Being edged towards the door at my job...

[Garm Bel Iblis]

So, I'm kind of the "advocate" of the department, because I work with a bunch of people absolutely terrified of losing their jobs. Management knows this. I had a meeting with the director last month and she indicated how people are working so much hard and there is no sign of any trouble because of the economy.

Well since then, there have been constant demands for OT, and outrageous changes to the way we do our business. Everyone in the department is upset, but they are as stated above, spineless. So I’ve stepped up and during meetings have questioned the reasoning behind the changes and expressed my dismay, while not speaking for the department as whole.

Now I'm being viewed as a rabble rouser and the lone troublemaker trying to stir the pot. I've received half a dozen little nitpicky emails about some mundane thing or another. Basically "we're putting the cover pages on the TPS reports" kind of crap. But it's building and the management team is becoming outright cold around me. Used to be, they would at least make the attempt at casual conversation, now they appear to avoid me. Yesterday morning I realized I had left my security badge on my desk and called a manager to let me in. I thanked him, and he GRUNTED and walked away.

So the writings on the wall, I've got my ass in their sites for being an apparent trouble maker and pack leader. I've been working OT, being very deliberate and cautious and covering every possible angle and filing hardcopies of all emails and my responses.

HR in this company consists of one person, who is related to my boss, so I doubt I'll get much movement on that angle.

Any ideas? Right now the plan is simple, soon as I'm back from vacation in July, I’m getting the F outta here. But then they win, don't they?

 

[Amaris]

It's that independent thought. It'll kill ya every time in places like that.

 

[Garm Bel Iblis]

It's a curse, I swear,it got me into a lot of troube in school. Having a higher salary and position does not give one theright to treat people like garbage. I'll never be a drone and I won't sit quietly while others are treated unfairly. Guess I should be self-employed.

 

[Robert Maxwell]

Make them terminate you so you can collect unemployment. Don't do anything that gives them cause, of course, just prep your resume and start looking for a new job. If they can you, file for unemployment immediately. If you find a new job before they show you the door, rock on.

The economy still sucks in most sectors. People working for my previous employer are more miserable than ever, and they aren't even allowed to talk about it--the company has threatened to fire anyone who breathes a single word about work on their Facebook, LinkedIn, etc. So, they're being forced to work 80 hour weeks, have seen their benefits and pay cut, and they aren't allowed to complain lest they wind up in the unemployment line, too.

It's a great time to be the boss, it would seem.

 

[John Picard]

They don't win, because everyone will be miserable. A friend of mine went through that this past 8 months where he worked, where management outsourced engineering to Singapore and congratulated each other on saving money. The problem is that the foreign engineers don't know shit from shinola, and the people here were expected to fix the mistakes. My friend got fed up with it (and was constantly under watch for not being a team player and for being outspoken) and when called into the office to sign a "confession" that he was a troublemaker told them to shove it up their asses and said "...because I quit". Boy, did their tune quickly change. Now, they wanted to forget the whole thing and do whatever it took so he would stay. He had already lined something up but didn't allude to it, although he did let it slip out that he was "going fishing" for other talent in the building. That really made them shit.

He's happily working at another company where everyone is part of the team and there isn't any of that politics BS.

 

[Garm Bel Iblis]

I've worked for two of the largest financial institutions in the united states and have never expereienced the politics andthe BS that i'm seeing in a company of a 150 people.

We have a department meeting this afternoon (in 45 minutes infact), but no agenda was sent. that means it usually is a bitch storm about how people need to be working harder, even theough most of us are working 7am to 7pm each and every day.

 

[Robert Maxwell]

I work for a smaller company now and things are definitely much more political, but we don't have a lot of bitching for people to work harder or rat each other out or anything of that sort.

 

[Joshua Howard]

The rules of the game of life never change under any circumstances. You've got to always be at least one move ahead of your opponent, or you lose. My advice: Don't make moves that don't matter. It is easy to turn your circumstances into an ethics question. It is easy to start asking yourself "What should I do?" What is the right choice?" and ultimately to become distracted from the goal of playing to win.

You either need your job or you don't. If you don't, then you can do whatever you please. Start planning a road trip which will begin on termination day, or better yet, just walk out the door and never come back. If, on the other hand, losing your job isn't going to play to your advantage, then understand when the adversary has the winning hand and yield instead of being crushed.

Play to win. Don't be a hero or a humanitarian. Be a strategist. If you have people looking for a chance to take you down, stay positive, avoid giving them anything to use against you, and start taking notes on every move that they make. Sooner or later, you will be in a position to make a move against them, or have the leverage to require their respect.

