New job not as advertised. Advice please!

[gingrog]

I started a new job last week (new role, admin based), finally escaping the most stressful and toxic job I have ever had.

However, since I have started, I have done at a push 1 hour of actual work, and even that was a pointless task to keep me busy for a bit. I have had a few walk arounds, sat with some project managers. But that is it. I have repeatedly asked my manager for work, if I can help anyone with ANYTHING. But there is nothing.

My manager tells me it will pick up, but I have been in this position before with a new role and it just didn't get any better. It's a huge corporate company, so there is no chance of wasting a few hours browsing the net. I have to mindlessly click through bits of software for 8 hours a day. Co-workers are cold with me, and all too busy to show me anything or let me help.

It is absolutely soul destroying. The kicker to add to this is I am 9 weeks pregnant. I accepted I would lose my SMP when leaving my old job and for the sake of my mental health it was a no brainer. I am seriously considering just not coming back Monday and finding something, even temping until baby arrives.

Anyone else have experience in a job doing NOTHING all day? I feel generally unwell (morning sickness etc), and I need something to take my mind off it. Sorry for the long post, I feel so lost at the minute. Help

 

[nogoodusernamesleft]

I can empathise - started a new job myself a few weeks ago and it’s been a slow start.

Some things that have kept me going:

- doing any mandatory training - health and safety, fire safety etc
- signing up for any free in-house training in eg software skills, project management
- reading any core documents - usually on the website or intranet
- asking anyone I meet for invites to meetings so I can attend as a one-off for background info
- signing up for courses in Future Learn or Coursera, if anything is similar to the area I work in or company activity

None of it is anything my manager could complain about me doing but keeps the day ticking over.

I am staying out for the moment but I’m pretty risk averse. As I see it, if they are happy to pay me but not give me any work, I might get some courses under my belt for my CV

 

[candyland_]

Is there anyone you can have a meeting with to discuss your concerns?

 

[LennyBriscoe]

It sounds great, getting paid to do nothing but it’s demoralising. I wouldn’t leave it too long before asking again, and ask them for the reason why it’s quiet at this time. Because you’re in early pregnancy, try not to fret too much about it and fingers crossed it’ll pick up soon

 

[silkytoes]

I can empathise - started a new job myself a few weeks ago and it’s been a slow start.

Some things that have kept me going:

- doing any mandatory training - health and safety, fire safety etc
- signing up for any free in-house training in eg software skills, project management
- reading any core documents - usually on the website or intranet
- asking anyone I meet for invites to meetings so I can attend as a one-off for background info
- signing up for courses in Future Learn or Coursera, if anything is similar to the area I work in or company activity

None of it is anything my manager could complain about me doing but keeps the day ticking over.

I am staying out for the moment but I’m pretty risk averse. As I see it, if they are happy to pay me but not give me any work, I might get some courses under my belt for my CV

I love this advice. I was in a similar situation a few years ago, in the job before my current one. I did have work to do but it was often very slow to come in and would have way too much free time.

I spent my time doing a lot of the above as well. I was doing a qualification relevant to my role in the evenings so would do the coursework during the day at work.

I also did any online training they offered, mandatory and otherwise. I signed up for lots of webinars relating to my industry and made loads of notes. I also did a few other courses I could find that were relevant.

The whole situation made me anxious because I felt like I was stealing their money but I managed to stick it out a year until my qualification ended and it looked pretty decent on my CV even if I didn't do much!

 

[They See Me Trolling...]

I had this issue in the summer - taken on to do a job which a school leaver could have done, despite me previously being an office manager. I was so offended they had offered me it and lied to get me to take it - clearly I would have never taken such a basic job. I didn’t even last two weeks. It was horrific.

 

[Tublet83]

I would speak to the busy work colleagues and ask at there any tasks they can delegate to you, if they are so busy they should be grateful for the help

 

[gingrog]

I would speak to the busy work colleagues and ask at there any tasks they can delegate to you, if they are so busy they should be grateful for the help

I have offered a few times, to them and my manager but nothing came of it. Their roles are very technical and specific which makes things a bit more difficult unfortunately.

