to be frustrated and bored - or just grateful for a job?

[EverythingsPink]

i've been back from maternity for a year now and my job isn't the same. My title hasn't changed but my role is no more resonsible than an undergraduate employee. I amend 'stuff' and print things for senior staff, I am bored and frustrated.

i approached HR 6 months ago as i was feeling vulnerable and pissed off to be honest. They acknowledged that i was unhappy and said the situation was partly becuase of the recession and there simply wasn't the projects in the office for me to fulfill my old role. Soon after I was nearly made redundant - i was pooled with one other guy because we were of the same grade but because we don't have client contact (me - since returning from maternity) we were 'at risk'. To cut a long story short, he went and i stayed - which could be an indication that they do appreciate me but possibily that i am cheaper (younger and part-time)..

Since my role still hasn't changed. I am given minor tasks to do and just feel trapped in a job i don't like anymore and undervalued.

Not sure what response i am hoping for just needed to vent really i suppose.

[BiancaJackson]

Why aren't you looking elsewhere? I know the job market isn't what it was, but there are still some decent jobs out there. And if your employers aren't bothered that you are bored and frustrated, it definitely sounds like it's time to move on.

If finding another job really proves to be impossible, do an evening course that will enable you to get promoted or leave for something even better.

Nobody will push you into finding a more fulfilling role, only you can do that yourself.

Good luck

[picmaestress]

Set yourself a target of finding a new career over the next 6 months. Think of next summer as being the start of an exciting new adventure, and get your training etc sorted now.
There are so many interesting things you could be doing, and life is too short to waste on a job you don't like. BUT: stick with the job while you figure out what you're going to do, and definitely appreciate it for the money and security. I walked out of a secure job that I hated, and I really regret it still. It made my life very hard. It's extremely difficult to get a job when you don't have one.

I started by writing a list of my top 10 fantasy jobs. I'm now doing one of them! Don't be bored, change your life...

[kickassangel]

surely you are entitled to return to the same job, and if you didn't then you have grounds for complaint? i think you should raise it again, saying that they have never given you the opportunity to do more? it sounds like your current position is possibly redundant, but what about your OLD job, is there the scope for you to actually do that job?

also ask about training opportunities. however, if you're part time, to a certain extent you should just be glad to still have a job - often part timers are the first to go if there are redundancies.

[EverythingsPink]

Thanks for the advice. Unfortunately the job i have is a career i have worked / studied hard for and i am actually more qualified than some of the more senior staff so more training / studying isn't really going to make any difference. I just feel undervalued and worthless now whereas before I felt appreciated and like i was 'going somewhere'. Before promotion looked like a possibility although i knew it wouldn't be any time soon, now i can't even imagine it in the distant future.

I know the recession has had a lot to do with the situation and it is partly bad luck but I do feel that I am now overlooked possibily (because i am part-time?) although they have said that this isn't the case. As long as the recession continues i feel I can't really expect anything more and that i just have to sit it out... and i know there just aren't any jobs in my industry available at the minute so to even get an interview elsewhere would be impossible.

sorry, turned into a bit of a moan.