This Business and Moment...

Soldato
Joined
19 Jan 2006
Posts
15,988
Agreed - after 2 years of working from home, school runs, dinner. food shopping are all still expected to be done despite having to work in there as well!!
 
Soldato
Joined
5 Nov 2010
Posts
23,958
Location
Hertfordshire
If the company you work for wants you to all of a sudden do another task, lets just call this "on call/out of hours work", that you currently are not contracted to do and have never done before. What can/would they do when you decline to do the extra work/task even if it involves extra pay or promotion?
 
Associate
Joined
11 May 2004
Posts
1,468
Location
Curitiba
Probably depends on how long the task is, but contractually they can't do anything.

Reasons for declining can include too much workload or not having the right skillset to carry out the task. They may not have to be true, but they are reasonable and valid reasons.
 
Man of Honour
Joined
20 Sep 2006
Posts
34,041
I'm considering going perm with the company I'm contracting for right now. Going to try and extend in December for as long as I can and then see if there's a permanent offer on the table (word of mouth is they're keen).

It's a bit of a take home drop, but manageable and still decent, plus holiday, sick pay, pension etc, not having to run a ltd company. I like the team, the location works for me as at most it's £52 a month to commute as it's 4 miles from my house (I've been cycling and sometimes using the bus), the job is decent etc..
 
Soldato
Joined
6 Mar 2008
Posts
10,078
Location
Stoke area
Well, I've not been very active for the last 6 weeks so it seems there is a lot going on I've got to catch up on.

For me, started my new job as an Application Support Analyst on the 7th August. There's a 6 month probation and training system, after which you go onto a team and take on their shifts. Work weekends etc. Great company but I've had little training so far in the first 6 weeks. There was another new starter 4 weeks before me and he was getting training but there wasn't enough 'new' work for a noob and the trainer was on holiday for a week after I had a week's holiday. Everything I've done I've done by myself, reading old issues and solutions, exploring, asking questions. Listening and watching. Basic SQL is spot on now, learning the scheme pretty well but there's still mountains to learn (people there for 5 years say you can't know it all) and I've more advanced SQL to learn, especially JOINS.

I started shifts Monday just gone, first weekend day is Saturday and had the 4 team leaders fighting over me. that's 4.5 months early so I must be doing ok, and this is a job where I actually thought during the SQL interview test "I should just walk out, I can't understand 90% of this".

It's so refreshing to be recognised for working hard, and I am working with a great bunch of people. I've not had 1 day so far where I've though, I'd rather be at home, even on the 6am starts. Just hoping this translates to a bump in salary come review time :D

It's a standard company so you do pick up on a few gripes, whinging etc but over all it seems very good. Having to constantly ask for permissions though is a nightmare, especially after being admin of everything in the last role and I'm also tempted to buy myself a 24" or 27" curved widescreen to use there. Using these 19" low res screens for SQL isn't the easiest. No working from home all hours of the day, no having to bodge things to get them to work and no having to listen to a call center!

I'm not one for blowing my own trumpet but I am so glad I made the jump from my last job and I hope that others can use this as motivation for themselves. If you aren't happy, go for a job that excites you, even if you don't have all the skills and experience, they might just employ you anyway. :)
 
Soldato
Joined
8 Aug 2013
Posts
2,779
Location
Stoke-On-Trent
Basically told my supervisor to go **** himself after he kept asking me to do other jobs as we dont have the staff and no one is trained up to do half the jobs but unfortunately i can do them all so i kept getting asked to go from one job to another, i didnt mind st first but ive been doing the other jobs for the past 3 weeks and i finally had enough and my supervisor reported me to HR....they took my side on the situation and now im looking at getting a payrise, only problem is its a dead end job i can't move departments as no one is trained to domy job so any move is bloked by my manager. I. Considering going part time learning and trying a complete career change.
 
