Does anyone hate their job? #2

[Norfolking Good]

We’ve lost a lot of radiographers and nurses to Australia, New Zealand and Canada where they have have good working conditions and pay, plus their health systems are similar to ours but somehow not creaking at the joints.
I’ve worked in the NHS over a decade and it’s absolutely on its arse and really only continuing through staff going the extra mile and good will. Lose that and we are royally screwed.

 

[Reverend]

I’ve worked in the NHS over a decade and it’s absolutely on its arse and really only continuing through staff going the extra mile and good will. Lose that and we are royally screwed.

Most universities are like that, particularly the admin staff working on goodwill. Sadly, that has started to run out, and uni's are ending up with staff who stay 18 months maximum and don't give a toss if the work isn't done. One of the Uni's I recently worked at got a very bad report from the Office for Students which highlighted the workload of staff and the number vacancies.

 

[slugella]

Mostly a silent lurker on this thread but feel so happy for the posts of people who are getting new jobs after hating theirs congrats!

Any advice on going off sick? I don't like my job and want a new one but this isn't the reason for taking time off. But since the end of last year I've felt constantly run down and exhausted. I went straight to bed after finishing work yesterday and hardly even have the energy to move today. I'm going to ring the doctor on Monday and maybe get some blood tests and advice. I feel like a few weeks off would really help but I'm so anxious about talking to work about it and don't know how to handle it.
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Most universities are like that, particularly the admin staff working on goodwill. Sadly, that has started to run out, and uni's are ending up with staff who stay 18 months maximum and don't give a toss if the work isn't done. One of the Uni's I recently worked at got a very bad report from the Office for Students which highlighted the workload of staff and the number vacancies.

I currently work at a university, only been there about 9 months but the vibe is not great at all. Everyone seems so stressed and I hate how hierarchal it feels. My job involves a lot of admin/events and honestly the way more senior people are toward people they don't consider on their level is awful.

 

[Codiaeum]

Mostly a silent lurker on this thread but feel so happy for the posts of people who are getting new jobs after hating theirs congrats!

Any advice on going off sick? I don't like my job and want a new one but this isn't the reason for taking time off. But since the end of last year I've felt constantly run down and exhausted. I went straight to bed after finishing work yesterday and hardly even have the energy to move today. I'm going to ring the doctor on Monday and maybe get some blood tests and advice. I feel like a few weeks off would really help but I'm so anxious about talking to work about it and don't know how to handle it.
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I currently work at a university, only been there about 9 months but the vibe is not great at all. Everyone seems so stressed and I hate how hierarchal it feels. My job involves a lot of admin/events and honestly the way more senior people are toward people they don't consider on their level is awful.

I don't think you need to disclose why you are signed off sick for - and i think going to the doctor to check for underlying medical reasons is the right approach hope you will feel better soon. I used to work in uni and the hierarchy there is definitely off. Some people were lovely, others really were crappy.


I will change departments in March, saw an internal opening and jumped at it. I hope it'll work out, I've felt so frustrated and stuck in my current position and the recent yearly employee chats were honestly a reason to quit right on the spot if I hadn't known I'll move in two weeks anyway. Got my butt powdered about how amazing I am doing only to be told there won't be a promotion for another two years at which point I'd have been 4 years into this exact role and I come with prior experience. So.... good riddance. I'll give myself a yar in the new department to see how it works out. If it's more of the same, I'm out of there.

 

[WeepingCassandra]

We’ve lost a lot of radiographers and nurses to Australia, New Zealand and Canada where they have have good working conditions and pay, plus their health systems are similar to ours but somehow not creaking at the joints.
I’ve worked in the NHS over a decade and it’s absolutely on its arse and really only continuing through staff going the extra mile and good will. Lose that and we are royally screwed.

Agreed. We lose physios to private practice, radiographers, SLT and OTs to Australia/New Zealand and nurses to UAE/beauty business a lot atm.

