Stress from Work.

i_want_to_be_happy

I have been at my current job almost 2 years. up until July, i enjoyed it, i get on well with my colleagues , sometimes the place does my head in a bit as they have stupid rules, like the air con has to stay on at 22c no matter what, but that's another story. I do credit control, and in June it took 2 weeks off for my honeymoon, i came back and it turned out that no one had chased in any money for the whole time i was off, despite the manager saying to someone, "these not much money in, i suppose that's because no one is chasing. the first 2 weeks back were terrible, i had so much to do, and so much chasing, as there was a lot of outstanding debt. it was hard to cope, and made me feel useless, the manager does no support me or my other colleague, he is always asking us pathetic questions and in fact its like we manage him. i spoke to the director about him, then the day after, i just lost it and ended up saying off 2 weeks with stress. as i think it just burnt me out as i was so angry at work all day long, and was coming home in a bad mood to my new husband and kids. all i kept thinking was its all my managers fault for this, and it worked me up as i know he is on so much more pay than me, i don't think my hourly rate is very good for the work i do. the week before i went back, i went to see a director at work saying things had been changed and would be better. i have been back 4 weeks now, and its no better, i took 2 days off this week holiday and my work didn't get touched, i enter the bacs and cheques on the system daily, and he never bothered to do it himself, because the other girl was busy as she has just had 2 weeks off, and some things of hers got left by him too ,so i am under a lot of pressure as there is allot of money to get in, then i have to catch up on that before i can chase. i don't think anything has been said to the manager, as he is still useless, and i cannot stand to work with him any more. to top it, when i was off ill , i just lied in bed for days, and ended up paying my council tax late, they are now taking me to court, this would not have happened, if i had not been off ill with stress from work, again it makes me angry. to top it my wage packet is low this month, due to the time off from work, that does not help either, i think my stress is now turning to depression, but i cannot have any more time off as my husband lost his job 6 weeks ago. i think its unfair that i did not get full pay when it was the company's fault i was ill, can i do anything about this ? also i don't know what to do about the manager i cannot work with him, as he takes responsibility for nothing, i am not the only one that has had trouble, but i feel no one is doing anything to deal with him. i almost feel like i could walk, but then i think if he was gone i would get on much better .

Sambucus_Nigra

You can only do what you can do.

a - put the council tax on Direct Debit.
b - do what you can in the time you have.

i_want_to_be_happy

done A trying to do B, but finding it hard as it makes me feel inadequate and useless. it has also got to a stage where i cannot talk civil to my manager, as i feel resentment towards him .

pink_princess

What does your manager say when you tell him your concerns and feelings ?

Sambucus_Nigra

i_want_to_be_happy wrote: »

done A trying to do B, but finding it hard as it makes me feel inadequate and useless. it has also got to a stage where i cannot talk civil to my manager, as i feel resentment towards him .

Well - only you can make yourself feel those feelings.

Take all the work into his office and ask him to prioritise your work for you as there is too much to do in the time you have.

Before you go on holiday, make sure you leave notes for him to ensure that your work is done, and before you leave for the day - have a meeting and tell him which stuff needs following up

and leave a copy with him and take a coy with you to refer to when you get back. Manage him, if he can't manage himself.

i_want_to_be_happy

he has said nothing, the director has taken control of prioritising on which debt to get in first. I said to the manager the other day i am drowning in work, and he just said back i am too. i also had a go at him as every morning he leaves paperwork on my desk, which is nothing to do with what i do to file, i said to him you need to file this as its nothing to do with me, i don't have time to file it and the response i got back was , i don't have time either. not the sort of response you would expect from a manager. i have been working less hours, and when i go he does not answer the phone as in the morning i come back to 5 or 6 voice mails on the group phone, which then takes up more time to deal with. its almost like he doesn't realise he is supposed to be in charge.

i_want_to_be_happy

Sambucus_Nigra wrote: »

Well



Manage him, if he can't manage himself.

I am not paid enough to that that, then let him take credit. it is like having a small child with you all day long, at first it was funny now its not, its just little things like him asking stupid questions, e.g "is that my phone ringing"

Sambucus_Nigra

i_want_to_be_happy wrote: »

I am not paid enough to that that, then let him take credit. it is like having a small child with you all day long, at first it was funny now its not, its just little things like him asking stupid questions, e.g "is that my phone ringing"

Unfortunately then, I have no suggestions.

