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| Sigh... work related vent... how to handle? | |
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| Tweet Topic Started: Sep 14 2011, 09:51 AM (571 Views) | |
| Barn Girl | Sep 14 2011, 09:51 AM Post #1 |
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It'll be an adventure! We're going on an adventure!
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Ok, so bear with me, this could be long! I work for a small company (family owned, not my family). I've been here for 11 years, and a few years ago when we had layoffs due to the economy, I had to take on a second position. They couldn't offer me a raise so I asked for a promotion. They promoted me, although I make about half of what my male counterpart makes, which pisses me off. Long history of the few women in this company being treated like secretaries, etc. regardless of their responsibilities, etc. (example, I'm supposedly an officer of the co. but never get invited to meetings, outings etc with the male officers.) A few years go by, no raise. I finally last year got a paltry raise. Salary still sucks for the position, frankly. My coworker who is the office manager/receptionist is preggo. I knew this would be an issue for me since I already have to cover for her when she's out (answer phones and do anything of hers that can't wait till she gets back.) Nobody else ever offers to help answer phones, etc. I assumed they would get a temp for her maternity leave. I could not imagine they'd ask me to cover her crap for that long. Well, today I find out, no temp. The boss' plan (boss is son of owner) is for his (worthless) brother to help out and make copies, etc. I already know this won't happen. Brother is a waste of space. Seriously. Doesn't even get his own "job" done, and knows mommy and daddy will still give him a paycheck no matter what. Does not even show up to the office half the time. So I know who's gonna be stuck with everything... moi. I'm sorry, I'm not doing it. I'm not taking on a third position for six weeks. They need to get a temp in here before she leaves so she can train them. Coworker is not due for a few more months so there is still time for this to be discussed. How would you approach it? Obviously kid gloves are involved since it's a family affair, but boss knows brother is worthless. He knows in his heart that this arrangement will.not.work. I think he thinks I'll just have to deal with it-- well, I'm not. Especially when most of the other employees here still have their ONE original job they were hired to do and I already have TWO. I wish I could find another job because I'm done here, have been for a while. Just sick of the BS and ready for a change. Unfortunately my industry took a hard hit when the economy tanked and hasn't recovered so I'm stuck. |
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| jillincolorado | Sep 14 2011, 10:53 AM Post #2 |
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You're BANNED!
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That's a tough one BG, but I too, would want to be clear BEFORE things start to unravel and you have to shoulder the burden. I think I would avoid the brother topic and just focus on your current duties. Perhaps a list of temp agencies handed to the bosses, in the interstes of "helping out"? |
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| Won for Me | Sep 14 2011, 12:14 PM Post #3 |
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Is the meadow on fire?
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How did you find out about the Brother taking on the resposibilities? Is it common knowledge yet? If it is, I would do nothing. And when the time comes, I would not step up and help. The second you "help" someone like that, they expect you to do it all. If someone asks you to take on additional responsibilities, just simply say your work load will not allow it and point out a few key things you have going on. If it was something you heard through the grapvine, let it go for now as well and see if the news becomes common knowledge. The plan may change several times over the next few months. Also, once the office manager has the baby, things will change too. Or that is usually the case with a newborn. Six weeks seems like an awfully short maternity leave. Could you take your skills out of the industry? Is your job cross functional? Maybe the time isn't right now, but life is too short to hate your job. Edited by Won for Me, Sep 14 2011, 01:25 PM.
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| DairyQueen2049 | Sep 14 2011, 12:52 PM Post #4 |
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DRAGON BREATH. DRAGGIN' BUTT
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Life is too short to hate your job. Can you get comperable pay doing something else? I like the idea of presenting boss with the temp info and being very serious and saying you are now overwhelmed as is. Honesty works. Ans sometimes the door shutting (exp on a job you hates) - opens 10 windows..... |
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| Kassandra | Sep 14 2011, 03:12 PM Post #5 |
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Is the meadow on fire?