I had this issue in the summer - taken on to do a job which a school leaver could have done, despite me previously being an office manager. I was so offended they had offered me it and lied to get me to take it - clearly I would have never taken such a basic job. I didn’t even last two weeks. It was horrific.

I'm the same - absolutely gutted more than anything. I don't want to sit and do jack tit looking busy all day, I want to work!

 

[Tublet83]

Gutted for you @gingrog if there is no work in the team you are in could you ask to help out another team? Like you I hate not being busy it’s soul destroying m!

 

[judgejohndeed]

I always find this situation so odd because it makes no sense for any company to want to be paying someone a salary for no work! I would keep on at your manager and maybe copy in someone higher up if you really have nothing to do, there's got to be someone in the management chain who will think this is very weird

 

[gingrog]

I always find this situation so odd because it makes no sense for any company to want to be paying someone a salary for no work! I would keep on at your manager and maybe copy in someone higher up if you really have nothing to do, there's got to be someone in the management chain who will think this is very weird

I've never understood either. I used to work for a small company who paid me really well, but the job role itself was an hour a day at a push. I wound up creating a BI job for myself there to keep my sanity and it all worked out okay. Up until that point I was just waiting for someone to catch on the work load wasn't there and get rid!!

Anywho, after having a very honest conversation this morning with my manager he's apologised and we've sat and hatched some things out so I've actually got something to do at last. I'll just keep making a pest of myself (something I hate doing but hey, it's work!)

 

[Peaches_xox]

Any job I’ve ever had has always started off slow and I think bleeping hell are you paying me to do nothing and then it picks up and I’m busy. I think a lot of companies especially big cooperate ones have a really poor new starter process where new person is just left sitting there like soooo. I hope it gets better for you. I’m glad you spoke up. I’ve never been brave enough and have spent a lot of time bored at new jobs

 

[Bleurghgram]

I remember feeling like this when I first started my job, now I’m fully in it and I’ve moved up a few rungs I sort of understand that people were too busy to teach me to do something it’d be easier to do themselves. I definitely had to carve out things for myself but it gave me a good reputation as someone who’s a self starter.

 

[Flowergirl123]

This happened when I started at my current company 8 years ago as an admin. Literally the same - no work, cold colleagues, couldn’t surf or do anything else. It was like that for about 3 months and I just filled my time by organising the office, trying to keep a plant alive and organising the folders on the drives. I started with 2 other girls on the same day and they were rushed off their feet in their teams and I could not figure out what I had done wrong!

As it turned out, it was mainly that they hadn’t had an admin for over a year so the guys got used to doing their own admin work. It wasn’t that they didn’t trust me, they just weren’t bothered taking the time showing me their invoice process or asking me to format their docs for publication; they just thought it was faster to do it themselves.

Eventually they started giving me bits to do (after me volunteering daily to help), they saw I could do things and gave me more. And then I was swamped a few months later! It takes time to settle in and gel, but for me it was worth it in the end!

 

[Rosie878]

Congratulations on your pregnancy! Hope all is going well.
Will you be entitled to maternity pay/is it a decent maternity policy? If so, I’d be tempted to stick it out but I know that’s easy to say when I don’t know how unpleasant it is.

Your employment rights are highly protected during pregnancy. Have you raised how unhappy you are? A week is a short amount of time and it sometimes takes a while to get to grips with the office politics etc…I really hope things have improved for you.

 

[under the ivy]

I had a job in the NHS exactly the same (admin). Job was advertised as clerical/admin work for busy trauma department. I sat at my desk doing duck all. I kept myself busy by doing the obligatory training courses and checking my emails (and re-making my email signature about 150 times). My desk was in a room, away from the other admin team/kitchen which to get into their office I had to knock on the door as my swipe card wouldn’t allow me in there… even though I was part of the team. Tried making conversation with them, just didn’t want to know me. One day I just knocked on their door and said I’m sat here doing nothing and you’re all working, is there something I can be doing?! Ended up taking patient files back to the records department which I made sure took me longer than it should’ve done, just for something to do!

It was honestly soul destroying. My manager was as useful as a chocolate teapot and said the same thing as yours ‘it will pick up’. Mate we’re in a busy city hospital in the trauma department, surely there’s always admin?! I ended up going on sick because it triggered my anxiety, and it ultimately contributed to a mental breakdown. I never went back.

