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I actually don't have to fake it, I HAVE pulled my back 3 times already, and I have missed work for this very reason . A co-worker suggested me to file a WORKERS Comp....but I am not going to do that unless I have a serious accident there or anywhere.
I hate litigation stuff, and I love my job and the university, I just wish they had THEIR priorities more organized, especially because I only work 20 hours a week..... I only have 20 hours to produce quality work and complete more serious and important and urgent administative assignments, I think they could practice better time management and fetch their own files themselves -when they have them in THEIR OFFICE, not mine, in FRONT OF THEM!!!
Thank you for reminding me of my back injuries, I will talk to my boss about this one more time.
God bless!
Salsipuedes
I hope you are at least going to the DOCTOR for these injuries. Don't ruin your future health and welfare (your back!) for a 20 hour a week job! If you file a workers' comp claim it is usually NOT a ton of time spent in court and your doctor bills and pay for missing work are taken care of. Plus it is DOCUMENTATION that will keep them from assigning you these labor-intensive tasks in the future because it will be beyond their little department but in HR.
Almost year ago I was hired by a famous university as an administrative assistant to the homeopathy department.
I have benefits, work only 4 days a week (cool!), the environment is very laid back, quiet and even relaxing and forgiving, especially because there is ALMOST NO TELEPHONE WORK , WHICH I LOOOOOVE (I was traumatized by a call center in my previous job).
In the beginning I loved this job because I was given large administrative / clerical assignments (which I call projects) that involved a lot of research and computer work and they are very engaging and interesting.
I do have a lot of freedom to come and go as I please, nobody is ever looking over my shoulder, the bosses are very adorable and absent about 50% of the time. My direct boss is very good when I need time off even if I don't have enough personal time, and I LOVE the people I work with.
Now, the stuff that I am agonizing about:
Because I am the homeopathy program assistant, I am given a number of chores to do by various people; busy work and mindless duties such as making copies, getting mail, scanning, that sort of thing, which I ACTUALLY LIKE.
However, I hate it that they also use me as a GOPHER; sort of a maid, a servant and a jack of all trades.
I know that a competent, skilled administrative assistant has to wear many hats and that is fine with me, like I said, I like the various errands and chores, they add variety to my day.
But the gopher thing..... for example, they have dumped on me the TOTAL responsibility for the WHOLE inventory of office and clinical supplies of the whole department, as well as a myriad of big things such as tables, desks, old furniture, obsolete books, etc. And every time we change to a new floor, they expect ME to load and unload all the boxes, and to remember the contents and location of each one.
This means every time they need the smallest thing, I have to go dig in 3 different storage units and search among hundreds of boxes to find for example a canister or other obscure objects.
Another thing that is bothering and even depressing me now, is that every time there is a class that requires supplies, I AM EXPECTED to go pick up and rearrange the mess. I mean the mess that the students and instructors leave behind!
Preparing the setup and logistics for each class takes a week because the list of supplies and equipment required is very long and complex. I do ALL the setup single-handedly,and it is a LOT of physical labor.
After a clinical practice, INSTRUCTORS AND STUDENTS are supposed to leave the classroom clean, and to put away all the garbage and expensive medical equipment that they use.
Instead, they leave laying around all kinds of otoscopes, bpcuffs, stethoscopes and so on.......even super expensive anatomical models....some of these things are permanently damaged if not cleaned after use...... I have brought this to the attention of the boss, to no avail.....
In my job description there was nothing that said that it was my job to CLEAN and WIPE dirty counters, pick up dirty dishes from the cafeteria and take home dirty sheets to launder at my own expense.
My boss every time she sees any mess or cleaning need of any sort, she hints that I should take home kitchen utensils and dishes to wash, that I should drive HUGE BOXES OF stuff in MY CAR to Good Will to donate, to go shopping for stuff really far from my workplace or home, ............even make me chop cheese for events, etc. and at the end just clean anything everybody else leaves behind. And I've cleaned and picked up ALL the stuff after the events, on top of preparing and distributing the minutes.
This is an important university, not a little home based business.........there are janitorial services, so why do they hint me to do all this?
Right now they have in mind a HUGE Spring cleaning of ALL the closets, storage units, etc., which include cleaning the cabinets, washing, sorting out expired meds., etc. etc, on top of all my complex administrative functions in the office at my desk.
They need to hire at least once a month a temp labor worker to help me pull, carry, load, empty, organize and transport all those heavy boxes and equipment, and I have requested this to my boss, we DO HAVE money in the budget, around $3,000 US for miscellaneous expenses, but she just will procrastinate about it and will give all kinds of excuses and will not hire anybody......
So I am at the end of my rope looking at all the stuff they come and dump in my office, and overwhelmed by all the times they interrupt me to go fetch a file and put it back (when they have the filing cabinet in front of them and they spend a lot of time chatting about personal stuff), now my office looks very messy (I LOVE ORDER AND ORGANIZATION),
Anyway, dear readers, what is the fine line that differentiates a cooperative professional admin from a simple gopher and maid??????
I even want to quit tomorrow.......... this mess is BIG HELL for me, I can't even walk around my office without bruising my legs bumping into boxes and boxes and boxes, walking all over this huge campus to go get stuff.,..... I feel like a maid, like a golden retriever and a gopher with administrative duties.........
Help!
