Hello!
So I have the job from hell right now and i've only been there 3 weeks! I've been semi unemployed for 2 years. I have a second job that I always keep and during the last 2 years have just picked up my work there, since my full time employer went out of business. I took that time to spend more time with my children and to look for a job I really want.
When I really started looking hard for employment it took about 3 months to get my current job. Problem: I HATE IT! I can't express that enough. I think this is the worse job I've ever had. There is no way I can stay indefinetly and I want to give my 2 weeks notice now.
What we want to do and should do are not always the same. I know the decision is mine to make, but I'm just looking for a different perspective. Would you try to stick it out until you found another job or give notice now?
Some of my reasons:
1. Commute- I found the job at a local job fair and was hired on the spot. I'd never been to the location and it's just too far away. It is a hour to hour and a half commute each way. This is longer than I've ever commuted before. Public transportation would take 3 hrs. It's costing me 100 dollars a week in gas.
2. Family- Because of the hours I don't get to spend time with my family. Like I said I have to leave a 1 1/2 before my report time and the earliest I get home is Midnight, most times 1230-100. Its a physical job so I am very tired when I do get home. I get up to get my son off to school and that hour is the only time I see him for 5 days out of the week. I get him up, showered, dressed, feed him and its off to school. My daughter, who does this all on her own, I don't see at all. I try to get up before she leaves, but unless she is running late, I miss her. She actually stayed up late the other night until I got home b/c she hadn't seen me in a few days and missed me.
School just ended, but b/c I work they have to go to camp, which has the same hours as school. It is a must b/c otherwise I have no one to care for them.
It is a 24/7 365 establishment and I am required to work EVERY holiday. I will be working on the 4th, Thanksgiving day and Christmas day. I will also work the others, but I don't do anything on those days anyway. Leave is not approved for holidays.
I was off 2 days a week and they just took it down to 1, so all family time, cleaning, hair ( I do my daughters hair), grocery shopping and together time has to fit in one day. It was a struggle to fit into 2.
I haven't spent ANY time with my SO since I started, so that's a problem as well.
3. Work- the job itself sucks. It is a lot more physical than I thought it would be. I have to take pain meds during my shift to be able to make it through. If I don't I am literally in tears at the end and can barely move. My supervisors are very mean. I've never worked with people like this. I can ignore them, but it doesn't help me stay :) It is a male dominated place and there is a great deal of sexual harassment. I handle myself well in telling them off, but again it doesn't help me want to stay. It is not from my bosses, just co-workers.
4. Money- I calculated how much, bare minimum, I needed to make to cover bills etc and this job doesn't meet it. At the job fair I was told one amount and the actual amount turned out to be different. In defense of the guy who hired me, he didn't have the pay scale on hand and said he believe thats what is was, but not to quote him on it. They weren't actually interviewing/hiring at the fair just collecting resumes and talking about the company. I have no idea why I was the exception. It is a union job and with all the dues, insurance and other deductions, not inlcuding taxes, I take home 300 dollars less than I thought I would. That is on top of the pay being less than I need to begin with. Company restricts promotions and raises to a specific time frame, so no matter how hard I work, i cannot be promoted or given an increase for a specified amount of time.
Okay I could go on, but I won't. So again, would you try to stick it out until you found another job or let it go now? I'm trying to be rational about this. I have enough saved to last me about 5 months. Any emergencies could change that.
Thank you ladies. I gave notice yesterday. I really couldn't take it.
@ Amy J. the 5 months savings, it isn't 5 months full salary [ I wish] its enough money to cover our basic expenses for that long. I never spent my tax refund and haven't spent my child support for a while.
I have to let my boss at the second job know I'm available again, heck with this other one I didn't have any time free to work there!
@ Tara R. I think by all definitions it is sexual harassment, if not it should be. A couple examples: I was bending over to open a valve and a co-worker goes " Mmm I like that, that's my favorite way" Another time, I was squatting instead to do the same thing and a different guy made a similar comment. It's also a lot of reference to their size and what they can do with it.
Anyway, thanks again.
I would have quit the moment I found out how long the commute was.
