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jourgenson
08-19-2001, 11:29 PM
I was on vacation about a week ago. When I got home I checked my email. I had 2 messages from a supervisor in the department I work for. Now mind you I am not directly under this person, I work for/with a person above her. So she sends a message out to everyone that the receptionist needs people to work the front desk from 12-1 everyday and to please volunteer for a day in order to help out the "team." Then the second message contains the new schedule and has me at the desk one day a week.

So she has done this while I am on vacation, the woman I work for is on vacation and the boss is on vacation. Thus making her the most powerful person there, although still not directly above me.

I will list a few of the reasons that I quite upset.
Firstly, I am not a fan of the phone and don't deal well in a receptionist type situation with tons of things going on at once. I think it is highly unprofesional to "volunteer" someone who is on vacationa and also to do it be email. I think a one on one conversation when you get back would be a better way. I hate to pull rank, but my job is an exempt non-union position and should not be the receptionist. I certainly would be the only exempt person doing it as all the others who were "volunteered" are staff which is non-exempt.

Not to mention the fact that this person is not my boss and does not have the authority to force me to do this. I probably have more reasons, but I'm trying to be brief.

So I did what anyone would do. I went to lunch at 11:30 and got back at 1:00. I figured I should plead ignorance rather than storm into her office all fired up. So I got back and had yet another email in which said she sent out an email explaining the schedule and that I should have received it, but here it is again.

Then she happened upon my office and asked if I got email. I said that I got something, but that it said she was asking STAFF to volunteer and didn't think much of it. I don't think she understood that I meant staff specificly as it applied to our titles. But she said that we all need to help out the "team" (a term that has never previously been spoken at our office, unless discussing the Red Sox). So I said that I did not want to do this and explained that I am not good in receptionist situations, etc. She brought up the clause in the contract which says "and duties as assigned." I hate when they do that. So I said that I would never, ever, apply for or work at a job where being the receptionist was a possibility. She backed down abit and sort of left it at that. What I wanted to say was that I had been there over 2 years which is abour 2 years longer than her and in all that time we were able to function without some schedule for which people were "volunteered."

One of the things she said was that everyone needs to help out. Yet I did not see her name on the schedule.

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Leonard Nimoy: Do you even know who I am?
Mayor Quimby: Aren't you one of the Little Rascals?

BRiT
08-19-2001, 11:49 PM
Sorry to hear about all that grief.

Don't even get me started on this tonight. Perhaps I'll post about this tomorrow, depending on how things go.

--|BRiT|


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"That which does not kill you, makes you wish it did."

"We the willing, lead by the ungrateful, are doing the impossible. We have done so much, with so little for so long, that we are now qualified to do anything with nothing."

SwissSmiss
08-20-2001, 10:29 AM
how annoying. and i totally understand. i do whatever possible to avoid having to answer the phone at work. mainly because the slightest attitude and i will tell them to go f themselves, or similar. i am not a very good person to have on the company phone. perhaps try similar tactics to avoid this potential possibility. http://www.aliensoup.com/ubb/smilies/smile.gif

Prox
08-20-2001, 02:55 PM
Man that is awfull. I hate those kinds of managers. Just stick to your guns, like you said you are not under her control and thus she has no power. Good luck man.

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Mother Should I Trust The Government - Pink Floyd

Everything under the sun is in tune but the sun is eclipsed by the moon - Pink Floyd

Those times I burned my guitar it was like a sacrafice. You sacrafice the things you love. I love my guitar - Jimi Hendrix

meezercat
08-20-2001, 09:35 PM
Just out of curiosity, what is your actual job? I've never heard of anyone other than a secretary/admin having to fill in for the receptionist...

jourgenson
08-20-2001, 11:00 PM
It's sort a weird job. I am essentially the assistant to the assisstant director of the department, but I am also the server admin, IT guy and website coordinator, although the new website is not quite finished. So I do the computer ordering and setup and basic troubleshooting and then contact the IT department for the bigger problems as I am not as highly trained in computers as I would like. Yes, my department likes to save money by having as few people as possible and giving you an array of jobs.



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Leonard Nimoy: Do you even know who I am?
Mayor Quimby: Aren't you one of the Little Rascals?

possum37
08-20-2001, 11:38 PM
Originally posted by jourgenson:
One of the things she said was that everyone needs to help out. Yet I did not see her name on the schedule.

Therein lies one of the problems. She's one of the "I'm better than you all" managers, which IMHO is one of the worst types of people to work for. I pride myself on the fact that I'm a "I'm just like you" manager - I don't make staff do anything I'm not prepared or comfortable doing.

Man...this rant is getting me all upset now. Grrrrrr... Hang in there, buddy - continue to stick up for yourself in that office.

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My knob tastes funny.