In this economy be happy you even have a job. Quit and there will be a line out the door with someone else ready and willing to take your job. When you get too complacent and start complaining...you might end up with no job...and then no job to complain about.
Then unemployment steps in. It's a no win situation...just bit the bullet and be grateful you still earn a paycheck. Some have it worse then you.
First of all thank you for taking the time to read about my issue and generously share your thoughts, I really appreciate it.
Yes, I am the first person in this position, the boss has never had an executive assistant. Her personality and background are not executive at all. She needs training and learning how to manage the time of employees who report to her, but first she needs to put her act together and learn and practice time management skills.
You're right about being proactive. I've designed a series of request forms and used them many times, hoping that they will become a norm. However, it's my direct boss who always wants something done the last minute, even when I make her go through the checklists over and over again ahead of time.
So I am going to implement your approach and this time schedule a meeting to discuss my duties and the procedures and bring along visual aids and a detailed report of my activities, hour by hour.
Because I want to contribute and excel in my job, I already created for her a very revealing Excel chart that visually reflects how my time is being used and what percentage of my time is being wasted in fetching files and looking for obscure objects or looking at her decor or pulling tables that the service department can do for us at no cost.
The Excel chart also shows how much $$$$$$ is being spent in those unimportant, unnecessary errands. I think HR and the school director would be interested in seeing the report, as she is accountable for managing the budget of the department.
Believe it or not, the department has been paying me overtime (which wasn't necessary if there was better management) because the important projects have to be completed no matter what.
Take care and thank you again for your contribution. It did make a difference.
God bless,
Salsipuedes
Quote:
Originally Posted by Corva
This. ^^^^^
You said this is a new department. Are you the first person in this position? It sounds like your department is lacking organization and policies/procedures. Maybe this is something you don't have to just "live with" but can be pro-active about....
For instance, if you have issues with being notified late for setting up events, speak to your boss about drafting an office procedure for meetings and events - and in it, list what you need (including deadlines) from the requestor for everything to go smoothly. This will show your boss that you have initiative, and hopefully you will get the support for the office to adhere to it. Sell it to your boss that the university as a whole already has staff in place that can handle setup at no cost to the department - but it is a cost when you are pulled away from other priorities to do last minute work. It's always important to speak financially about any idea you are trying to "sell", because that's often where your bosses' mind will be. You can also sell the fact that following the procedure will ease a lot of that last minute panic, or could keep the meeting host organized by having a checklist, etc. etc.
Overall, though, there is a certain amount of c*** you will have to put up with in that position, it's the nature of the position. However, you have to make sure maintain a balance between being supportive and being assertive. If someone has given you a large assignment - and then turns around and asks you to fetch a file they could have gotten themselves, tell them you are busy working on such and such an assignment, and would like to get it done in time, what would they prefer your priority to be...people will often push to see how much they can get away with, but will cooperate (albeit perhaps with a bit of grumbling) when you start to push back a bit. This may not work for every case, as you are the assistant, but you have to find that balance and be a bit assertive as well as supportive.
I hope you are at least going to the DOCTOR for these injuries. Don't ruin your future health and welfare (your back!) for a 20 hour a week job! If you file a workers' comp claim it is usually NOT a ton of time spent in court and your doctor bills and pay for missing work are taken care of. Plus it is DOCUMENTATION that will keep them from assigning you these labor-intensive tasks in the future because it will be beyond their little department but in HR.
Hello!
I did what you suggested, even though my boss did know about my back pain issues since day one (it's on my application), I brought my boss a copy of my doctor's orders and recommendations, as well as a copy of my physical therapy plan and medications. HR already has a copy too....... you're right, no job is worth back injuries! If you add the fact that I am a person of color......am I being treated like a slave because of the color of my skin?
I did what you suggested, even though my boss did know about my back pain issues since day one (it's on my application), I brought my boss a copy of my doctor's orders and recommendations, as well as a copy of my physical therapy plan and medications. HR already has a copy too....... you're right, no job is worth back injuries! If you add the fact that I am a person of color......am I being treated like a slave because of the color of my skin?
Thank you!
REALLY, the race card?..............Wow, you really need to rethink what your saying. Slavery is no more........never was for you.........you never lived in that era. Now get over it, and get back to all your OTHER ISSUES.
I think she was kidding about that because of the ... these days many employers will treat any and all of us like slaves if they can get away with it whether we are white, black or purple with green spots!
I think she was kidding about that because of the ... these days many employers will treat any and all of us like slaves if they can get away with it whether we are white, black or purple with green spots!
How about minority issues? Universities have to practice anti-racism.... just a thought
I don't think race has anything to do with it. As I posted earlier I had a friend who was in a similar position. She was an Adm. Asst. for an educational company.
She had no idea when she took the job it would meaning going into this huge supply room and having to pull down supplies that were needed for the employees(who traveled) to do in a presentation.
They never gave her advance notice and sometimes two or three people would be traveling. She would have to box everything up and get it shipped to where they were doing their presentation.
She ruined clothes climbing up on ladders, moving boxes, packing boxes, etc.
Also when any fax/copy machines broke they expected her to fix them before calling the company. They even had her putting together furniture they ordered.
She had no idea of the physical labor involved until after she took the job and was not happy about it.
And she was white.
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, WHICH I LOOOOOVE (I was traumatized by a call center in my previous job).
) that involved a lot of research and computer work and they are very engaging and interesting. 
Thank you
