Work issues, what to do

Hey guys, so this is going to be a little bit of a rant but I think I just need ya'll to talk some sense in to me. Just go easy on me because I know I'm going to be offended that you don't agree with me, even though I know I'm being stupid.

So, as it is now I either work or have classes every day, except every other Saturday and Sundays. I'd gladly work every Sat, need the money etc. The person that works Sunday afternoons gave us a weeks notice that she'll be gone for three weeks. The Sunday shift is 4:00-4:30. That's a half an hour shift...although you do get paid for a full hour. Big deal.
I'm the last person hired, and it was a super rough ride. My boss is super hard to work for, one of the other girls talks about everyone when they're not there (including me) and the other two ladies are super nice. So my boss is telling me that I have to work these three Sundays and it's in my job description. Well I don't remember her telling me that when I was hired but I have a terrible memory so she very well could have. The job description in the folder (general, not for me specifically) says that we're expected to fill in if someone isnâ€[emoji]8482[/emoji]t able to make it. WE being the key word. Well I told the office manager (super nice) that I'll take the first Sunday but I really don't want to take the other three. I live 40 minutes away, in the winter I leave an 50-60 minutes early. Everyone else lives 20-30 minutes from work. I've filled in for two out of three people, on really short notice without complaining, and nobody else will take a Sunday shift. My boss talked to me today and said it was my job, she really likes me and doesnâ€[emoji]8482[/emoji]t want to lose me but if I don't take these...
And she won't let me ask anyone else to work except the girl that only works Sunday mornings because she doesnâ€[emoji]8482[/emoji]t want to cause stress among her "crew". Apparently I'm not part of the crew, I've only been there 10 months.
I guess my feelings are hurt, I fill in for everyone but now I'm automatically expected to cover these shifts, spending two hours driving for an hour worth of work, which is like $8 after taxes. And hey too bad if I don't like it, I'm just the doormat.
I don't know what to do, I want to say no, all the miles it puts on my car, all the gas money, it's going to cost me money and I'm always so accommodating for everyone else.
But then I think it would be stupid to quit over three shifts, I might not find another job for who knows how long. This is part of working. See, if it was a full day, or even four hours worth of work it wouldnâ€[emoji]8482[/emoji]t be a problem, because I'm earning enough to make it worth my while.
I'm just so frustrated, I know my boss is going to talk to me about it tomorrow and she's so abrasive and comes across as patronizing and harsh and mean. Everyone has a hard time working for her and we all hate our jobs, I want to finally stand up to her but if that happens I don't think either one of us will bend and I can't afford to have no income.
Alright, well thank you for letting me vent! I hope it makes sense, I'm not proof reading because I should be in bed, up at 4:45am tomorrow for work...

Is she saying anything else that could possibly be crossing the line or excluding you in other ways? If you feel she's being hostile towards you, regularly, start documenting it and keep track in case you need it. Workplace bully can sometimes be subtle.

I see where your coming from, I had a boss like that, too (she was a bully, though). All you can do is tolerate it and be miserable or start looking around for another job - unless you have something that could get her in trouble.. If you stand up to her it may very well make things worse.

What kind of a job is it? I've never heard of a job that requires you to go into work for only 1/2 an hour!

Do you live at home or are you living on your own and supporting yourself?

Personally if it were me and I was living at home, I'd quit and look for something else. Your boss sounds completely unreasonable! Does she have a boss that you can talk to? To me it sounds like she is picking on you, and is even threatening your job IE: do the shifts or..... That sounds like blackmail!

Any reasonable employer would spread the responsibility between all staff, especially for such a crappy shift. No one wants to take time out of their day, drive all that way for 1 hour of pay. So because of that everyone should be made to take their proper turn.

Also, I'd check with the labour board about how legal it is to make you go in for 1/2 an hour and only pay for 1 hour. Here where I live they have to pay you a minimum of 4 hours.

There are jobs all over the place if you look, even at fast food places like McDonalds. Those types of places offer good shift flexibility and are great for students needing part time work. Other possibilities are cashiers in cafeterias, or even telephone call centres if you live near one.

One of the reasons I left my last job was due to bullying! The ward clerk on the ward I was working on was making my working environment very difficult and uncomfortable for me and despite having taken the issue to the manager and having a meeting with the 2 of us, nothing changed. I decided that I just couldn't work under those conditions and looked for another job elsewhere. There were other reasons that I looked that were higher up the ladder of reasons I wanted a different job (health being #1), but being bullied was right up there.

It's been my experience that we give people permission, though our actions and responses, as to how they treat us. If we bend over and let them repeatedly kick us in the butt, they will continue to do that because they know we will accept that type of behaviour towards us.

If you quit, who will work those shifts? Think about that. Someone will have to or do they plan on closing up the place if you were to leave? There are obviously others there that can do the shifts. She's just picking on you for some reason. At least that's my thinking.

They cannot extend the employees hours who how there say 15 minutes each to cover that 1/2 gap??

It seems to me that its poor management that created this 30 minutes shift. I've never heard of such a thing.

I agree with you that its silly to drive as far as you have to to cover this time slot. Cannot a manager do so??

Good luck I sympathize with your dilemma.

I agree with you 100%. Your boss is being completely unfair and having worked for a really bad boss, I understand where you're coming from. I think the suggestion of documenting the situation(s) is excellent an one. But I wouldn't quit my job over it. Just keep reminding yourself that when you finish school you can get a much better job.

Originally Posted by nurseangel

I agree with you 100%. Your boss is being completely unfair and having worked for a really bad boss, I understand where you're coming from. I think the suggestion of documenting the situation(s) is excellent an one. But I wouldn't quit my job over it. Just keep reminding yourself that when you finish school you can get a much better job.

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I'd work the shifts, but look for another job. It sounds really stressful anyway!

I see where you're coming from. When I started my first job with the company I work with, they required me to come in on Saturdays to check and see if there were any sample returns that needed to be done. I live 25 miles away, yet the other person I worked with lived 2 miles away. I was so frustrated. The rest of the departments in the company would get paid for 2 hours as long as they stayed for 15 minutes on a Saturday, but the one I was in would only get paid for how long I was here, which most of the time was only 15-20 minutes when it took me more than twice as long to get here and cost me more in gas than I made.

I think you should look for other jobs, but do what you have to do for now. My previous employer used me as their "do everything" girl (cant really say the word I'd prefer ) They were pretty upset when I left, but never appreciated the things I did, including 3-4 people's jobs at once when they were in a tough spot. I was the quickest data entry tech they had the entire time they were in business. But if companies dont show you respect and appreciation and fairness, then there's no reason to stick around if you find somewhere better.

I also agree that is ridiculous - but if I were you, I would probably just put on a happy face and do the work and then quietly look for other opportunities in the meantime. That has to be so frustrating. I can't imagine driving that long just to work half an hour!!!!!! a better job comes your way soon with a more reasonable boss...!

:hug: Thanks guys.
I was steaming this morning when I went in and I knew my boss (who's the owner) was too because she was being mean. She ended up having a talk with me and saying how I was the first person in her 25 years of business who has ever backed out of working a weekend shift and when I told her that it was just too expensive for me to drive all that way for 30 minutes she went on to tell me that she would never ask someone to come in for just a half an hour, and that there would be 2-3 hours worth of stuff for me to do. Anyhow, super frustrating. And I just got a popup saying that a virus was detected. Oh man.