I recently got into it with my boss about the increase in work travel. When I was hired it was communicated as no more than 10% and now it's jumped up to over 25% and that's not ok with me.

And basically her feel is … let’s tough it out for 6-12 months because her boss is demanding ... as if she didn’t just push me through the last 15 months aggressively.

Absolutely not. I’m not pushing through aggressively during my kids developmental years… and I get it I understand where she's coming from, but I can't be down with that

At one point she confided in me that all of the work demands is also affecting HER family and marriage … and I again, I get it, it's something that you work out in your house ... but where do you stand up for yourself?

I’ve watched and experienced how jobs treat people, up to and including death (my first job I watched a guy have a seizure and die in the office and a coworker got UPSET that other people wanted to take off the rest of the day) … you are bottomlessly replaceable at work … not at home

>I recently got into it with my boss about the increase in
>work travel. When I was hired it was communicated as no more
>than 10% and now it's jumped up to over 25% and that's not ok
>with me.

There are near zero worker protections.

>you are bottomlessly replaceable at work … not at home

That's it. You know where you're *needed*. I think your boundaries are reasonable and it sucks so much that we don't have a culture that makes it simple and clear how to articulate those. That this conversation is hard is bad - that it's also tricky or complicated is such an extra kick in the shin.

First of all I have Outlook on my phone but I don't get those notifications. If I make a conscious decision to look, that is one thing, but notifications about every after hours email is another.

Secondly, I don't like giving my coworkers my cell number but sometimes I have to and I have no problem blocking people if they text me outside of work hours (about work) on the regular.

just because it is on "your" mind right now...no.

I also never check e-mail on my phone. if I read an e-mail and have to follow up right away, then I'm working. if I read it and it can wait, then I'll wait until I'm working again to read it.

fucking e-mail.

>
>I’ve watched and experienced how jobs treat people, up to
>and including death (my first job I watched a guy have a
>seizure and die in the office and a coworker got UPSET that
>other people wanted to take off the rest of the day) … you
>are bottomlessly replaceable at work … not at home

what field was this

I don’t know if I told this story here but it’s so long ago now I’ll even use names. But I worked with a crazy lady when I first got out of college. She was hell. But she taught me an important lesson or two. One. Never go behind doors without a witness.
When this woman cussed my 25 year old ass in the smoothest whisper and then told me nobody would believe me because they didn’t hear… wild
And so by the time I had learned Jean was a tyrant it was far too late.
One day Al, the company president comes up to me. Mid 50s white guy. I liked Al a lot. Al starts talking to me about Jam Rock. Said he loves him Nas and Damien Marley. We get into a conversation about bootlegging and he’s like nah, we pay for media here, and he wanted me to cop him the cd legit.
Anyways Al tells me he’s gonna take me under his wing. And I need to get my passport. I told him I had one. And he said he’s going on a turn around trip to Calgary with John and then when he gets back to get a coat. He’s gonna start taking me with him on the trips.
So that was a Monday. Tuesday he leaves. Wednesday he gets home.
Has dinner with his wife, Valentine’s Day, has a heart attack and dies. We find out Thursday. John walks in late that day. Again he just got back from a turn around trip to Calgary. I personally break the news to him and he is DISTRAUGHT. He just flew to Canada and back with this man. And that fucks him up. So Jean goes and talks to Carolyn and she’s PISSED. Quote “And John doesn’t want to work today because over there pretending to be upset about Al” … I walked out of the office
Friday we closed office. Monday was a holiday. Tuesday we put Al in the ground, Jewish people get buried quickly?
Wednesday we’re back in the office. Wednesday Pedro (older engineer) has a seizure in the office. Just falls out. I saw them trying to calm him. He didn’t make it to the hospital.
Jean … upset about the work distraction.


My first professional job out of college. I was 25/26. I’ve never let these learnings go. They are foundational to me.

and yeah Jewish people get buried ASAP for religious reasons. Like within a day if they can get it in order.

i work from home and make my own hours *shrugs*

the business hours are there for a reason. not doing extra time as a habit because it becomes expected.

Great post! I want to spill my work trauma but I have healed so I will move on.

Have you heard of a book called Bullshit Job by David Graeber (RIP). He died last year but spent the latter part of his life sharing the idea that most of work is bullshit.


I have so many stories. But my kid forced me to have non-negotiable boundaries. I will never put a job before my family or my mental and physical health.

