Four months into new job and I might have walked out for good

[shittyjob]

There's not much back story. Been in the job about four months and resigned from a good one to take it up. More professional, more career development, better sector, more money, more holiday, etc., etc. ha, ha, ha. Anyway as a trained professional I am being paid quite a lot to do glorified admin. There is an admin team of about six who seem to do very little, are very inefficient and unhelpful and make massive mistakes all the time. Getting them to do anything is dreadful.

Turns out the turnover is very high in the department and my predecessor left because of lack of support/bullying/silly hours just to keep up due to the lack of admin and managerial support.

Anyway because excessive amounts of things haven't been done I raised the latest issues at a team meeting on Monday and got told off because evidently the criticism made the superviser (who is exceptionally rude, two grades lower than me but thinks she can bark orders at me) cry.

This morning I had to chase up some info for a meeting at 11 and politely asked one of the admin team for it - they were dealing with it although it was actually given to someone else last week who didn't do it. I was told it was all done but another person had the rest of it. Went in there 20 minutes later to speak to the other person (not there) and discovered by looking at a form that I had been given the wrong information and it wasn't all done. I asked why and got a vague answer so I asked again and got a vague answer so I said I wanted it checked right then. The person started banging things around the desk, stood up and started shouting at me. Another member of staff sorted out the information. Bear in mind this person was having breakfast at 10 and more interested in the breakfast than the work. They start at 9 btw.

Anyway I have just about had enough of this team, enough of a professional job being misrepresented, and enough of no admin support and where it is there totally incompetent admin support that can't do, won't do and don't do.

I was upset on Tuesday, I was upset all day yesterday and this morning was the final straw. I went to my meeting and came back and have emailed my boss that I will be returning when I have received an apology and there is clarity about admin support and when things will be sorted out.

So I reckon I'll either get an apology and go back in tomorrow or that's it. And if that's it you know what I feel that they might learn something from it. But I know I've been unreasonable but I feel I've been banging my head against a brick wall for months, the team is grossly unprofessional, grossly incompetent and horribly rude. It is not the way to live life. But neither is it the way to bow out really. OTH my professional reputation is also at stake and I am constantly having to cover their tracks and keep a smile on my face and apologise.

Oh shit.

And I'm sorry that was so long and thank anybody who gets to the end for reading through it.

What a difficult situation. Who do the staff report into? Who is it that sets expectations and work goals? Who manages this?

You've done the right thing, I've seen 'admin teams' in action and its not pretty. The dark side if women in the work place.

Get your cv out, give it a fresh edit and get on jobsite

Who's the manager?

I would complain and complain and complain until the job was done - I would follow up every request with an email and I'd go through the disciplinary process if colleagues were rude.

This is completely unacceptable and will need the support of management and a good admin manager to resolve. You're going to need a thick skin cos they sound like fuckers!

This what the structure is like and I'm putting it in Roman numeral terms with the higher grades the larger numbers.

Director (had presided over this dysfunctional office for years)
My boss V
Me and four others IV
The admin team - the supervisor is III, two members are II, and three are I

The one who was so rude today is I. The supervisor is at the root of it I think.

All grades IV and above are professionally qualified and client facing the grades below are not. I think my boss thinks I have been too robust but he has more influence over them because he is the line manager. My colleagues just tend to do all their own admin and work until 7 on a regular basis and beg.

Sounds bloody dreadful! You did the right thing though. Good luck and I hope you get an apology.

You're holding out for an apology - I actually think the ultimatum was far from professional, can you retract that?

You should be requesting a review and restructure of the admin department as they aren't providing appropriate admin support and are dealing with colleagues in a wholly unprofessional manner, this puts you in an untenable position.

If your peers and line managers don't believe there's an issue then yes you are most probably out of a job

Do you work in legal? conveyancing maybe? Very common if thats the case. Id say leave as it sounds rotten to the core.

Well, I've got the apology. And there is a meeting next week to review the restructure and provision of admin support. Do you really think I'd have raised an ultimatum if I didn't know I was worth more in the organisational context than a dysfunctional admin team. Do you really think the boss and the director want an exit questionnaire about this copied into the CEO's office. I was rash, I took a high risk tactic but I'm not bloody stupid.

Hey ho - let's see what tomorrow holds and if the little shit hasn't been suspended for intimidating conduct I might well come straight home again.

It all sounded fine if a little rash until ur last comment. It made you sound big headed, smug and a little bullying.

Use the protocol in place for dealing with this.

Upset? Apologies? Walking out? Doesn't sound too professional from either end, to be honest.
Raise your problems properly, through the right channels.

Shittyjob, any update?

Throwing a tantrum and walking out is hardly professional though - I realise the team is letting you down but you have acted in a way that is not exactly going to get the respect of anyone in the office.

Hope all went well today, OP. Good on you for standing up to them.

Sounds to me like you are not trying to resolve this in a constructive way - just "pulling rank" in an ineffective way tbh. If you are issuing ultimatums you may as well leave imo.
It may be the best move as trying to resolve things could genuinely be a lost cause - in any case I don't think you have any future with this organisation.

Sounds like a nightmare, nothing worse than lack of admin support. You were v brave to stake your job on it though, ime it is usually one or two shits stirring egging everyone else on. Ime alas there is no cure except to ease the little shots out. You would be amazed at how quickly a normal type service appears.

Good luck with it.

I think you have been reasonable - you have tried with the structure for months and got nowhere. Then they are completely rude and are not doing their job, I would have pulled rank too.

Good admin are worth there weight in gold, bad admin just pull the whole organization down and need sorting out. I have worked at all levels - so have experienced all sides.

Fingers crossed the structure is sorted and they know not to mess about now - at least with you :)