Good luck.

 

[knine]

I feel the OP pain. Myself and others I know who are honest hard working people often get hosed when they are not afraid to speak their mind. I've learned to fight the battles that matter and play the Benny Hill theme in my head with the rest.

 

[Garm Bel Iblis]

Problem is i feel more like Benny Russell here, there's obvious injustice and crap going down, and I'm the one who's gonna be drug out on a stretcher screeching and crying.

 

[knine]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Homer's_Enemy

 

[Garm Bel Iblis]

ah, Grimey, when the SImpsons still made me laugh.

 

[Colonel Green]

You should look into unionizing your workplace.

 

[the Dagman]

You should look into unionizing your workplace.

Not a bad idea.

Those people are already looking to Garm as a leader. They're being taken advantage of during this recession being worked harder and longer, and still being pressed to increase production. Some of the very circumstances that led to the creation of workers' unions.

Plus, if they act to get rid of him and he can show it was for unionizing his co-workers... Big, big, BIIIG lawsuit. But to do it, some of the spineless ones are going to have to step up and join him. Otherwise, it will end badly.

 

[Robert Maxwell]

You should look into unionizing your workplace.

Not a bad idea.

Those people are already looking to Garm as a leader. They're being taken advantage of during this recession being worked harder and longer, and still being pressed to increase production. Some of the very circumstances that led to the creation of workers' unions.

Plus, if they act to get rid of him and he can show it was for unionizing his co-workers... Big, big, BIIIG lawsuit. But to do it, some of the spineless ones are going to have to step up and join him. Otherwise, it will end badly.

Garm should only do this if he wants to be terminated immediately. And if the rest of his department is cowed, good luck with any lawsuit.

What industry do you work in, Garm?

 

[Garm Bel Iblis]

You should look into unionizing your workplace.

Not a bad idea.

Those people are already looking to Garm as a leader. They're being taken advantage of during this recession being worked harder and longer, and still being pressed to increase production. Some of the very circumstances that led to the creation of workers' unions.

Plus, if they act to get rid of him and he can show it was for unionizing his co-workers... Big, big, BIIIG lawsuit. But to do it, some of the spineless ones are going to have to step up and join him. Otherwise, it will end badly.

Garm should only do this if he wants to be terminated immediately. And if the rest of his department is cowed, good luck with any lawsuit.

What industry do you work in, Garm?

Insurance

 

[Robert Maxwell]

Not a bad idea.

Those people are already looking to Garm as a leader. They're being taken advantage of during this recession being worked harder and longer, and still being pressed to increase production. Some of the very circumstances that led to the creation of workers' unions.

Plus, if they act to get rid of him and he can show it was for unionizing his co-workers... Big, big, BIIIG lawsuit. But to do it, some of the spineless ones are going to have to step up and join him. Otherwise, it will end badly.

Garm should only do this if he wants to be terminated immediately. And if the rest of his department is cowed, good luck with any lawsuit.

What industry do you work in, Garm?

Insurance

Yeah, you'd be boned if you tried to unionize. Does your employee handbook (if you have one) make any statements about unions? Last place I worked, they had a section about unions and expressed their desire to remain a union-free workplace. This is apparently recommended by lawyers so you can more easily fire people who try to unionize.

 

[Yeoman Randi]

Good luck Garm, i hope it works out in your best interest!

 

[John Picard]

Unionizing solves nothing. (Most) people are inherently spineless and if they don't have the cajones to band together as a group and call management out on it's BS then fuck 'em.

I learned a long time ago that if/when I leave a place of employment I could care less if it burns to the ground. It's not my problem. I also fail to let management sweat me about daily operations, etc. That's what management is responsible for.

BTW - Here's an interesting read,
10 Things Human Resources Won't Say

 

[Robert Maxwell]

Unionizing solves nothing. (Most) people are inherently spineless and if they don't have the cajones to band together as a group and call management out on it's BS then fuck 'em.

I learned a long time ago that if/when I leave a place of employment I could care less if it burns to the ground. It's not my problem. I also fail to let management sweat me about daily operations, etc. That's what management is responsible for.

BTW - Here's an interesting read,
10 Things Human Resources Won't Say

Good article, with sound advice. The HR department here is all of two people, and I talk to them pretty regularly. It's interesting to see the hiring process from the other side, too--I'm involved in interviews, evaluating coding tests, and looking over resumes. I was surprised at the things people would take issue with in a candidate, too.