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Final Written Warning
Grundlterror
Registered User regular
Registered User regular
So just a few minutes ago I got a final written warning at work. I'm 22 years old and I have a pretty damn good job at HP considering. The warning was for tardiness, I am tardy quite often. I'm supposed to be here at noon every day, but I usually get settled and log into my phone 3 - 5 minutes late daily. One time I was 45 minutes late because my mom locked her keys in her car at her work and I had to come up there to unlock the car for her. Other than that its usually 5 minutes or so, except when I hit some major traffic or something.
I used to be on time, but we recently got new management and she looks at us all like statistics instead of humans (I know this is probably the way the corporate world works, but I am young and ignorant). I work my ass off when I'm here (other people here just talk about their rap careers or put their heads down and sleep or brush their hair all day... I'm especially serious about this last one) but still get shit for doing things other then work even when there is no work to do. I'm supposed to review documentation, but I knew this system front and back before this new manager even got here.
Anyway, they have repeatedly said that I am an extremely valuable resource to them. I got the final written warning and the conditions are that if I come in late one day in the next 30 days, I'm terminated. Part of me wants to quit right now, I don't like the job. I don't like the people working here (including an ex girlfriend I wouldn't mind not seeing anymore). It's very anti-social.. I never meet new people or anything... but the money is just too good. I won't make 14 bucks an hour working at a restaurant or something (I don't think). I've been here for almost two years also, I have seniority in a lot of things... people trust me.
What should I do? I mean I know I probably should come into work 10 minutes early every day and just sit tight and keep my job.... but I kinda want to say something to my manager along the lines of "I come in late because I don't care. I don't care because you don't appreciate the work I do. I'm not a statistic, I'm a person and when you forget that I forget that you have things you need me to do, such as come in exactly on time."
tl;dr - Got a final written notice at work. I do a better job then 90% of the people here. I really really hate it here, but the money is just too good. Should I stay or should I go?
I used to be on time, but we recently got new management and she looks at us all like statistics instead of humans (I know this is probably the way the corporate world works, but I am young and ignorant). I work my ass off when I'm here (other people here just talk about their rap careers or put their heads down and sleep or brush their hair all day... I'm especially serious about this last one) but still get shit for doing things other then work even when there is no work to do. I'm supposed to review documentation, but I knew this system front and back before this new manager even got here.
Anyway, they have repeatedly said that I am an extremely valuable resource to them. I got the final written warning and the conditions are that if I come in late one day in the next 30 days, I'm terminated. Part of me wants to quit right now, I don't like the job. I don't like the people working here (including an ex girlfriend I wouldn't mind not seeing anymore). It's very anti-social.. I never meet new people or anything... but the money is just too good. I won't make 14 bucks an hour working at a restaurant or something (I don't think). I've been here for almost two years also, I have seniority in a lot of things... people trust me.
What should I do? I mean I know I probably should come into work 10 minutes early every day and just sit tight and keep my job.... but I kinda want to say something to my manager along the lines of "I come in late because I don't care. I don't care because you don't appreciate the work I do. I'm not a statistic, I'm a person and when you forget that I forget that you have things you need me to do, such as come in exactly on time."
tl;dr - Got a final written notice at work. I do a better job then 90% of the people here. I really really hate it here, but the money is just too good. Should I stay or should I go?
Grundlterror on
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Also, you should probably start going to work on time. Odds are they're going to mention to your next employer that you're often late if you're going to use them as a reference.
Try leaving 5 min earlier and not giving into the urge to check the PA forums just one more time before you go.
Alternately, you can just show up for work 5 minutes earlier every day. It ain't that hard.
Cool thing is, most of the people here are very low level workers that aren't very knowledgeable about anything. One of the exceptions is listed as "dispatch manager". He's a computer dork and we always talk about computers together. I asked him a while ago if I could rely on him for a good recommendation and he said absolutely, so I don't have to worry about that.
Yeah, damn you PA forums, you've cost me my job! And for the time being, yes I will definitely get to work on time.
