# Overworked and struggling, any ideas?



## truthseeker (12 Nov 2009)

There used to be 4 people on my team, due to redundancy and natural loss we have lost 2 people and 1 gone to part time hours.

I am the only full time team member left and Im doing the work of those who left, plus the part time gap, plus my own work.

I have spoken to my boss about it on numerous occasions and he is very sympathetic but is himself under enormous pressure from management and is not allowed to take on new staff.

I dont know what to do - I simply cannot do the work of 3.5 people anymore. Its crazy to expect me to. Work is sliding and a number of issues remain completely unattended because I havent got time to get to them. The workload has actually increased in the past year due to projects being taken on and agreed (with no consultation with our team re resources).

Any ideas anyone?


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## Mommah (12 Nov 2009)

I would make a list of all the tasks outstanding and prioritise them.
Perhaps give them a time line too..ie how long it will take to achieve...be generous.

Identify how much time you have available...throwing in some overtime to so willing.

Prioritise the list yourself.

Then go to your boss and ask him to review your list and prioritisation and ask him to adjust it as he sees fit.

Then work to that list....you might need to review the prioritisation every week or so as things change...but it may help.


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## truthseeker (12 Nov 2009)

Thanks Mommah.

Ive already done that suggestion a few times, but then management step in demanding some task or other and the boss insists I drop all to get whatever it is they need done. Or we have some disaster that Im the only one who knows how to fix it and its holding up production so I have to drop all to do it. One of the main problems is I need contingency time so that when some disaster does happen I can get to it. (the nature of the work means there are quite a few disaster/production hold ups a week).

I already put in more time than Im paid for and do any out of hours work necessary.


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## Mommah (12 Nov 2009)

Sounds like you are doing what I said...just not comfortable with it.

In fact your bosses are rejigging your priorities.
I guess you have to accept that.

And I guess you have to accept you will be just fire fighting until this situation resolves.

You need time and colleagues to do pro-active work.

The key is not just to work off your own priorities and keep management informed.

I hear you ....I was in your situation for a while and its not fun.


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## Whiskey (12 Nov 2009)

truthseeker said:


> There used to be 4 people on my team, due to redundancy and natural loss we have lost 2 people and 1 gone to part time hours.
> 
> I am the only full time team member left and Im doing the work of those who left, plus the part time gap, plus my own work.
> 
> ...


 
My suggestion is to spend your working time working !
I notice that you make on average of 4 or 5 posts to AAM everyday, all during working hours !!!!! 
Also I notice that all your posts are on weekdays with no posts on Saturday or Sunday !

Shouldn't you be working while you are making your posts !! 
Does your employer know you spend a lot of your working day on the web ?

I'm nobody to talk, I agree having an internet browser on your computer is SUCH AN ADDICTION, it's so hard not to click on stuff and wander into cyberworld, I've been guilty too !


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## dockingtrade (12 Nov 2009)

all you can do is what you can do. Do it to the best of your ability and do it honestly. If theres an issue after that then its a management problem. If you werent doing what you were doing what would they have to do? What if you get sick? They will leave you off as long as you do it. I wouldnt take your managers word for it either though, he could be just as well saying to senior management how well his dept is delivering with few resources, or he could be pleading your case and they might be pointing out that the dept is functioning on limited resources, what you have to do to get things done wouldnt  concern them. Things are slipping but the priorities are been taken care of, this is short sighted and will eventaully blow in their faces as everything will become a priority and you'll just clap out. Look for another job, its tough but I hope you get one and just leave. Theyll probably end up having to hire 3.5 people to replace you. The bottom line here is if you keep on doing what you're, they will leave you off.

Look at it another way, if you put as much effort into your own biz as you are with these guys how well would you be doing.

Best of luck


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## truthseeker (13 Nov 2009)

Whiskey said:


> My suggestion is to spend your working time working !
> I notice that you make on average of 4 or 5 posts to AAM everyday, all during working hours !!!!!
> Also I notice that all your posts are on weekdays with no posts on Saturday or Sunday !
> 
> ...


 
How do you know what my working hours are?


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## Bronco Lane (13 Nov 2009)

A well known building society did the same. Where a branch had 4 experienced staff they introduced a redundancy package which left sometimes 3 or even less experienced staff in the branch.
Then people began to leave because of the stress of having to deal with the days work and the training of the new staff. In some cases this left 1 experienced staff member, 2 new entrants and possibly a part timer.
Staff turnover became a huge problem. Many branches now only had new staff with the senior person only having 6 months service. HR then started recruiting from a Dublin based Business College, students on work experience for a year. It was dreadful.

Now you know why you can get absolutely no proper kind of service anymore because the person on the other side of the counter has absolutely no knowledge of the product being sold has had no proper training and is only promoting a product because they have been given a "target" of this product to sell. 

I don't think that things will get any better for you. I would only say to take your coffee break, take your lunchbreak, take your days off, don't work excessive overtime. Look after yourself.

Senior management don't care.


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## truthseeker (13 Nov 2009)

I broached the subject yet again and am being told that I am to put in more hours (for no pay) to get the work done.