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I have forgotten what it's like to work at a job I don't hate. I feel for you, I spend 8 hours a day trying to NOT run out of the building screaming and tearing my hair out. |
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| justmagic | Sep 14 2011, 03:29 PM Post #6 |
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Is the meadow on fire?
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This. I agree I wouldn't step up and help him when he fails. You're already doing two jobs, taking on another isn't fair to you or the company as somewhere along the line you'll drop one of the balls you are juggling. |
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| JanM | Sep 14 2011, 05:24 PM Post #7 |
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Off visiting Candy Cave, be right back.
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I hate to be a negative person (ok, I really am) but just because the co-worker plans to come back in six weeks doesn't mean she will. And I have had friends who were put on reduced work schedules towards the end of their pregnancies too. You situation sucks, and I wish there were more options for you. Are you moveable? You might find other options if you can move if you find another job. |
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| Barn Girl | Sep 14 2011, 06:58 PM Post #8 |
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It'll be an adventure! We're going on an adventure!
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Jan-- all good points and I, too, worry that it may not be "just" 6 weeks. Especially as it's her first. That's why I'm freaking out. Moving is not a possibility as we own a farm here and Mr. BG has his own biz. WFM, it was sort of "grapevine"-- apparently she met with our boss yesterday and this is what he told her-- she told me today. And you and JM are thinking what I thought too-- just say NO. I mean, at that point, it's not like they can fire me, since they'll already be in a bind. I sent out a resume' today... I've been job hunting intermittently for the last six months or so but have only applied for a couple of positions. I never heard anything back, except for one company that I interviewed with. They didn't like the results of my personality test, apparently I was not an abstract enough thinker for them. I had serious doubts about working there anyway, so it was all good. Unfortunately my experience is all real estate/construction/mortgage lending, so not the best field to be looking in right now. I'll amp up the search though. I've also considered getting my RE license or possibly become an appraiser so that maybe I could work for myself. I'm going to look into that a bit harder since it seems things are quickly going downhill at the current job. The whole thing is driving me nuts-- co-worker is constantly talking about being preggo, the baby, etc. I know she's excited and I'm happy for her but damn... I am NOT interested in babies and I'm sure she doesn't want to hear about my horses (or anything else) EVERY.SINGLE.DAY. Maybe I should start to talk about my new horse every time she mentions the pregnancy/kid???
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| JanM | Sep 15 2011, 04:16 AM Post #9 |
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Off visiting Candy Cave, be right back.
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Appraiser sounds very good. They use appraisers for everything from new mortgages, to refi's and even for estate settlements. And you do work for yourself. Do the research and see what you need to qualify an an appraiser, and look at jobs in an appraiser's office-position yourself to see what exactly the job is like and get some insider knowledge plus it would get you out of your current position. And I feel your pain about the pregnancy talk, since I don't have kids and hearing about someone's pregnancy isn't the most fascinating thing ever. |
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| Indy | Sep 15 2011, 04:37 AM Post #10 |
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You're BANNED!