I have worked in really important jobs like helping people get treatment for illnesses. I have also worked dumb ass jobs like making sure people took surveys and filled out forms.

For the most part, these jobs are useless. They are just a way to keep middle income people satiated because if the economy were true, we would pay teachers, social workers, firemen, police officers, custodial staff, food workers , drivers, doctors, nurses and child care givers over $200k/year. These are the jobs we cannot do with out.

The rest of the jobs, even some in law, business, communication etc, are a joke.

I hope the work culture changes.

I get kinda peeved with how us “middle income” folks are always getting shitted on….We frequently get the short end of the stick in most all aspects of the American economy….



"Get ready....for your blessing....."
"Bury me by my Grand-Grand and when you can come follow me"

He's a really fun writer and a big, wide thinker.

A very sad loss to the world of progressive thinkers. Glad he got his ideas out before he passed.

He challenged humanity to think differently about how we use our time on the planet.

I only answer my work cell phone for about 3 people if it’s outside of normal work hours.
I realize I’m fortunate to be working in the public sector which affords me the ability to set and stick to these boundaries. When I worked in private sector it was a whole different ball game….one I hope to never return to.

in teams late night asking a question about work.. but half the time I don’t respond until I get to work.

I turned off email notifications on my phone too.

cause phuck that shit

And when I log in on Monday mornings and see folks that were emailing all weekend I just have to SMH….


"Get ready....for your blessing....."
"Bury me by my Grand-Grand and when you can come follow me"

Deliverable.
It’s been more than a few times she’s made a request at 930 for something at 830 am

“I will respond to emails during core work hours.”

"Get ready....for your blessing....."
"Bury me by my Grand-Grand and when you can come follow me"

aka - when the entire company infrastructure takes a shit, my team and it's sister teams are the ones who have to drop the turkey leg mid-bite and run to fix shit because we're global, so while we're chilling at night, there could be a whole office somewhere in Asia going apeshit because nothing is working.

I keep my eyes open and check work email once or twice a day during weekends.

The funny thing is...no one calls me, I'm the one who does the calling - edit: No one calls me because the boundary has been set that my time is tightly accounted for. So, you can call me, but I can't do or promise anything until the work request has been planned out to fit within the current portfolio of active projects.

Or is just a reality of the industry you work in and no way around it with your career choice?


Get ready....for your blessing....."
"Bury me by my Grand-Grand and when you can come follow me"

it's kind of the role in this context.

I am the only person who does what I do. NORMAL companies will have 5 or 10 of me, but I am the one. It's kind of like, a car dealership only having one mechanic. There is always work to do, but you can't just ram a random ass rush job into the day, that would just fuck the entire list of planned jobs for the week and month.

E: If I wasnt clear, I'm not the one who has to drop everything and run on the weekends, my team does, but I do not. I only have to keep my eye on things. The work is important, it's politics, policy, finance, wealth all in one. "Big Law" firm.

Ain't no calling, texting, or emailing me and expecting a response before I clock back in.
If I got PTO, I'm taking PTO.
The job doesn't care about you.
The job doesn't define you.
The job is some shit you do, so you can keep your bills paid.
Even if you like it, even if you love it. It don't love you.

nm

Except for LinkedIn.

This rule is probably a personal preference, depending on several factors. But I tend to speak pretty freely on my social media accounts. I'm connected to friends and acquaintances who pretty much know me and know how I am.

I wouldn't want to limit my ability to say whatever I want by worrying about what my manager may say or if I it may affect me at work if I say something that someone doesn't like.

EDIT - I have connected on social media with folks from previous jobs, after I left that position.

We can maybe be connected on social media once we don't work together. But. While we do, you don't get to see that I'm posting memes when I called in "sick."

I might get on here, FB, Twitter, or IG while I'm waiting for a download to finish or for a user to call me back, so I don't need anybody counting my posts or tracking my comments.

People send me FB requests and I let them sit for a day until they disappear and get a LinkedIn request from the same person.

especially if you manage people. there's no real upside to me that comes from it.

> EDIT - I have connected on social media with folks from
>previous jobs, after I left that position.

this is the correct way.

thats where ya talk shit about them/work etc lol

They aint ready.

>They aint ready.


yeah dont..thats their in to say youre not a team player wps

Someone could read any of the ones listed in this post and if not formally complain, be on some slick Randall Weems shit to a higher-up. I'd love/hate to see how up-in-arms someone would get to hear these out loud in a meeting setting.