As an employee am I in the wrong here ? Workload & overtime problem

Wneu110

Hi all,

I'm currently working full time & I'm in a pickle.. There's a problem brewing between myself & management in the firm

The work I do though it's not the most difficult work there's a heck of a lot of it, it's a pressurised job with timelines come into it

The quantity of work is so vast that I cannot complete it every week, & has led to a backlog of work,

We're not allowed work overtime to catch up on work that we may have fallen behind on

And I'm not on for working extra hours per week every week unpaid. As I feel I'd be taken advantage of, I complete the hours stated in my contract

I'm not the most experienced person ever but I haven't come across a company who refuse to grant overtime even on occasions, even at a basic rate, to try & catch up on work

This has me seriously unhappy in the company

I've been applying for other jobs recently & thinking of leaving the job,

I've asked my manager could I please do some overtime & my manager refused.. However my manager made a suggestion of staying back each day for 30 mins, 2.5 hours per week still wouldn't be enough for me to catch up anyway & this would be unpaid work, realistically it's 7.5 to 10 hours per week every week I would need to complete the work

Any suggestions on how I should go about this ?

Felix Jones is God

Stay back and catch up, you don't do the work in the time allotted, your employer isn't going to pay you overtime to complete the task , otherwise the overtime bill gets bigger and your 39 hour week productivity lessens.
If you genuinely feel that you can't complete the tasks and won't be able to in the future, look for a new job immediately as you'll only end up very unhappy in your current situation.

sullivlo

Wneu110 wrote: »

Hi all,

I'm currently working full time & I'm in a pickle.. There's a problem brewing between myself & management in the firm

The work I do though it's not the most difficult work there's a heck of a lot of it, it's a pressurised job with timelines come into it

The quantity of work is so vast that I cannot complete it every week, & has led to a backlog of work,

We're not allowed work overtime to catch up on work that we may have fallen behind on

And I'm not on for working extra hours per week every week unpaid. As I feel I'd be taken advantage of, I complete the hours stated in my contract

I'm not the most experienced person ever but I haven't come across a company who refuse to grant overtime even on occasions, even at a basic rate, to try & catch up on work

This has me seriously unhappy in the company

I've been applying for other jobs recently & thinking of leaving the job,

I've asked my manager could I please do some overtime & my manager refused.. However my manager made a suggestion of staying back each day for 30 mins, 2.5 hours per week still wouldn't be enough for me to catch up anyway & this would be unpaid work, realistically it's 7.5 to 10 hours per week every week I would need to complete the work

Any suggestions on how I should go about this ?

Ask your manager to get somebody else to help you with the job to get back on track, and then reevaluate how you complete the tasks. If it's a job that one person can do, you may need to change how you approach it. If it's a job that requires more man power then you need to raise that issue with your supervisor.

As for unpaid overtime... that's a can of worms right there. You'll get people telling you not to do it. Fair enough. But I'm going to say I reckon there is a line in your contract that says "on occasion you may be asked to work longer than the 38 hours per week", which is what this situation appears to be.

If it were me I'd suck it up, do the overtime and get back on track. Then I'd find a way to prevent the situation happening again.

seamus

If you receive a salary rather than an hourly wage, then no overtime or unpaid overtime is usually pretty standard, up to a certain level. Very few companies would require regular unpaid overtime, but on the flipside an employee who rigidly sticks to their contract hours and won't occasionally make a sacrifice to meet a deadline, won't be looked on favourably.

Ultimately you need to be able to quantify the problem so that you can present it to management. In your case you seem to have a pretty clear grip on the amount of time work takes to get done, so you should be able to produce facts and figures which show that the amount of work assigned to you on a given week, exceeds the realistic expectation of what can be achieved in a standard week.

Present this to the person who assigns work to you, so that they can manage your workload better. If you're the person who manages your own workload, then instead you have to get used to telling people "No", when they try to give you more work than you can handle.

pilly

If someone is on a salary as another poster mentioned unpaid overtime is not unusual. Was someone else doing the job before you? If so, were they able to complete it in the normal working week? If they were then the manager may just think you're not working fast enough.

Irish_Elect_Eng

As others have said, work with your manager, involve them in the solution as it is as much their problem as yours.

(1) Do you need training.
Ask for input from a more experienced staff member.
(2) Is there a more efficient approach to the work.
Show him how you do it ask for advice.
(3) Does your manger really understand the workload?
Show him how long one item takes and explain the backlog then.


Yes, do some unpaid overtime in the short term, it is a least a good way to demonstrate that you are contributing to reducing the backlog.

Staplor

I was in a similar situation, I then had to evaluate why things were being done in the manner they were, and thought of ways to make the work more efficient. I spoke to my boss and told her about the changes (sometimes you can have knock on effects to other parts of the business).

I also looked at my working day, I now start and finish an hour earlier than most people in the office, this means that from 8-9 I can work solidly, I take lunch at 12, and then have another quiet hour from 1-2 where I can again work solidly.