As for the job, fuck it. There are always jobs out there (and yes you could make upwards of 14 an hour as a waiter in a resturaunt). Don't get yourself in a position where you are trapped in a shitty job just cos it pays well. Shit son, you're young--especially don't do that.
It comes across MUCH worse then you think it does in terms of respect for your job. You may think your job is stupid or easy or whatever, but you're finding one of the few ways to get fired from a stupid, easy job.
You AREN'T going to change anything about your supervisor by lipping off to her at this point. Saying you don't come in on time because you don't care is like saying you steal because you don't get paid enough - if you're not hourly, it sort of IS stealing (five minutes every day is an hour a month. I don't know what you get paid, but if it's 25 dollars an hour, and you turn in 7:55 hour days, that's $300 bucks you're 'stealing' which is enough to be considered 'fucking with somebody's cabbage patch' in the parlance of the youth.
Particularly because you work at noon, most 'legitimate' reasons to be late aren't going to hold water. With me, it's a sleep issue - If I'm lucky, I go to bed exactly 6 1/2 hours before I have to be up, every night, so I drag ass all morning.
I would submit that even if you commit to changing this behavior, you still might want to hunt a new job, because anyone to the point of a 'final warning' for something could be boned on raises and promotions for quite a while.
I would also submit that being bored and unoccupied at work isn't the worst thing. Hanging off a drilling derrick in a lightning storm is pretty much the worst thing. There are many people who are happy with mediocre work days because it gets them the money and the freedom to pay for the rest of their lives. You need to ask yourself if you have a life fulfillment goal - considerable wealth, power, research in a science, whatever - that you aren't getting through work, or if your goals are things outside of work. If the former is the case, you might need to move on and work where you need to work to make it happen. If the latter is the case, you need to find the job that pays the most money and eats the least amount of time so that you can adequately enjoy pursuit of your goals in the rest of your day.
I host a podcast about movies.
I'd start leaving 15 minutes earlier every day, just to make sure I get in on time, but I'd start looking for a new job. If you hate your job so much that you can't bear to get there at 11:45 am rather than noon, you need a new one.
By the way, your mom could have called a tow truck. It's not your responsibility to bail your mom out, but it is your responsibility to go to work on time. Don't let other people's mistakes sabotage your life.
the "no true scotch man" fallacy.
Edit: This gets PARTICULARLY true post college when you are in an industry and will run into the same people over time more then you think. A 'team member' who got to process a little extra work each day one day might be your 'team leader' or the guy in an interview on your next job. . .
Also, you have to remember, people that cheat in one little way but not other ways are rare - people that bend one rule naturally accrue scrutiny on other rules, and being on time keeps you off those radars, and thus lets you fuck around more.
I host a podcast about movies.
In my defense this is not my career. This is the lowest level of low level work HP has to offer. I'm a dispatch agent, basically a phone bitch. I'm going to school for Computer Science, so HP is probably better than Papa Johns to have on my resume.
Other than that though, JohnnyCache, your advice is really good. I just got so angry that I forgot I have a responsibility to myself through my own ethics to do well. Plus, you're absolutely right, if I come in on time I'll be off their radar.
First off, if you don't love your job, it only makes sense to look for a new one in your off time. Start spending 10-15 minutes a day checking around on Monster and related sites, look at recruiters in your area, etc. Even if you love your job, being aware of what else is available and the average starting wage for those jobs is knowledge that can help you.
As far as you current job goes, start coming in on time. If you're putting in enough effort to be better than everyone else in your department, what harm does it do to set your alarm clock 15 minutes earlier?
Try coming in 5 minutes early for a week, then sit down and have a conversation with your manager. I would not say anything like "I come in late because I don't care." If you want your manager to listen to you, you need to approach this from his/her point of view. Something like "I want you to know that I appreciate how important it is to be in on time, and I'm working to make sure that I'm here. But, I think if I was more motivated, it would really help. Right now it just seems like I [have a lot less responsibility than I could / should be doing a lot more for the company than I am / don't have enough work orders to keep me busy during the day]. What do you think? Is there something more I could be doing?"
