Boards
Being given stuff to do at work which really doesn't fall under your remit
Tomorrow I have to go down to Newcastle (from Edinburgh) to sit in a currently unused office to wait for someone from the council to come in and do an inspection.
Supposedly they could come in anytime during the day, so I'll have to leave here at 6am and they may not come til 5pm.
So it seems that the boss here thinks that I have nothing better to do with my time than sit in an office in Newcastle waiting for someone to arrive. This makes me feel really valued.
Last week I had to try to order a perspex case and I'm constantly being asked to drive people/things all over Scotland. In case you were wondering, I'm a copywriter with a fair amount of work on my hands at the moment.
What's the strangest/most annoying task you've been given at work?
A lot of people seem to think I'm in charge of scheduling their workload
No, you fucking morons. When I ask you what date you'll be submitting work for editing, I want you to tell me what YOU'VE scheduled. I'm not volunteering to schedule it for you.
I'm really fucking angry
not really because I've got to go to Newcastle but because it shows that i'm perceived to do little of value here so i can supposedly afford take the time out.
Is there anything you can do legally about being made to do shit like this or am i fucked by the "undertake any other tasks..." bit in my contract?
Personally
I'd be more angry about being made to go to Newcastle.
Most job descriptions will in some way mention that you may be assigned tasks as and when necessary and I'm not sure how legally significant they are, special circumstances aside, anyway. I think it's just the kind of shit you've got to put up with.
Conversely it might reflect that you're someone who's immensely reliable?
I think no one really has the option to turn round and say, "It's not in my job description," unless they're really in a very strong position, especially in this economically dodgy time.
Does your boss actually know what your job entails? Maybe s/he thinks the works isn't that much. Again I'd say it could as easily be a sign that you're seen as someone who gets things done...
Worth having a word with your boss. Use this job as a 'last straw' type thing and explain you have a lot of work on and while you're happy to do the Newcastle thing you feel you need to concentrate on your work more or it will be forced to suffer.
P.S. Can you not take a work laptop with you and do your job while you travel/wait?
the only work laptop
has been taken to holland by a colleague.
And also, I'd find it really difficult to do my job without having all the stuff that's on my PC....
My boss (THE boss, as she's MD) should know exactly what I do seeing as I had a review with her just a few months ago in which i described exactly what i do and how busy I am on a weekly basis.
It's definitely more of a 'give it to James, he's got nothing better to do' than, 'give it to James, he's reliable' as other people get more 'prestigious' jobs which would be seen as needing someone reliable.
they've realised how much time you spend on DiS
and decided that you must have plenty of free time on your hands.
no way
they're all too fucking stupid to work that out.