In my case it was due to interruptions and phone calls from customers, by staggering my work hours I found more productivity. Also take a log of what you are doing everyday, work it out in 15 minute chunks and be honest in it, if 15 mins was spent chatting about the football write it in, and review it at the end of each day/week. Then look at how to do that more efficiently.

Have a look at the concepts of Red Time and Green Time, and Eat the Frog.

Eat the Frog was basically if you had to eat a frog everyday you'd do it first thing in the morning to get it done and over with. In work, anything that has to get done is done first, the rest can wait til after. Red Time and Green Time was time when I was open to phone calls and queries, by allocating time for the core tasks, and a couple of hours Red Time (agreed with my boss) I was able to get back on track. I'm now pretty efficient at my job and have learned all sorts of shortcuts to do my job better and faster. It's now very manageable for me, because of how I have my work set up.

Mrs OBumble

Op, we need more information to give good advice here.

One scenario: if you're an accounts clerk earning 19k, then overtime should be paid, and you should make the backlog your managers problem. Buy if you're an accountant earning 40k, you need to pull finger and do the job you're paid to do, no matter how long it takes.

lawred2

Wneu110 wrote: »

Hi all,

I'm currently working full time & I'm in a pickle.. There's a problem brewing between myself & management in the firm

The work I do though it's not the most difficult work there's a heck of a lot of it, it's a pressurised job with timelines come into it

The quantity of work is so vast that I cannot complete it every week, & has led to a backlog of work,

We're not allowed work overtime to catch up on work that we may have fallen behind on

And I'm not on for working extra hours per week every week unpaid. As I feel I'd be taken advantage of, I complete the hours stated in my contract

I'm not the most experienced person ever but I haven't come across a company who refuse to grant overtime even on occasions, even at a basic rate, to try & catch up on work

This has me seriously unhappy in the company

I've been applying for other jobs recently & thinking of leaving the job,

I've asked my manager could I please do some overtime & my manager refused.. However my manager made a suggestion of staying back each day for 30 mins, 2.5 hours per week still wouldn't be enough for me to catch up anyway & this would be unpaid work, realistically it's 7.5 to 10 hours per week every week I would need to complete the work

Any suggestions on how I should go about this ?

I haven't found one company that pays overtime to 'catch' up on work..

It's a ludicrous expectation.

Why would anyone bother doing anything during normal hours if they could just store up work and cream it during over time?

kirving

Wneu110 wrote: »

And I'm not on for working extra hours per week every week unpaid. As I feel I'd be taken advantage of, I complete the hours stated in my contract

I'm not the most experienced person ever...

Not having a go at you OP, but I think you've hit the nail on the head with the experience thing. Are you the first to leave every day?

I understand that you might not be thanked for staying late, and I really wouldn't suggest you stay till 7pm each night, but 30 mins to ensure you keep on top of things would be very common in a lot of companies.

_Brian

Its a hard call regarding working hours above and beyond the required contract hours.. Some businesses expect it to be done, some employees don't mind doing it..

There's no doubt that in some companies it does help with promotions and moving forward with your career..

If your doing it I would expect it to be a reciprocating arrangement that you could have the odd late start or early finish in return when you need it with no much questions asked.. if its all give, give, give then its harder to do it long term..

mohawk

In my experience overtime is not paid for any routine work. People on a salary don't tend to get it. You just have to do it when the need arises.
How long are you in the role. When I first started my job I often worked at extra 30 mins a day as I was trying to get up to speed and prove myself.

Wneu110

Mrs OBumble wrote: »

Op, we need more information to give good advice here.

One scenario: if you're an accounts clerk earning 19k, then overtime should be paid, and you should make the backlog your managers problem. Buy if you're an accountant earning 40k, you need to pull finger and do the job you're paid to do, no matter how long it takes.

I'm on €23k

Wneu110

Thanks for the advice guys, I'm still considering what I should do after another tricky week,

Your advice is appreciated I just can't respond to each post

bassey

Only advice I can give is if you genuinely feel you're putting 100% in to the work and you still can't meet deadlines, then let the backlog be the firms problem. Don't ever work for free.

Mrs OBumble

Wneu110 wrote: »

I'm on €23k

IMHO that puts you in the make it your managers problem league in most cases.

lawred2

Mrs OBumble wrote: »

IMHO that puts you in the make it your managers problem league in most cases.

100%

pilly

Mrs OBumble wrote: »

IMHO that puts you in the make it your managers problem league in most cases.

Yeah I would agree, 23k is not a high enough salary to be doing unpaid overtime.

sullivlo

pilly wrote: »

Yeah I would agree, 23k is not a high enough salary to be doing unpaid overtime.

Unless the employee is slacking during work hours and other employees/past employees can get the tasks done in the allotted time. In which case, the employee should work to clear the backlog.

pilly

sullivlo wrote: »

Unless the employee is slacking during work hours and other employees/past employees can get the tasks done in the allotted time. In which case, the employee should work to clear the backlog.

Agreed, if others can do the job in 39 hours then it should be completed.

