Decider's question: The only support for $55,200 is a regional survey of 41 employers. I have said surveys do not know our margins. What does this say about what we can pay?
- What would settle it: Evidence tied to this company, such as the cost of replacing Sam or the value of the on-time improvement, so the number does not depend on the survey alone.

## 3. The 9 hours a week figure is hearsay
- Fact: "Drivers say it saves about 9 hours a week across the team." (wins.txt)
- Decider's question: Who measured the 9 hours? "Drivers say" and "about" is an estimate, not a measurement. What is it worth in dollars?
- What would settle it: Driver time or mileage records from before and after March 3, or the request stating plainly that this is an estimate.

## 4. The on-time gain is credited to Sam without proof of cause
- Fact: "Started tracking late deliveries by route. Late rate for December was 14 percent." (wins.txt)
- Decider's question: Tracking late deliveries does not make deliveries on time. The late rate fell from 14 to 5 percent, but how much of that is the route sheet and how much is other changes, season, or the drivers? December is also a single-month baseline.
- What would settle it: Route-level before and after figures showing the east loop improved most, or a longer baseline than one month.

## 5. The delegation feedback is answered with a different skill
- Fact: "Great on-time work. Needs to delegate more and stop doing everything yourself." (manager-notes.txt)
- Decider's question: The review said to delegate. Training three drivers is not delegating. In the request, Sam also handled the overtime approvals, the complaints, and the truck fix personally. Where is the evidence that Sam delegates more now?
- What would settle it: A specific example of work Sam handed off and that stayed on track, or an admission that this feedback is still open.

## 6. Extra duties are claimed without a pay basis at this company
- Fact: "Coordinators who also train drivers or cover supervisor duties: median $58,400." (pay-survey.txt)
- Decider's question: The survey shows covering or training is a separately priced role. Was the six-week cover and the July training assigned as part of the job or done on Sam's own initiative, and were they temporary? Why does the permanent base rise for one-off work?
- What would settle it: Confirmation that these duties will continue as part of the role, so the higher base reflects ongoing work and not past events.

## Most likely to sink the request
1. Budget is tight and the ask is a full 13.8 percent: the owner's "tight until the holiday season" statement lands exactly on the November meeting, and the request offers no cheaper option.