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HS.
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Dels. G
So my boss and I are in a single department within a larger department. She was able to bring me on right before she had her third baby. She has three children, works full time, is always running out early because of her family and preaching how busy she is.
I was brought in to teach workshops, training new employees, offering development to grow to current employees, taking that off her plate. When I first started, I taught twice a week in the fall and spring. Now they have me up to three times a week. It comes with lots of planning and paperwork for each workshop, so that takes up a lot of my time.
Its getting to be a lot. We also send an internal newsletter to current staff.
She was doing it, but it has now been passed to me. I enjoy it, and send one out every other week.
That is what I can handle.
In the summer, my schedule is lighter since a lot of staff are on vacation we don’t have workshops.
My boss asked me this past summer if I could manage some of her staff accounts. I said sure, since I had time.
She asked me to continue in the fall.
I said okay to see how it would go. But currently with a full schedule and now her accounts, I’m overwhelmed.
I asked her if I could give them back to her in the spring. I see it as her job and I was just helping her out.
I’m too busy to manage them.
She seemed weary and told me she would take them back, if I sent out more internal newsletters.
I said sure, but I feel a bit mad. I told her I was too busy, and she wants me to do more work to get rid of her work back to her. Its so frustrating.
I don’t find this fair. The accounts are her job. If I can’t or don’t want to do them, then she should take them back without me doing extra work.
All she does is preach to our big boss how busy she is, which makes no sense to me since her workload is cut in half because of me.
I think she preaches this due to her having too many children. She’s always runnibg picking them up, dropping them off, and its really too much. Its not for me to judge, but she really isn’t a good candidate to work full time. She takes the money, but she pushes stuff on me easing her schedule.
Am I wrong to feel a bit mad??
Raven
What does your job description say?
kaye
You were brought in to teach workshops, train new employees, and offer employee development. Your job duties have increased to 3 times a week plus an internal newsletter to staff every other week. In addition you have taken on managing some of her staff accounts.
But you don’t say what other responsibilities she has. If you were brought in to relieve some of her work load then clearly her boss felt she needed the help. So what you are telling me is now 2 people are being paid for the work she used to do by herself. If you enjoy the newsletter then why complain if you have to do it weekly rather than bi-weekly? I think what a lot of people don’t understand when you are a working mother with 3 kids (which I was by the way and still have 2 at home!) you are taking a lot of things home to do at night if you have to leave early because the kids are sick or had a performance to go to etc. I was working at home at night after my children went to sleep just to get everything done.
You will get nowhere in life complaining that your boss isn’t doing her job because she has too many children! And since you were brought in to relieve her of some of her workload complaining she is giving you some of “her job” to do will also get you nowhere. That’s specifically why you are there! If you are overwhelmed with your current workload then I think the best thing you can do is to go ask for a raise because you are now doing more work and taking on more responsibilities. If she balks at the idea then go to HER boss and explain the situation without bashing her or the number of children she has but TACTFULLY explaining all of her work you have taken on.
Dels. G
I only mention the children part, because, as an example, today, she comes in at regular time in the morning, goes to a meeting for an hour. Then proceeds to spend all the rest of morning hours tracking down someone with cleaning supplies because her child spilled something all over her car this morning. I’m compassionate about this. Kids spill. It has to be cleaned. She then cleans it all morning, comes back briefly to work and an hour later takes an hour lunch break. She was barely at her desk. This is where I lose a bit of compassion. If you were doing personal stuff all morning, and are so busy as she claims, then why would you take the hour lunch?
She then proceeded to leave an hour early at the end of the day to take her kids to soccer practice. I worked my tail off all day, stayed late, and had a regular hour break only. I almost feel a bit spiteful, well if she leaves I should leave type thing.
She leaves at least a half hour early every single day and comes in at the regular time in the morning as I do and does a leisurely lunch in between.
The guy who did the job before her did her job and my job completely alone and had no issue with it. When she was hired, she complained it was way too much and she couldn’t do it all, so they hired me.
I was hired to facilitate and teach workshops. That was it. I did pitch in to help with newsletter. And it became mine. I did not mind one extra thing. But accounts are specifically her job. I helped her in the summer, because things were light for me. But I’m so busy during the year now with workshops that I can no longer do her accounts.
I found it very rude to not take them back when I couldn’t do them. I told her I felt I could not give the attention to clients that was proper or deserved, because my workshops are my main priority.
Then she was so desperate not to take themback that she told me I had to choose between keeping the accounts or sending out more newsletters, which is more work. So she cornered me with more work option #1 or more work option #2. After I tell her I’m so busy.
I think she anticipated that I would just keep the accounts. But because I bump out newsletters fast, I chose that option. I think she’s pissed now that she has to do more accounts, when thats her job to do and she was doing that a year ago, when I was here.
I truly don’t know what she does most times. She has 3/4 accounts. And she plans a few events throughout the year.
I’m teaching 3 workshops a week, which comes with tons of paperwork and planning before and after. I do newsletters which are a ton of work and managing 1/4 of her accounts.
The secretary who works for us told me I do way more than her and she finds it not fair since my boss makes way more money. Apparently I am more qualified than her with years more experience in this specific field.
She gave me some insight that before I got there my boss was very underqualified for the job, they offered her it, because they were desperate and she’s been riding the wave ever since. She was from another department doing something totally different, where she worked all random hours and didn’t want to do it anymore with her kids. I get that. But putting someone in a role where they are way under experienced is bad. And now she manages me, who half the time is telling her how things should go. Its funny. She knows I have years of experience in this from another company. More than her. But I’ll hear her calling another department for advice on something I know all about, rather than just ask me.