If I wasn't so attached to my family and keen for my children to have their grandparents/aunts etc. regularly in their lives (we see them at least once or twice a month) then I'd quite happily go work in any of the above countries. Better pay, better work/life balance, better treatment, better services. And I say that as a hardcore NHS supporter and employee.

 

[Sheeeet]

Any advice on going off sick? I don't like my job and want a new one but this isn't the reason for taking time off. But since the end of last year I've felt constantly run down and exhausted. I went straight to bed after finishing work yesterday and hardly even have the energy to move today. I'm going to ring the doctor on Monday and maybe get some blood tests and advice. I feel like a few weeks off would really help but I'm so anxious about talking to work about it and don't know how to handle it.

Don't stress about taking time off sick, you sound like you really need it, tell them the truth that you're not well enough to come in. Ask the GP for a sick note.

If the GP or the tests don't come back with anything definitive, and if you had a viral infection before you started feeling like this, it could possibly be Long Covid. The new variants don't present in quite the same way. I hope you feel better very soon.

 

[Codiaeum]

Does anyone have tips in dealing with people assuming that I don’t know my stuff based on my title? It infuriates me deeply and also makes me sad. I was hired due to a very specific skill set and there is a branch of people that seem to assume I can’t possibly know my stuff because I don’t have a “technical” title, when I’m, in fact, one of the very few people in the company with any background and experience in this area, and especially these people do not have it at all, which is embarrassingly evident from their questions. Nor have they bothered to look up my LinkedIn or they would know that I, in fact, used to be in one of those “technical” roles that seem superior for them.
I can’t very well tell them to stick their title up their arses, but it’s frankly what I would like to do. It’s also only men that I notice this with. If it is in writing I pull the good old “as described here, here, and here”, but I can’t do that in meetings…..

 

[Laughalong]

So I posted on here a few pages ago about hating my job because it’s one I fell into when I was 18 and needed a decent pay, and how I’m gonna stick with it since I’m pregnant now and want the maternity. I now have a new question…

Has anyone taken a pay cut and purposely found a more low skilled job? Basically, going from higher level role to admin. I just feel like it’s what I want. An easy job where I just get in and get on with it, part time so I can actually raise my child and no stress. On somewhere between 20-25k? Like my absolute ideal would be a school admin job so it’s term time + decent hours. It just feels scary because my current job pays more, and is skilled and niche.

 

[GrilledCheese]

Does anyone have tips in dealing with people assuming that I don’t know my stuff based on my title? It infuriates me deeply and also makes me sad. I was hired due to a very specific skill set and there is a branch of people that seem to assume I can’t possibly know my stuff because I don’t have a “technical” title, when I’m, in fact, one of the very few people in the company with any background and experience in this area, and especially these people do not have it at all, which is embarrassingly evident from their questions. Nor have they bothered to look up my LinkedIn or they would know that I, in fact, used to be in one of those “technical” roles that seem superior for them.
I can’t very well tell them to stick their title up their arses, but it’s frankly what I would like to do. It’s also only men that I notice this with. If it is in writing I pull the good old “as described here, here, and here”, but I can’t do that in meetings…..

It's hard to say without knowing the industry but maybe you could refer to some of your previous experience during meetings? Eg if there's a problem you could explain how you solved it in your previous role and make a point of mentioning the technical aspect of it

 

[Moonflower]

So I posted on here a few pages ago about hating my job because it’s one I fell into when I was 18 and needed a decent pay, and how I’m gonna stick with it since I’m pregnant now and want the maternity. I now have a new question…

Has anyone taken a pay cut and purposely found a more low skilled job? Basically, going from higher level role to admin. I just feel like it’s what I want. An easy job where I just get in and get on with it, part time so I can actually raise my child and no stress. On somewhere between 20-25k? Like my absolute ideal would be a school admin job so it’s term time + decent hours. It just feels scary because my current job pays more, and is skilled and niche.