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## AlbacoreA (13 Nov 2009)

Only you can decide if the job is worth keeping. I would look for another job, but do my best at the current job as you can. Work extra hours, but not at the expense of your own heath. Working for free is rarely worth it, and is usually taken for granted. In rare occurances the extra effort is worth it in the long run. So you can't dismiss it out of hand. Don't burn bridges. 

You'd have to be more selective between what needs to be done, and what can be put off for another day. Sometimes its better to keep regular hours during the week, but come in on a saturday to clear a back log. For some reason that seen as more effort than doing an extra hour or do on a week day. It also doesn't leave you as wrecked. 

I would also keep a track over all time worked, and the work done. Useful to analyse the workload and perhaps share the load to temp staff.


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## dockingtrade (13 Nov 2009)

Your going to make yourself ill if you keep this up.
Draw a line in the stand. Tell them you'll work x amount of hours and want to be paid for all of them. If that amount of hours donest cover the worksload they will have to come up with a solution.  You are being rode. Note everything. Do not care about them as they obviuosly do not care about you. If they force you out (im totally against law suits etc, but in this case etc) constructive dismissal or get Redundancy but they probably need you. Either leave with something or be working in an improved situation. Just look after yourself.


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## dubrov (13 Nov 2009)

As already mentioned, looking for another job seems to be the only viable solution.

What you are doing now is unsustainable and you probably won't receive any credit for ti when things calm down.

I'd start the search process asap as it may take a while to find a suitable position given the current environment


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## AlbacoreA (13 Nov 2009)

I left a job like and moved to one that paid less. Well worth it.


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## truthseeker (13 Nov 2009)

Thanks for the constructive input.

I am starting to think leaving is the only option. I have over half my holidays still left to take this year because I just have not been able to take them due to being too busy and no one to cover. 

I also feel when I bring it up that Im being vaguely threatened with 'do more hours (no extra pay) and consider yourself lucky to have a job, senior management will replace those who cant keep up with people who can'.


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## ney001 (13 Nov 2009)

truthseeker said:


> Thanks for the constructive input.
> 
> I am starting to think leaving is the only option.



Sounds pretty drastic but if you think you can walk into another job or can afford not to work then I would go for it if this situation is really stressing you out.

I think your problem is that you will be worrying about it too much i.e worrying about it when you go home etc.  What you need to do is just do the work that you can and leave the rest until you can get around to it - don't think about it, when it does come up you can explain that you haven't had the time or resources to do it!. Re your holidays, if you give notice that you are taking holidays it is up to them to cover you - again this is not your problem, I suspect that you will have to toughen up a bit i.e stop worrying and stressing about it! .


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## truthseeker (13 Nov 2009)

ney001 said:


> Sounds pretty drastic but if you think you can walk into another job or can afford not to work then I would go for it if this situation is really stressing you out.
> 
> I think your problem is that you will be worrying about it too much i.e worrying about it when you go home etc. What you need to do is just do the work that you can and leave the rest until you can get around to it - don't think about it, when it does come up you can explain that you haven't had the time or resources to do it!. Re your holidays, if you give notice that you are taking holidays it is up to them to cover you - again this is not your problem, I suspect that you will have to toughen up a bit i.e stop worrying and stressing about it! .


 
Thanks ney001. I dont think i can just walk into another job in the current climate but its worth investigation.

Im not a pushover at all, I actually like my work and enjoy many aspects of it, and I take pride in delivering good quality work so have no issue giving extra time rather than shoddy work. But I physically cant cover for the number of people we have lost off the team. I might add, we didnt lose them all at once so this has crept up slowly and has only become a real issue in the past 3 or 4 months.


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## AlbacoreA (13 Nov 2009)

Like others said don't leave until you have a definate job to walk into, contract etc. People do U turns on Job Offers all the time. Or you can afford to take some time off. Don't cut off one revenue stream still another is established. I'd be inclinded to hang in there until something else came up. That said I just left. 6 months later the company went bust and no one got anything for all their extra work.


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## One (13 Nov 2009)

I am not a solicitor but I wonder if your employers are breaking the law by being negligent towards you when they overwork you?

There are a number of cases (Sutherland v Hatton, Barber v Somerset County Council) where work related stress from being overworked is discussed. The Irish Health and Safety Authority define stress as arising “when the demands of the job and the working environment clearly exceeds their capacity to meet them”. I know that the damages in the cases I have referenced are different from your circumstances. However because it has been recognised that work related stress can arise from being overworked, and your employers are overworking you, then your employers are breaking the law? Is this a weak line of argument? I don’t know. Maybe somebody else can say? 

In employment law, constructive dismissal, is where an employee resigns because of their employer's behaviour. Is there an element of constructive dismissal in your instance if you have to seek employment elsewhere as a result of being overworked? Again, I don’t know.