I mean, we planned this huge internal event. She being the lead. It was going great with lots of account holders there. I knew enough to mingle, manage the event, etc…
In the middle of the event, she pops away, comes back in sweat clothes, says she is going to the gym for her lunch, and leaves. She comes back all sweaty in the middle of it, then changes back to professional. I didn’t even take a lunch, too busy making sure everything went ok. I didn’t even plan the event. I was just helping her. I was appalled.
Dels. G
I will also preface this by saying the secretary doesn’t care for her too much.
My boss tells me that she was told by higher ups that the secretary has to do certain tasks for her and she shouldn’t do them herself. Like book caterers, event type things,etc…my boss claims she was told not to do them as almost a threat, that the secretary has to.
So my boss is constantly giving this secretary this work.
I was never ever told this by higher ups and find it to be a bit far fetched. Who tgreatens a worker to not do certain tasks and make a secretary do them?
I manage everything myself for myself, as I’ve done at many companies.
This secretary is the secretary for over 20 people, so she finds it frustrating when my boss wants her at her beck and call to do things right away. I think my boss again wants to ease her plate so passes it off to secretary as if its an order that she has to.
I don’t know. Maybe I am venting. I just felt very slighted by her not taking the accounts back, when I am doing soooo much work already. It would be different if my schedule was light, but I found out from management that they want even more workshops in the sprintime and going forward in the new year. Thats why I asked my boss to take them back to begin with. I told her this and explained I’ll be more busy woth more soon.
Panda
Find a new job.
It sounds like your boss doesn’t know how to do hers so she is putting it all on you. So why are you not promoted?
Lane
As a business owner I know what’s going on, who’s capable and not capable, so I would assume the higher ups see and hear it, however if the work is getting done they are going to let it go until it doesn’t. From what I’m hearing, although you sound well qualified, it doesn’t appear as if you have the time to accomplish all her job tasks either, would require help, no differently than she does, so they see no need to change it. If her work isn’t getting done, then they will have an issue with her, and you’ll all of a sudden see her working harder when her jobs at risk.
Just stop doing the accounts or taking on any extra work beyond what you are being paid to do. You don’t need to tell her to take them back, you tell her that you will only do it for annual $10K to $15K salary increase as there will need to be a salary incentive for you to take on any extra work from hereon. Prepare a spreadsheet and document the hours on the tasks that you do on a regular basis, then include the extra hours it will take you to do the additional tasks she’s trying to throw on your lap, present it to her, and tell her you will not do the additional work for free. She will have two choices: 1) Go to her bosses and justify why they need to increase your salary to take on more of her tasks; or 2) She’s going to have to do the work she was hired and is being paid to do.
I only give performance pay raises. If an employee is just skating by (doing the bare minimum) and/or making others work harder because they start slacking off, they will not see a raise, period. Bosses do *see it* but hiring is an arduous process and if the work is getting done, then they are less inclined to do anything about it. Stop doing her work, let her fail, and if they see your hard work ethic, they could very well give the job to you?
Sure, you could look for another job but trust me, the grass isn’t always greener and may have a far worse boss after the shine wears off.
Liz Lemon
Lane nailed it. The higher-ups know what’s going on, they just don’t care as long as the work gets done.
You need to assert your boundaries. Stop doing her work. Just stick to what’s in your job description. Give her back her accounts and make it clear you will no longer do them. She’ll either have to do the work, or she’ll have to explain to her bosses why it’s not getting done, and they will have to change your job description and give you more money in order to give them to you.
Document everything. Keep track of everything you do beyond what’s in your job description. That way if you need to justify anything later on, you’ll have a written record of everything.
There are plenty of people who get away with doing less work because their colleagues pick up the slack, unfortunately. It happens everywhere. It’s on you to assert yourself and refuse to let it happen because no one higher up is going to jump in and tell your boss it isn’t fair. As long as the work is getting done, the big bosses don’t care who is doing it. So stop doing it. Force her to be accountable for what she’s not doing.
J
I think that the job and personal life should be separated.
Sorry but no one cares how hectic her life is outside of the workplace, we all have multiple responsibilities, and still have to do our job, if she can’t do it she probably needs to reconsider her career choices, and pick something more in tune with her capabilities.redcurleysue
You are used by your boss – we all are. And it is our job to make our boss look good.
That being said you are a human with only so much time. Take the bitterness out of the situation and look at this logically. You are there to make your boss happy and do the best you can. If you cannot function because you have too large a workload then perhaps your boss needs another part time worker to help both of you out. Suggest this to her. A temp might cure everything.
HS
In all honestly you sound a tad lazy with very little ambition to me
i seriously doubt you do 5 x 9 hour workshops a week. so why not take care of a couple of accounts and newsletters in those hours?
i myself am a boss. i also used to do everything myself. then me and the md decided to appoint to supervisors to relieve some of the pressure of me, so i could take on addtional responsibillities
so i handed approximately half of what i do over to the 2 of them, and took on twice as much to alleviate pressure off the md
one of my supervisors is a star. the other can’t cope with a quarter of what i used to do, and is always whinging about it. it’s too much work. why do i have to do everything, why can’t you do it anymore, blah blah blah. to her it also appears i’m always off to do something, not bound to work office hours, leave earley every day
what she doesn’t know is that i spend 14 hours a week on the road for work. that i work every night. she will have a complete mental breakdown if she had to deal with what i deal with.
if you want to get ahead in life, take on those additonal tasks and do it well. don’t become a liabillity, like my one supervisor is. because frankly, i have to double check everything she does because she does it poorly and incorrect most of the time, and still refuses to learn
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