Good luck to you, definitely worth a try but must say that school admin jobs are absolutely not easy! I've never worked harder than I did as a school admin, the workload is insane. That's the trade off for term time and decent hours.

I absolutely loved it but it is a real sink or swim type job.

 

[kendallroysdownfall]

So I posted on here a few pages ago about hating my job because it’s one I fell into when I was 18 and needed a decent pay, and how I’m gonna stick with it since I’m pregnant now and want the maternity. I now have a new question…

Has anyone taken a pay cut and purposely found a more low skilled job? Basically, going from higher level role to admin. I just feel like it’s what I want. An easy job where I just get in and get on with it, part time so I can actually raise my child and no stress. On somewhere between 20-25k? Like my absolute ideal would be a school admin job so it’s term time + decent hours. It just feels scary because my current job pays more, and is skilled and niche.

20+ years ago (bear that in mind with the salary figures) I left a £25k Executive Assistant job for a £17-18k job as a TA in a school and quickly became a HLTA which was something like £23 or so back then. They are actually paid more than school admin. This meant I had the school hols. I even dropped a day. Fab hours. I ended up staying 13 years.

 

[jojida]

I posted about this on support for anyone who needs to vent, but I thought this thread might be a bit more appropriate!

I have worked for the same company for nearly three years now, with two of those years being in a secretarial role and the last six months having moved over to a professional service role which involves studying for exams and gaining a qualification which is really different to what I've done before, but has great progression opportunities once I've spent three years doing those exams.

I am really, really struggling. I'm trying my hardest not to get into the mindset of hating my job, but at the moment it seems to be going that way. I don't like how much the pressure has increased and I don't particularly enjoy what I do. I also have to fund my own qualification which is proving to be really expensive (work would usually pay for this, but it would have meant taking a considerable pay cut of around £8k a year which we can't afford) so either way it's sort of lose-lose.

I would love my old job role back but it isn't possible as we have rehired for it, so I think my only option would really be to go elsewhere. I do have a great partner of the firm who wants to see us all succeed and she had said before that if this didn't work out for me, she'd find somewhere else for me to go in the firm but my old job role is already overstaffed as we have one poor secretary in the pool that is just basically a spare part already (and shes only part time compared to my full). I have an appraisal due around the end of March in which I get to discuss everything with the partner then, but I'm now wondering if I should stick it out and see the outcome of my appraisal, or if I should begin to apply for other roles and update my CV and see if I can have a back-up option available for if things really don't get better. I love my firm but it can be archaic, with little benefits for things like maternity or parental leave, no sick pay, etc and my new role just isn't really what I expected it to be whatsoever, with loads of external pressure as I can't study for my exams during the working day etc and so find myself with just zero free time.

I find some of the people I work with to be quite draining too as I definitely don't gel with one of the people who I share an office with as I find his opinions really misogynistic, racist and generally bigoted.

I would normally sit down and discuss this kind of thing with my partner but he has recently experienced a bereavement which is really affecting him and I had the revelation of just how much I dislike my job at the same time as this bereavement. I don't then want to hassle him with my issues when it's so fresh for him, so wondered if anyone here has been through the same or similar and what worked best for them. I'm also not getting any younger and whilst kids aren't currently on my radar, they probably will be within the next four years or so as I approach my 30s and therefore feel that this is something I need to consider too in regards to things like maternity leave and pay...

 

[ThePowderMonkey]

Mostly a silent lurker on this thread but feel so happy for the posts of people who are getting new jobs after hating theirs congrats!

Any advice on going off sick? I don't like my job and want a new one but this isn't the reason for taking time off. But since the end of last year I've felt constantly run down and exhausted. I went straight to bed after finishing work yesterday and hardly even have the energy to move today. I'm going to ring the doctor on Monday and maybe get some blood tests and advice. I feel like a few weeks off would really help but I'm so anxious about talking to work about it and don't know how to handle it.
---


I currently work at a university, only been there about 9 months but the vibe is not great at all. Everyone seems so stressed and I hate how hierarchal it feels. My job involves a lot of admin/events and honestly the way more senior people are toward people they don't consider on their level is awful.