I noticed you mentioned production. Is there any chance that you could make a ‘good business case’ for hiring more part time staff? Can you clearly illustrate to your boss that that the fact that you are overworked means other work goes undone, which results in costs to your company? Perhaps it increases the risk of a quality issue or increases the waste from the production line, etc. The manufacturing industry is full of terms about ‘operational excellence’ and ‘lean thinking’ these days. They both involve concepts about eliminating unnecessary work and working more efficiently. Simplistic examples would be introducing a software package that makes the workload more achievable, or rearrange the workplace so that everything is easier to get to. Could you implement any of these concepts in your workplace?

I think it might be no harm to get legal advice about it from a solicitor. I also think that like others have said, try to ensure that you have another job to go to before you leave where you are. I hope you get on well and things wok out for you. I know somebody in almost identical circumstances as you, and it is difficult.


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## Pope John 11 (13 Nov 2009)

Hold onto your job, consider yourself fortunate to have the job in this climate, do the best you can for now, look for a job outside of work hours, & for God sake get off AAM website during your work hours, assuming you are working at the minute

Don't take that previous point to heart, please.

By the way do you have family, wife kids etc. I know that some guys in my previous workplace used to make up excuses by saying to the boss, 'oh I have to pick up the kid from the creche, I have to drop my mother to bingo at 6:30pm' etc. Let them know that you have a private life too


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## truthseeker (13 Nov 2009)

One - management seem to be refusing to entertain the idea of any new staff (this is company wide, redundancies have been rife this year and people have not been replaced anywhere where they retired or left naturally). It would be difficult enough to get part time staff in the area Im in, I work in a professional capacity, highly educated, highly skilled and very experienced, Ive been in the company over 10 years and tbh my own level of experience works against me as Im the only one who knows how to do a lot of things therefore these things fall to me. Since the team has been reduced so much there isnt an appropriate staff member to pass skillsets onto to provide cover. If I ever am sick (I missed a week due to illness earlier in the year) the work just piles up waiting for me, similar if I take holidays.

Pope John II - I dont have family commitments, but I do have studying commitments outside of work that I need my time off for (plus just having a life).

There is a very generalised 'culture of fear' pervading my workplace for a good while now due to redundancies etc... A number of other people have said to me they feel overworked and frightened that if they dont comply with demands for more hours without extra pay that they will lose their jobs - I am not alone in feeling how I feel at least.


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## annR (19 Jan 2010)

Truthseeker
How did you get on, has anything changed?  I was reading through your post and noticed

>>I actually like my work and enjoy many aspects of it, and I take pride in delivering good quality work so have no issue giving extra *time* rather than shoddy work<<

I'm sure this is why it is all falling to you - they know you will do whatever it takes to get it done.  Perhaps you need to become a little less conscientious.  Having said that, I know it's a very tricky matter.  

At the end of the day though you have to draw a line in the sand about how many hours you will work per day and you can only do what you can do during that time.  Communicate that to management and set their expectations for whatever you think the result will be.  It's just not acceptable that they can just say, work till it's done if that's not doable.  I know about the culture of fear etc, however it sounds like they would really go down the tubes if they lost you - they need to back off, start taking you seriously and come up with some other answer to their problems other than making completely unreasonable demands on you.


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## Buddyg (21 Jan 2010)

> work so have no issue giving extra *time* rather than shoddy work<<


This attitude has cost some of your former colleagues their jobs. Would they have gotten rid of so many people if people like you didn't exist?


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## truthseeker (21 Jan 2010)

Buddyg - It would be simplistic to assume that my own attitude to responsibility and extra time when needed has cost people jobs, the reality is that I have a skill set thats needed and those who were let go were not as skilled as me (but some of them could do some of what I do - thereby taking pressure off me).

AnnR - after I began this thread there was another discussion with my boss. I held my ground and stated I would not be bullied into giving up my free time as a 'norm' and also told him that I would leave if the situation did not improve for me as i was becoming very stressed out and annoyed with the whole thing and I was sick of it.

Immediately after that conversation the boss changed towards me and became much more caring and less 'robotic' in terms of just repeating what he was hearing from higher management.

Then there was another staff/pay shake up and as a result of which a lot of dissension arose (from various people in other departments also) and it turned out that a number of people had been getting hassled to give more time for free - so it wasnt just me.

Plus a part time member of my team has been re-instated to full time which has helped.

I took most of the holidays owing to me over xmas and I was phoned practically every day I was off - but I took my time about answering and getting back to them and when I came back was told I had been missed - but this time round the work wasnt just piled up for me to do (a lot of it had to be done before Jan 1).

Things are much settled now and I have not had any unreasonable demands put on me in over a month, so will see how it goes. I have made my position clear though and will not budge from it.


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## Buddyg (21 Jan 2010)

> but some of them could do some of what I do - thereby taking pressure off me).


But why would they employ them if you were just going to work extra anyway. 

When you said no to that look what happened.



> Plus a part time member of my team has been re-instated to full time which has helped.


 
Golden rule: Never work for free. Bad for you, your family and your colleagues.


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## truthseeker (21 Jan 2010)

Buddyg said:


> But why would they employ them if you were just going to work extra anyway.


 
Its not quite a simple as that - some areas are still badly lacking in anyone to work on them but I cant be forced into it because I just dont have the necessary skills.

I agree with the Golden Rule!


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