_Brian

bassey wrote: »

Only advice I can give is if you genuinely feel you're putting 100% in to the work and you still can't meet deadlines, then let the backlog be the firms problem. Don't ever work for free.

I understand where people come from in saying this.

However in many workplaces and environments the value of an employee can be measured in the above and beyond they are seen to put in, thee optics can be key to pay increases and promotions.

It wouldn't be unheard of for people to be in working on pointless projects just to be seen doing them.

OP needs to decide what they want and what type of workplace this is. If it's the sort of place that expects them to keep working to clear the backlog and wil reward this with promotions, this may be what OP wants.
If they are just overwhelmed with the job and not capable of completing basic work - that's a very different position.

LegacyUser

OP it all depends on the type of work you are doing and the history of the role. If someone in role before you was able to meet the deadlines without issue or there are others doing the same role as you in the company and meeting the deadlines then the issues lies not with the job but with how you are doing it. If you were getting the work done faster then the time allowed do you think your job would be within their rights not to pay you for time you didn't work? My job involves lots of tight deadlines but they are spread out so once a month I might have a mad week were I have to stay late but the following week I could be finished at 3 and go home...I get paid the same for both weeks.

If it's a case that the workload is just not reasonable for the amount of time that is allowed for it then you need to sit down with your manager and go through the tasks and find a solution that works. I see no issue when you are on a set salary rather then an hourly rate to have the odd late evening as at least in my field it balances out with weeks I get to leave a little early but if the work cannot be done by anyone in the time allowed and thus requires people to work overtime every single day then its something wrong at the management level.

Wneu110

sullivlo wrote: »

Unless the employee is slacking during work hours and other employees/past employees can get the tasks done in the allotted time. In which case, the employee should work to clear the backlog.

I haven't been slacking, I kind of wish I was as say if I was spending half of my working day on my mobile at least I'd know exactly what the problem would be

Wneu110

pilly wrote: »

Agreed, if others can do the job in 39 hours then it should be completed.

No one who has done my job apparently got all of their work completed within their working hours, that's including my manger who is trying to work this out with me

it seems like as previous poster suggested, that the company I'm in almost expects you to extra hours unpaid,

I don't mind working extra hours here & there occasionally unpaid to help out & get work completed, but I stand by my calculations previously where I believe I need 10 extra hours per week every week to make sure everything gets across the line

I don't fancy working 10 hours a week every week unpaid

Peregrinus

Wneu110 wrote: »

No one who has done my job apparently got all of their work completed within their working hours, that's including my manger who is trying to work this out with me . . . I don't fancy working 10 hours a week every week unpaid

Do your colleagues work 10 extra hours a week unpaid?

If they do, you face the unpleasant alternative of (a) doing the same, or (b) looking around for another job. It may be that the company has an entrenched unhealthy and unfair culture in which employees prove that they "deserve" their jobs by persistently doing unpaid work in order to satisfy unrealilstic performance targets, and the employees have largely bought into this; if that's so, you don't want to stay in the position.

On the other hand, if they don't all work an extra 10 hrs/wk to keep up but you feel you would have to, it looks as though the problem lies with you. I'm not saying you're slacking, but on the face of it you're not workign as effectively as your colleagues, and you would need to try to work out why this is.

sullivlo

Wneu110 wrote: »

I haven't been slacking, I kind of wish I was as say if I was spending half of my working day on my mobile at least I'd know exactly what the problem would be

Well if you're doing all that you can during the work day, it is an issue that you need to raise with your manager. I hope it works out for you.

dev100

There's two sides two the story and then there's the middle ground

For an employer they will will always want to pay you as little as possible for as long as possible. In their eyes a willing donkey will always have work. So you could decide to do the extra hours and then it becomes a norm . If you do an extra 10 hrs a week it becomes roughly with hols 11 to 12 hrs or 500 hrs weeks over the year that you would be working for free.

You will need to highlight in a constructive manner explaining how the current work load can't be done in a normal working week . Do this via company email if access is available rather than verbal. Verbal means nothing it can be ignored or denied.

If you work for free you will always have work .... your choice is put up and shut up or highlight issue and do a good day s work within your working hours assigned to you . If targets can't be met because of excessive workloads let your manager decide what to do best course of action is that's what they are paid to do . If they are unwilling to pay you extra or give you a helper well then that's not your fault .

Remember you work for reward. If you want to work for free do charity work in your spare time . You can't spend free hours in Tesco's ...

For 23K I wouldn't be doing free labor

Teyla Emmagan

There is no way I would work an extra day every week for free. Not in a blue fit. If you're sure you're working efficiently OP then there is just too much work to be done in the timeframe. And that's not your fault, it's because your workload isn't being managed properly. They need more resources. I think expecting you to put in a load of unpaid hours to make up for that is a joke situation.

I wouldn't be doing it anyway. Do your hours efficiently and let the work pile up. They will eventually have to put their hands in their pockets.

lawred2

What exactly is your line of business anyway OP?