I went on the sick for 5 weeks then got paid in lieu of notice so had a few months off in total and it was the best thing I ever did. I know now that I was basically having a breakdown and it gave me a chance to re-set and get out of an extremely toxic situation. I wouldn’t hesitate to do to again if I got that ill again

 

[AlwaysSummer]

@jojida, it sounds like you are dealing with a lot right now. Do you think there is a compromise to be made at your appraisal? Maybe explore whether you could be allowed to do some of your degree in office hours? It seems that you took this job opportunity for a reason and even if the new role is not what you expected, the scope for professional development is bigger than your last role whether you choose to stay with your current employer or not.

The lack of maternity pay would be a concern in the long run and worth considering how your longer term work and family priorities could play out if you stayed with this employer. However you might find easier to switch jobs once you’ve completed your new qualification anyway.

 

[Codiaeum]

@jojida I'm really sorry you're struggling. Let me try to ask you this: have you taken the new role with the bigger scope simply for the better career prospects, or because you genuinely enjoy this work? Can you see yourself working in the role after you have taken the exams or would you rather go back to your old role?

It sounds like your employer isn't all bad in saying that they would place you in a different role if wanted, but if already overstaffed for that, that might not work out, plus you mention that you aren't quite on board with their style and lack of maternity pay and other benefits.
Would your new role work better for you in a different setting? And would there be another employer that would cover the costs of your qualifications that would bring you better employment benefits and a place you'd be happier in?

It's a lot to deal with, especially if you're also supporting your partner at the moment.

 

[WeepingCassandra]

Feel sick at the idea of returning to work after my maternity leave finishes. I'm going back to an area I hate, on a site I hate, with people I don't know, where I have to leave at the crack of a sparrows fart in the morning to get parking (or get a parking ticket/my car broken into as the hospital is in such a tit hole area). I have to stay until the end of May. I potentially have a new opportunity in the pipe line but I'm trying not to get my hopes up as it's just too perfect!

 

[Samf2020]

I think Im at the breaking point with this job.
My manager is going out of her way to exclude me from things I should be in on and making me do an assistants job.
She ambushed me today and made me agree to do something that I already told her was not my problem.
I have a meeting booked with our higher boss later this week and unless I get assurances they will do what was promised, Im taking a stress leave and getting a letter from my doctor requesting remote work for several weeks on my return.
CV is all updated and ready to start going out.

 

[Amethyst23]

My workplace is going through a major restructure in order to cut costs. I currently work in a team of three - my manager, me and someone else who has a completely different role to me.
Today we found out that my colleague is being made redundant at the end of March and apparently I'm 'absorbing her role'. We've been severely understaffed for years and are stretched beyond capacity 90% of the time so doing two full time jobs is impossible. Raised this with senior management who suggested I 'get creative with my time' wtf?!

 

[50degreesnorth]

@Laughalong Yes - mistly due to health reasons but also because I am “tired of their tit”. I have an engineering degree and could earn £££. Ditched it for admin and spent my time rolling my eyes at managers who didn’t understand the engineering or the methodology/terminology. Have just accepted a school role doing playground duty. Obviously a huge come down financially and professionally - but if I have to deal with people acting like 5 year olds I may as well get authentic ones.

 

[kendallroysdownfall]

My workplace is going through a major restructure in order to cut costs. I currently work in a team of three - my manager, me and someone else who has a completely different role to me.
Today we found out that my colleague is being made redundant at the end of March and apparently I'm 'absorbing her role'. We've been severely understaffed for years and are stretched beyond capacity 90% of the time so doing two full time jobs is impossible. Raised this with senior management who suggested I 'get creative with my time' wtf?!

Get creative with your time by applying for a new job!