If the pay was not as it was advertized, that would be another reason.
It's important to get things in writing before accepting an offer.
You'll be all the more careful next time around.
Wondering why you've stayed this long
Now if all those negatives PLUS maki g a boatload of money--maybe you tough it out.
If you can swing it financially with just the 2nd job, I'd have my notice in yesterday!
I wouldn't stick it out. It sounds as if you have plenty of valid reasons to leave the job. I would give notice immediately and simply tell them that the position isn't working out for you or your family. You don't owe them any more explanation than that.
I would also advise that since you have to spend so much on gas, you're basically working just to pay to fill the gas tank. It's not worth going through the two week period after giving notice. Giving two weeks' notice is a courtesy but it's not required. Especially in this particular situation.
When you give notice, simply tell them at the beginning of your next shift that it will be your final shift because the position isn't working out for you or your family. If you feel that you need to go into more detail, maybe tell them that it's several aspects about the job itself and the commute and it's affecting your family and that can only be resolved by quitting.
EDIT: Your goal here is not to make them happy. Your goal is to keep your family happy and for this job to benefit your family. It's not. It's harming you and your family. The only benefits are going to this company. Who cares what the boss thinks when you give your notice? You won't be using them as a reference and they won't be going on your resume.
R.:
For me this is a no-brainer. Quit. You have a 2nd job that has been helping you out.
You need to find the "right" job for you. Get your resume updated, yes, you need to include this job...however, when someone asks about it? You can tell them after experiencing the actual job, commute and costs of commute, it was not the right job for you.
Go to your local unemployment office and look at the jobs they have listed there. Talk to one of the career counselors and see what they recommend...then go to your local university and talk to the counselors there as well!!
Good luck!
Quit. You're taking home $300 less than anticipated, you're spending $100 weekly on gas, and you're miserable. There is not one positive thing in your post about this job, so why would you even consider staying? Quit. Today. Good luck, something better will come along.
let it go now!!!!!!!!!I am feeling sad for you by just reading all of that....
Resign immediately. This job is costing you your health, family life, etc. and you're not even being compensated to your original expectation.
You worked your shift, you got paid and then you are even. 2 weeks notice is a courtesy.
Normally I would say tough call but your situation is extreme and seems to be taxing you physically, emotionally and financially. You also received empty promises which do not measure up to your financial expectations. The commute alone is costly, particularly on lost family time.
Add to that harassment. Yeesh!
So yes, by all means, show yourself the door. You've "earned" it.
I would also consider "on-the-spot" hiring a red flag in future job fairs.
I do know how you feel though in terms of being semi-unemployed long-term.
Good luck and get out :-)
If you can ramp up on your 2nd job, I would definitely quit this one. It doesn't sound like there is a positive to this job.
i'm pretty cautious so my first thought was never never leave until you have something else lined up, but i have no idea at all how you would ever find something else while you were working this job.
I might stick it out until the month is up. if they are that strick about promotions do they also have some sort of a trial period set? I also would not burn bridges at all, even saying the commute is too long can make you look bad if you don't phrase it correctly. Perhaps saying you are looking for something with more flexible hours or something more suited to your experience or schooling. I hope that make sense, your reasons are valid to me but to a male boss, saying i miss my kids might not be taken the right way if someone else calls them for a referrence.
b ut the short answer is yea i probably wouldn't stay.
I would have told you to go to your supervisor about the sexual harassment and keep notes. When it didn't stop, I would have used THAT as my excuse for leaving. That way you could probably get unemployment AND you could sue them!
Jessica gave a good answer. The job is costing you money, time, sanity, and physical health. You don't even have to put it on your resume because the time is part of your looking for a job - it just didn't work out.
If you can take advantage of any of the seminars, info, etc. at your state job office (in TX it's called Texas Workforce Solutions), do that.
Also, google the personnel agencies in your area if you have office skills or other skills. Many services place in offices, in warehouses, etc. They may have short term jobs, or jobs that are temp-to-hire (I just got hired on one of those and now work full time for the company they placed me with). It's a good way for people to "test drive" each other work-wise.