Have you got someone in HR you can talk to about it?

 

[at-the-disco]

I started a new job last week (new role, admin based), finally escaping the most stressful and toxic job I have ever had.

However, since I have started, I have done at a push 1 hour of actual work, and even that was a pointless task to keep me busy for a bit. I have had a few walk arounds, sat with some project managers. But that is it. I have repeatedly asked my manager for work, if I can help anyone with ANYTHING. But there is nothing.

My manager tells me it will pick up, but I have been in this position before with a new role and it just didn't get any better. It's a huge corporate company, so there is no chance of wasting a few hours browsing the net. I have to mindlessly click through bits of software for 8 hours a day. Co-workers are cold with me, and all too busy to show me anything or let me help.

It is absolutely soul destroying. The kicker to add to this is I am 9 weeks pregnant. I accepted I would lose my SMP when leaving my old job and for the sake of my mental health it was a no brainer. I am seriously considering just not coming back Monday and finding something, even temping until baby arrives.

Anyone else have experience in a job doing NOTHING all day? I feel generally unwell (morning sickness etc), and I need something to take my mind off it. Sorry for the long post, I feel so lost at the minute. Help

i could have wrote this, i started my role nearly 2 months ago and i legit do nothing all day. like sit in my room and flick my mouse between MS teams and the intranet. they advertised the role so obviously needed someone.

i'm even more annoyed that ive invested and moved to a new city completely on my own for this role, and now my housing contract has tied me here for another 6 months. hard not to feel very depressed and regretful about it

 

[HarJR289]

Been there and it’s awful - I spent a whole year in a new role during lockdown when everyone else was WFH and I had to go in due to being a new. It was just a change of department and I ended up being in the same office as my previous role and all I could hear was my old colleagues having laughs etc. I used to walk down to speak to them and once I literally cried tears of boredom to them. Sat there day in day out with the smallest dregs of work. I’ve finally got more work and similar workloads to my colleagues but they all say how busy they are and can’t fit it all in whereas I still feel like there’s days I’m just sat there trying to look busy. I’d try and stick it out. The SMP puts you in more of a vulnerable position and I would say it’s quite important you get that.

 

[gingrog]

Been there and it’s awful - I spent a whole year in a new role during lockdown when everyone else was WFH and I had to go in due to being a new. It was just a change of department and I ended up being in the same office as my previous role and all I could hear was my old colleagues having laughs etc. I used to walk down to speak to them and once I literally cried tears of boredom to them. Sat there day in day out with the smallest dregs of work. I’ve finally got more work and similar workloads to my colleagues but they all say how busy they are and can’t fit it all in whereas I still feel like there’s days I’m just sat there trying to look busy. I’d try and stick it out. The SMP puts you in more of a vulnerable position and I would say it’s quite important you get that.

I'm only entitled to MA anyway. Sounds ridiculous but this was meant to be my dream job, so I was happy to forfeit money and benefits. My old manager made my life hell and was making me ill. But here we are.

I'm into my third week and I've said my piece, had the odd few bits and pieces to do but today I've sat and done nothing again. Almost like they've been given the headcount for the role but haven't actually given any thought what it is that person will be doing. The job spec is fairly generic.

I'll have to keep at it but duck...if I don't spend my day wishing it was over as soon as I'm home I'm dreading going back.

i could have wrote this, i started my role nearly 2 months ago and i legit do nothing all day. like sit in my room and flick my mouse between MS teams and the intranet. they advertised the role so obviously needed someone.

i'm even more annoyed that ive invested and moved to a new city completely on my own for this role, and now my housing contract has tied me here for another 6 months. hard not to feel very depressed and regretful about it

Sucks the life out of you doesn't it. I'm almost embarrassed as I was so looking forward it!

 

[OnlyHereForTheLolz]

Is there a HR you could talk to?

I am a little blunt so if talking to the manager didn’t help I would just sit there reading a book and going on the internet.
I obvs don’t know what your role is but if they complained I would point out that I want to work and help out but that nobody is giving me tasks.