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This ^^ I got screwed at work a few summers ago when my boss's other assistant had her baby 6 weeks early and then took 4 months off of work (instead of the expected two). Since the baby was born so early, I had no idea what the hell tasks I was going to need to take over for her when she left - and she was so highly disorganized that I couldn't even figure out the contents of her filing cabinets. And on top of that, our departmental admin had just left for a month long vacation so I suddenly had three jobs to do...one job for my boss is hell, three was just not.okay. I stood in the middle of the other assistant's office and cried. My boss finally gave in and hired a temp about a month into the maternity leave, which was the best decision. I agree that you should stick to your guns and just say NO if you can. You already do two jobs and if the jackass they expect to do her job doesn't step up to the plate, that's not your fault. If he screws them over, then they should hire a temp. Good luck! |
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| Reynard Ridge | Sep 15 2011, 06:28 AM Post #11 |
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Drivin' The Short Bus
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OK, BG, I'm going to lay it on the line here. You are free to ignore this because it is worth exactly what you paid for it. The company owners don't care about you or your feelings of being overwhelmed with extra work; they care about how much money the company is making and how you do and do not contribute to the bottom line. If you want them to pay attention to you, I would strongly suggest positioning it from a perspective that they care about. So, what are you doing NOW that drives sales - having no idea what industry you are in, think about it from the perspective of, do you handle customer complaints, which are critical to maintaining good relationships which drives sales, etc. So, frame your entire job in terms of how the tasks you do impacts the bottom line. Next, how does the work of pregnant co-worker impact bottom line? Is her stuff more or less important to the company making money than your tasks? Now, make a list of all tasks you and co-worker to and PRIORITIZE based on which tasks are most important to driving bottom line. Take list to boss and said, "Dude, look, there are only 8-working hours in a day. Here are the tasks I can do during that time and here are the important ones, the ones you care about. And here's how they drive your sales and impact your pocketbook. If you need items ten through twenty done on this list, I'd like to suggest a temp, because if I have to do them, it is going to impact my ability to make you money." Good luck. It's no fun to put yourself inside the head of a guy you think is a jerk, but to solve a problem like this, I genuinely believe you need to think like the guy you need to outsmart. Because, really, you do need to outsmart him or he is going to make your life miserable. |
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| macmtn | Sep 15 2011, 06:40 AM Post #12 |
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Owned by an Arabian ghost
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THIS!!! Proactive-much better than reactive.. |
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| Kassandra | Sep 15 2011, 07:02 AM Post #13 |
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Is the meadow on fire?
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And this summarizes the problem with the US, and increasingly the world, in a nutshell. This is what it has all come down to and this is why we are screwed collectively and individually. |
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| Won for Me | Sep 15 2011, 07:40 AM Post #14 |
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Is the meadow on fire?
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Hey, BG, how about a Home Inspector? I hear they make pretty good money and it sounds like you are more than qualified! I have ZERO experience, but I think it would be interesting. One guy who does it in my current town was bragging about making $160K per year. I live in a little town where the average house sells for about $152K. |
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| Barn Girl | Sep 15 2011, 12:00 PM Post #15 |
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It'll be an adventure! We're going on an adventure!
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RR, I know, I get it-- you're not pooping on my parade. I've been thru the whole layoff thing before and quickly realized how value in the corporate world works. The problem with your approach is that we both do many things that are vital to the company's profits, since it's a small company and we are at a bare bones level of staff now. So I'm not too sure how that would work, but it might be worth sitting down and trying to make a list.WFM, good idea, but no way-- I can't even climb a stepladder! I'm terrified of heights. Somehow being on a horse doesn't bother me but God forbid I have to climb up to change a lightbulb! Plus spiders freak me out and I could never crawl up underneath a house. (*shudders*).The appraiser thing sounded good but then I realized that you have to do 2000 hrs under an appraiser after you take the course in order to become licensed. Since business is not good right now, I doubt many appraisers want to train their future competition. So I think that's out for now. Today's good news is that I found a listing for a job that sounds perfect for me, I'm totally qualified for it in every way. I applied via email so !
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![]](http://z1.ifrm.com/static/1/pip_r.png)
I'm sorry, I'm not doing it. I'm not taking on a third position for six weeks.
They need to get a temp in here before she leaves so she can train them. Coworker is not due for a few more months so there is still time for this to be discussed. How would you approach it? Obviously kid gloves are involved since it's a family affair, but boss knows brother is worthless. He knows in his heart that this arrangement will.not.work. I think he thinks I'll just have to deal with it-- well, I'm not. Especially when most of the other employees here still have their ONE original job they were hired to do and I already have TWO.





I've been thru the whole layoff thing before and quickly realized how value in the corporate world works.
Plus spiders freak me out and I could never crawl up underneath a house. (*shudders*).

7:47 AM Jul 11