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It sounds to me like you are the common denominator here. Perhaps you need to change your attitude or behavior in such a way that doesn't rub people the wrong way. Because having one or two bad bosses is one thing, but if it happens over & over, the problem might be you.
Like I've said, I've stayed at those situations for at least 18 months. And, despite the contentious overall work environments, I still have received good performance appraisals and left with good recommendations. They'd all tell you I do my work, get along great with coworkers, inquire about "moving up," etc.
I continue to show (well, feign sometimes) a great attitude at work--"good morning," "good night," cutting up with the coworkers, completing assignments as quickly as possible, etc.
Since you're not in my current situation, you truly don't understand how bad it has become.
It sounds to me like you are the common denominator here. Perhaps you need to change your attitude or behavior in such a way that doesn't rub people the wrong way. Because having one or two bad bosses is one thing, but if it happens over & over, the problem might be you.
It sounds like this person has done everything he reasonably can to make this job work.
I'm not necessarily blaming the manager he's currently working for either. Like I said, it sounds like she had no say so in the matter, someone above her made a decision to move him under her, and she doesn't know what to do with him. Who knows if she needed another employee or not.
However, she needs to communicate better with him. If he's requesting meetings, she needs to either find something for him to do or let him move on.
As for the first bolded point, I definitely have. Probably 6-7 times in the last two months. I have little to work on and could do this more often, but I don't want to seem too "obvious" or desperate.
As for the second bolded point, as I said in the OP, I have tried to meet with her in two appointments in about the last 2.5 months. One was an app't that got cancelled, the other was an app't that never materialized. Again, the whole obvious and desperate thing...
I'm definitely looking for new jobs! I have an interview coming up.
Yeah. I'm looking for a way out ASAP. I'm also prepared to just quit cold as an absolute last resort. The market for the work I do is simultaneously the strongest and most competitive in any state in the U.S. (it's a different line of work from the heavy-hitting tech, entertainment, VC, real estate, etc.) I have enough savings and in credit cards, plus qualifying for unemployment (I've done it), food stamps, and state Medicare is easier in California than in most states. But, like I said, last resort...
The other (the "favorite") employees have Bachelor's degrees. I was brought on with a Master's degree, and my transportation to this city for the interview was paid for (even though my relocation was not). To my knowledge, the other employees didn't have interview or relocation expenses paid for since they were already in this region. Pay rates are nearly the same. The other employees actually had more internship experiences before accepting their jobs. Anyway, might this make a difference for me? Might management have thought that I would just "know it" sooner?
WHY is your boss so swamped personally when she has a staff of four people? Does she fail to delegate?
WHY is a very good question that I have often wondered the answer to!
She does fail to delegate to a degree. She has a lot of assignments that only she can do, but the failure to delegate is there. That said, she still delegates quite a bit to her other staff. Ultimately, her big thing is just figuring "it" out yourself, initiating almost everything, and just asking for her input once she approves of the assignment you're proposing to initiate. But, one guy doesn't initiate a whole lot and she's still pouring work on him... It's weird.
And, I get taking initiative. But the boss-subordinate relationship is supposed to be two-way.
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