You should always manage your manager; preempt them, show them what's going on before they ask, inform them of the problems that are going to arise etc.

It's not about him taking credit; it's about making your own life easier.

Managing upwards is as important, if not more important, than self management or downwards management.

serious_saver

How approachable is the director? I would speak to him again and if possible get your collegue to join you. Explain that it's just not possible to get the volume of work done. Sit down with you collegue and work out what the priority work is and stick to doing that first. If there's low priority work or basic admin duties etc to do, ask your director if you can focus on the important work and if he can arrange to bring in a temp for a week or two to do catch up. When I was on my breaks from university I was always doing admin catch up jobs for a week or a few days.

If you can both explain to your director that the build up of work it is affecting the business it MIGHT tip the balance and get him to provide you with some more support. The director will probably care more about the business than your manager who sounds as though he is only there to bring in his pay cheque.

If you carry on as you are now, you'll only bottle up your anger and make yourself more stressed and ill.

I hope things sort themselves out . . . . and if all else fails, I find a nice hot bath with lavendar oil helps

Googlewhacker

i_want_to_be_happy wrote: »

I have been at my current job almost 2 years. up until July, i enjoyed it, i get on well with my colleagues , sometimes the place does my head in a bit as they have stupid rules, like the air con has to stay on at 22c no matter what, but that's another story.

I do credit control, and in June it took 2 weeks off for my honeymoon, i came back and it turned out that no one had chased in any money for the whole time i was off, despite the manager saying to someone, "these not much money in, i suppose that's because no one is chasing. the first 2 weeks back were terrible, i had so much to do, and so much chasing, as there was a lot of outstanding debt. it was hard to cope, and made me feel useless,

The manager does no support me or my other colleague, he is always asking us pathetic questions and in fact its like we manage him. i spoke to the director about him, then the day after, i just lost it and ended up saying off 2 weeks with stress. as i think it just burnt me out as i was so angry at work all day long, and was coming home in a bad mood to my new husband and kids. all i kept thinking was its all my managers fault for this, and it worked me up as i know he is on so much more pay than me,

i don't think my hourly rate is very good for the work i do. the week before i went back, i went to see a director at work saying things had been changed and would be better. i have been back 4 weeks now, and its no better, i took 2 days off this week holiday and my work didn't get touched, i enter the bacs and cheques on the system daily, and he never bothered to do it himself, because the other girl was busy as she has just had 2 weeks off, and some things of hers got left by him too ,so i am under a lot of pressure as there is allot of money to get in, then i have to catch up on that before i can chase.

i don't think anything has been said to the manager, as he is still useless, and i cannot stand to work with him any more. to top it, when i was off ill , i just lied in bed for days, and ended up paying my council tax late, they are now taking me to court, this would not have happened, if i had not been off ill with stress from work, again it makes me angry. to top it my wage packet is low this month, due to the time off from work, that does not help either, i think my stress is now turning to depression, but i cannot have any more time off as my husband lost his job 6 weeks ago.

i think its unfair that i did not get full pay when it was the company's fault i was ill, can i do anything about this ? also i don't know what to do about the manager i cannot work with him, as he takes responsibility for nothing, i am not the only one that has had trouble, but i feel no one is doing anything to deal with him. i almost feel like i could walk, but then i think if he was gone i would get on much better .

Why is this time differant to other times you have had of on holiday or sick, presumably you had to catch up then?

Regarding the sick pay, have you got any proof that it was work related? If not then you have very little chance of getting paid, if you do you maybe able to get something but you may need to goto an Employment tribunal and if you do this your card is marked.

If you knew your hubby was losing his job then I would have thought this has an effect on your stress levels surely and thus the blame cannot be 100% directed at work?

i_want_to_be_happy

Googlewhacker wrote: »

Why is this time differant to other times you have had of on holiday or sick, presumably you had to catch up then?

Regarding the sick pay, have you got any proof that it was work related? If not then you have very little chance of getting paid, if you do you maybe able to get something but you may need to goto an Employment tribunal and if you do this your card is marked.

If you knew your hubby was losing his job then I would have thought this has an effect on your stress levels surely and thus the blame cannot be 100% directed at work?

it is the first time in 2 years i have taken off a long period of time. My husband lost his job the day after the doctor signed me off work, it was unexpected as he worked for his Dad .