Soldato
Joined
17 Jun 2007
Posts
9,300
Basically told my supervisor to go **** himself after he kept asking me to do other jobs as we dont have the staff and no one is trained up to do half the jobs but unfortunately i can do them all so i kept getting asked to go from one job to another, i didnt mind st first but ive been doing the other jobs for the past 3 weeks and i finally had enough and my supervisor reported me to HR....they took my side on the situation and now im looking at getting a payrise, only problem is its a dead end job i can't move departments as no one is trained to domy job so any move is bloked by my manager. I. Considering going part time learning and trying a complete career change.

What would you do IF YOU were your manager.

It might be worth explaining to your managers, manager that you could train someone up to be able to do your job, explaining that should you ever leave or get ill they are compromised. 2 Qualified people are better than one.

It's difficult but try to rise above your manager. I'm not saying assume/presume you can do their job but do yours and a bit extra well.

I've always done more than asked and more than expected and I've always done it well. I'm a Yes man, I think in my professional career I've only said No once and I still regret it. (not that it had any negative effect I just feel I failed to find a solution to a problem)

This has always worked for me and enabled me to start my own business and now there are 40 of us.
 
Soldato
Joined
8 Aug 2013
Posts
2,779
Location
Stoke-On-Trent
What would you do IF YOU were your manager.

It might be worth explaining to your managers, manager that you could train someone up to be able to do your job, explaining that should you ever leave or get ill they are compromised. 2 Qualified people are better than one.

It's difficult but try to rise above your manager. I'm not saying assume/presume you can do their job but do yours and a bit extra well.

I've always done more than asked and more than expected and I've always done it well. I'm a Yes man, I think in my professional career I've only said No once and I still regret it. (not that it had any negative effect I just feel I failed to find a solution to a problem)

This has always worked for me and enabled me to start my own business and now there are 40 of us.

Ive bought it up multiple times to my manager and nothing gets done about it I even went to her manager about the situation but again nothing was done about it.

Heres abit more information, originally we were not on shifts and there used to be 3 of us who could do the job then we were put onto shifts had a meeting with my manager and I bought it up as 2 would be on one shift and ill be on the other. I explained that we will need cover if I'm of ill or leave and find another job to which she replied my manager wont pay anyone a payrise for been trained up so no point training anyone we will cross that bridge if the time comes (something along those lines anyway it was a while ago now)

Fast forward til now and there are 4 people on the other shift who can do the job one is on long term sick though and 2 of which are not getting paid to do the job just basic wage but they are happy to do it and they share the work out but still only me on my shift and I've been running around doing all the other jobs, It wouldnt be so bad but it is a physically demanding job so takes its toll on you after abit.
 
Associate
Joined
20 Nov 2010
Posts
1,409
Location
Manchester
My move was from a manufacturing company where alongside being an accountant I had to be IT and HR manager to a place where we have an HR department and about 50 people in IT and 10 in BI, and 5 in FP&A Etc So enjoying being able to concentrate on things I enjoy a bit more.
 
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Soldato
Joined
8 Aug 2013
Posts
2,779
Location
Stoke-On-Trent
Well 3 people have walked out of work today including the opposite shifts supervisor not sure why yet still trying to find that out. Also i am on the sick for 2 weeks now doctor thinks its tendonitis. This may prove that and extra person is needed on my shift to cover me but i wont hold my breath.
 
Soldato
Joined
6 Mar 2008
Posts
10,078
Location
Stoke area
Well 3 people have walked out of work today including the opposite shifts supervisor not sure why yet still trying to find that out. Also i am on the sick for 2 weeks now doctor thinks its tendonitis. This may prove that and extra person is needed on my shift to cover me but i wont hold my breath.

What is is you do?
 
Soldato
Joined
8 Aug 2013
Posts
2,779
Location
Stoke-On-Trent
Another supervisor has been sacked for underperforming although he was hitting his required target everyday normally doing between 8k-10k more a day.

@AHarvey - I was a maintenance engineer working on ginetting machines refurbishing them but also had to run them from time to time, but i have handed in my notice today going to work with my brother at metal workshop part time until i can find something else.

In two minds about learning through the open university and getting into IT but im not really one for sitting behind a desk i prefer hands on work.
 
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