Expected to do a full time job (37.5) hours in 30

[jamiejean]

Just looking for some advice. I started a new role a few months ago working 30 hours over 4 days. It's a PA type role but I support quite a few people. Another woman started the same job (supporting different people to me) around the same time and she is full time yet our workloads are the same. I'm still getting loads of emails on my day off and have found myself checking them at the weekend to know what I'm coming in to on the Monday. My previous job was 3 days but the role was working in a team and I had a job share so I never came in to loads to do on a Monday and it was really manageable. The role has got very busy in a few months (there was nobody prior to me and it's a new role) and I just know it's only going to get more intense and it's making me anxious. I don't want to kick up a fuss when I'm still new hence asking here first. Just wondering from others who have been in this situation, how is best to navigate this? I am not willing to work full time anytime soon. 30 hours is max for me as DC is only 1 and I throughly enjoy our day off together, but I'm basically doing a full time job anyway and I find myself worrying about what's work is coming in on our day off together which I really want to stop.

I've got 2 weeks off next month and have a lovely family holiday booked but honestly I am dreading what will accumulate in that time and the amount of stuff I will come back to. Is this normal? I've always worked within a team so this is all new to me.

Hopeful bump

Put an auto reply on your day off. Book a meeting with your LM and raise the issue. Ask which tasks should be prioritised. Are there any whole tasks that someone else could take on?

I think you need to work out first what actual parts of the workload are too much vs managing your own stress around coming in to emails. It’s entirely normal for people to continue to send emails when you’re not there. I manage administrators and the people who manage best are the people who accept that there will always be some emails Sat there and it’s not a reflection on them.

That said, it sounds as though there may also be too much work to do, that’s the bit to focus on.

You need to set the boundaries of what you can do within your hours, and let the rest drop - preferably keeping your manager in the decision-making process ("I have x, y and z on my plate - currently I'm planning to prioritise x plus managing incoming requests, are you OK with that?"). Appreciate it might be very hard in your role, but the company isn't paying for full time - they can't get full time hours from you, so something has to give. Don't let it be you!

I work part time and part of my job is managing peoples expectations. I have full time demands on me so have to be very clear about how long things will take and what I will prioritise. I talk through it with my manager and she also helps to manage expectations.

it shouldn’t be this way, but you have to push back. People will keep asking for support unless you tell them otherwise. There are some things you can do:

• Don’t let it get to you - yes the emails will pile up, so what? You only have so many hours a week so some won’t be answered

• have a diary which publicly shows when you’ll be doing finance or diary management so if requests aren’t in by e.g. 11am you won’t be able to accommodate them.

• push back on unnecessary meetings “as you know I only with X, I think it would better if I prioritised Y unless it is imperative that I am there.”

You have to take control of the situation. Talk to everyone you’re assisting about your reduced hours and ask them what you should prioritise.

Good luck!

I have something a little but similar: hired to work part-time (3 days week) but I am the only person providing that support (marketing) and there was no one in that post for almost a year before me.

It has become clear that the workload is really a full-time one and the fact that there has been a gap in someone being hired means there is a backlog of work as well as new work coming in.

So far what I have done is:

• remind everyone that I work part-time (my days are clearly highlighted in my email signature as well)
• put out of office message every week for the days I don't work
• remind my manager in every catch up that I am being asked to do a lot of work but that only a certain amount can be completed within my hours
• refuse to attend any meetings that are booked on the days that I don't work and ask for them to be rescheduled
• pass on some of the work to a freelancer.

I must say though that because of this I no longer see this job as a long term prospect as this is going to be an ongoing issue.

I will suggest they should really hire an additional person (maybe a job share) but ultimately my plan is to start job hunting again in about six months.

I have had that issue quite a few time: being hired on a part-time basis because the organisation wants to save money but being pushed to do an impossible workload which very obviously requires a full time person or even a team of people.

If the roles a full time workload I would expect full time pay for it...

I think you should also stop working weekends/evenings because it is counterproductive: you are giving them the impression that the workload is achievable by doing that.

Instead do what can be done within your hours and raise the issue with your manager.

I know you said no to working full time as you enjoy your day off. But would you consider ft hours compressed into 4 days? I understand if not as it might make the days too long?

but if you stay pt you must stop checking stuff on your days off. You’re effectively working ft hours for pt pay when you start doing that.

Stop checking on your days off and weekend!!

Set an auto reply on your days off / holiday saying when you'll be back & the email of the FT person if they require something urgently.

Block out 2 hours at the beginning of each week to sort email & priorities for the next 3 days. Anything you can't fit in, escalate to manager or the FT person.

It's so hard and all my career I've done extra hours and extra work but honestly no one cares. They are happy the work is done but a business is just that.

The more you do on your day off the more it's masked and you actively reduce your hourly rate.

If the work piles up it is for management to sort out. They need to either increase resource or find a way for there to be less work.

Alot of businesses run on a knife edge and rely on goodwill.

Put your out of office on and try not to think about it.

Thanks all for the helpful advice. It does state on the bottom of my email my working days however will start putting an out of office on my day off. I'll also bring it up with my manager in our meeting soon. Part time hours were agreed on the fact that my workload on my day off would be covered by others but it's not happening. I totally agree that I need to stop checking my emails on my days off/ weekend, it's just so easy to click on my phone! I don't actually do the work at the time, I just check what has came in but I will still aim to stop this.

I am a number of years into working part time now and I’ve learnt the hard way to be firm with boundaries. You absolutely should have had an out of office on and have a chat with your line manager about who will pick up urgent requests in your absence. A lot of the time there is very little that can’t actually wait until you’re back but for those times when something is kicking off you need a back-up.

I also would say no-one will thank you for working on your non-working day so don’t. It will become an expectation and people get used to it. If you’re really firm people do tend to just crack on and get on with it.

I work different hours to most other people in my office and state it on my email signature. I refuse any meetings that are outside my working hours and I refuse to have work emails on my personal phone. I do have teams on my phone but I have notifications off so if I choose to check it that's fine but otherwise I'm in the dark.

I turn my out of office on an hour before any time off (I do work 5 days so it only applies to holiday) so I can manage the expectations of anyone sending an email just before I finish. I also block out time in my calendar for catching up and I do this every week. It stops meetings going in.

Also, whilst not related to your issue, I put my hours lunch into my diary as a private meeting every day to ensure I get the time to take it.