Never assume that things can't change. You might be surprised at some of the things your manager would suggest, any one of which has the potential to lead to a pay raise, better recognition of your skills, or even promotion.
This man speaks the TRUTH! Listen!
Well, I meant "career" as in work history rather then "vocation" but I can dig it.
I did a pretty similar job to this and may even go back to it, if I continue my education, and I was late pretty much every day until I honestly just started going SO early that I had 20 or so minutes at my desk before my shift started. I found out that really helps you because you can get a little 'personal time' in to just sort of calm down and adjust to being at work. When you're late, the first half hour or so of your work is this weird mess of avoiding immediate notice, punching/logging in really fast, etc. If, like me, you need a cup of coffee or something at your desk for a good mental flow, you have to either do without it or go get right after you arrive late...it's actually more relaxing to me to be on time, which is why I try to do it.
I host a podcast about movies.
If you're finding things out there that are as good or better, tell your boss what's up. Tell your manager that you're seriously considering leaving because everyone else sits around brushing their hair or even sleeping, and they don't know anything about computers. Say that you're very familiar with the documentation and that you feel like you work extremely hard at doing a good job when you're there, but that you get written up for being late. And say that you're late because you're demoralized by how no one else takes the job seriously. Say that you can't just be a phone person in an environment like that.
Your manager may just brush you off and say "well, it would suck to see you go," or could talk about other positions within the company.
When I was a teenager, I did an inbound phone job. People calling us up and we took their orders. Not bad, but really soul sucking. After doing it for almost 2 years and getting warnings for calling out sick and not trying to sell people cheap crap in addition to the one single item they wanted, I said "I can't do this, I'm not a salesman, I can't upsell when people are calling us to place an order on something they already decided, and this environment makes me not want to be here. Can I switch to, I don't know, the retail store?" And they did -- they moved me over to retail, where the hours were a little longer but the job was actually fun. Small store so it didn't get a lot of foot traffic, and some honestly weird people, but the job went from soul sucking to just having some annoying bits. The worst part was sorting shelves and the like when we were closing, as we could either be done at 8... or 9:15. We got paid for that time but it sucks when you're a student.
I'm not saying you should look for a retail job, but that any large company is going to have more than one division, and if employees appear that they actually care about the company and would like to stick with it, it's a LOT cheaper for them to transfer someone internally than pull an outside candidate.
PS - Hello fellow Georgian.
Second, even though you know the system in and out, I work in a place where there are people like that (and they are smarter than the other people around them for sure). But I expect more than just 'knowing the system'. Nobody is 'too low' to recommend improvements, work on pro-active projects, even do brown noser things like 'suggestions to improve the departments performance' and things such as writing up documentation on vague policies or helping co-workers with tips and tricks.
That really is the corporate environment. If you're smart enough to be able to do what is expected of you easily - then you're expected to go above and beyond if you want to stick around. You sound bored, you're just going to be bored at your next job as well unless you learn to take the pro-active approach and start tackling small projects in your own department. You don't have to be given things to do - if the 'queues are slow' as you mentioned - thats time you can fill with something useful. There's *always* time, I did it while meeting my metrics and it got me out of the queues within a year.
You're leaving the job is fine, but if you think the regular work place puts up with someone who is chronically late you are in for a very rude awakening.
pleasepaypreacher.net
Yeah, I'm well aware not to go job hunting while at work... thats a big no no, although I catch people around here doing it all the time.
I do that stuff (they gave me some lame award for teaching people around the office how to speed things up and do things more accurately)
See, there is really no room for improvement at this job. There is a guy here that has been basically handed all the managerial responsibilities and has been doing their jobs for a year and a half while they just forward emails to us (2 of them). He makes the same that I do and I really don't see him going anywhere. It's a dead end.
2 years at HP and NOT getting fired will look good on a resume.
You have no valid reason to stay there, since they obviously have no soul.
we also talk about other random shit and clown upon each other