There are resume worksheets on line so you can tweak. Action oriented - what you actually achieved for the companies or volunteer stuff - is good. You want your resume to be easy to read and stand out - ask yourself "what did I do to improve things for the company".
Tell your friends, family, facebook, etc., that you are looking, and if you know what you are looking for, ask directly for help making connections related to that.
If they hired you when they didn't hire others, then you have SOMETHING that is marketable - work ethic, personality, smarts, whatever - you know you brought something to the table. It just wasn't the right table.
Good luck!
Give your notice. You were doing okay evidently before taking this job so quit. It's costing you too much.
Honestly?
I probably would have quit the first week and continued my quest to find something better for my family.
This job is not worth what you are sacrificing.
Wow! I probably would have quit already. Nothing at this job sounds worth it; money, stress, etc.!!! There are several sites on the internet that are legitimate for finding jobs; that's how I found a job in retail. I had no experience but the guy took a chance on me and I really enjoyed it. There's got to be something out there for you that would be a lot closer and with better hours.
Good luck!!
There is no way I would stay there. 6 days a week? You never see your kids? You have to take pain medication just to make it through? No. This is not a good fit.
In a nutshell, Yes, give your notice. You have listed very concrete reasons that this job is not working out for you & your family. You were able to "make do" up until 3 weeks ago without this job, so I will assume that you can get by until you find something else.
When you begin your new job search, you will be asked by employers why you left after only one month. Be concise with your answer. The 4 you listed above are great, but don't go into too much detail.
I was hired at a local job fair and the true scope of the job was not made clear at that time.
1. The actual commute once rush hour & traffic was factored in resulted in a 3hour commute each day.
2. My schedule was changed shortly after my hire, and wasn't allowing me to meet my family's needs.
Then point out that because of this, you are making sure to carefully screen companies before accepting any offers to make sure that it is a good fit.
Whether or not you give your notice immediately, or stick it out until you find something else is up to you... sounds like your schedule will make interviewing difficult at best.
Concerning to me is the sexual harrassment. No one wants to become the "problem employee" but regardless of whether your boss is a male or female, they need to know about the harrassment, & put a stop to it. And you are 100% in your rights to expect that, but you must bring it up to them if you have not.
Everyone's opinion of sexual harrassment is different, some people are more 'sensitive' to it than others. If you are not sure of whether you might be overreacting, run it past a few confidences - honestly - & see what they say. If the company has an HR department, you can also bring it up there instead of to your supervisor, if you feel your boss is part of the problem (not necessarily being harrassing, but by being aware of it & not halting the behaviors)
Best of luck, what a tough situation. T.
The ONLY reason to keep a job like this is if you cannot survive until you find another job. If that is the case, then keep the job until you find another job, but if you can survive-give notice now. 5 months savings? Sounds like you're losing money working there so you better quit before that cushion is gone!
Of course you have to do what is right for you but I would keep this job and look HARD for another job. When you go on interviews, be honest about why your current situation is not working out. That way, your prospective employer can appreciate why you would be leaving a position so quickly and also be able to warn you off of a similar situation. Again, be honest but don't complain - big turn off to a future boss! I would try to stick it out as long as you can so that you can have a financial buffer and also b/c it is easier to find a new job when you have a job - interviewers believe you when you say you want to work/will work hard. I've had a job that I just HATED and it is tough to show up day after day. I sucked it up for just under 2 years and then found my current job which I LOVE - that was almost 15 years ago! Hang in there, something will come your way! Oh, and when you resign, be sure to do it on good terms and explain that you were given another pay amount and also that you didn't do enough due diligence (understand how long the commute was, etc.). Hopefully you can leave without any hard feelings b/c you never know when you might need a reference or someone at that company is somehow related to a perfect job in the future. Don't burn any bridges!
Are there any postitives about the job? Perhaps making a list of all the pros and cons will help you make a more objective decisions. Based on what you said I think you've already answered the your question. Sounds like you are making huge sacrifices for not much, if any, gain. Good luck!
Hi, R.:
'Fess up to your employer what you shared with us.
Good luck.
D.
