AIBU about job?

[Dhapeer]

I started a new job 6 months ago. I was interviewed by the office manager, my manager and a director. It was casually alluded to that everyone pitches in with taking calls etc.
On my first day, it became apparent that while doing your job, they also have this 'virtual' reception which is where your phone rings every time a reception phone in any of the offices nationally rings. You are expected to take some of these calls.
I can not describe the stress of being in the middle of something and having to answer reception calls.
Ok, so I got used to that and accepted it.
Last week, we had an admin meeting and we were told that we now have to do the following as well:

1. Offer to do incoming/outcoming post when receptionist is on leave
2. Listen out for the doorbell ringing and answer the door if no-one is at the 4 desks behind reception. I sit about 30 seconds walk from the reception door.
3. Make teas and coffees for meetings in the absence of the receptionist.

I have 22 years administrative experience and am supposed to be a Team Administrator for a team of 5 building surveyors. I also have PA duties for my Director.

Would any of you do this? I have handed in my notice to my manager by text and have rang HR and am waiting to hear back.

FFS, they are paying me 28k to answer phones and make tea?

Am I the unreasonable one given that NONE of this was indicated in the interview and is not on my job description?

Sounds like a terrible job! I wouldn't last a morning. And a very inefficient set up. Glad you're out. Quite right that it's beneath you.

For that salary, I'd serve tea naked with bells hanging from my tits.
Love it

If you're a PA, then your job role includes organising all aspects of meetings and therefore arranging drinks for them. If you don't want to do that yourself, or are too busy at the time, then you could always delegate this to another member of staff but it really is a normal thing for a PA. I don't get why you're so hung up on a 2 minute task that is actually part of the job description in a career you chose yourself. No one made you enter that industry did they?

OP I clean toilets for a living (self employed, set my own rates, pick my own clients, no cap doffing for me) and I don’t think you’re being a snob at all. I’m right behind you.

Blimey your attitude stinks. I can sympathise how annoying it must be doing things that aren't in the job description but to be " it's beneath me" then you lose all credibility and sympathy. Maybe challenge yourself next time and mix it up and make coffee for your new colleagues 😆. Hopefully someone who really needs a job will fill your old position and be thankful for it.

Good for you OP. If more women refused to take shit we’d be running the world. And if we were running the world we wouldn’t do so with your imbecilic phone system.

"Imbecilic phone system" I fucking love it!
I will cite that as my reason for leaving lol.

A better explanation is that you come across as a bit of a turnip.

Accurate.

I disagree with most on this thread OP. YANBU to be annoyed that you’re being expected to essentially pick up another role in addition to your own. Picking up the phone when the receptionist has gone for a wee is one thing - having your phone ring every single time and being expected to pick up some of them (and how would OP know if the receptionist is away from her desk as the phone rings every time?) is just jarring and doesn’t allow for concentration.

OP might be chippy on here but maybe she thought that MN was a place where she could sound off about the stuff that’s annoying her?

Right, well I've sent the following email to the HR lady, my manager, the Director I support, the Director who interviewed me and to the Office Manager.

Dear blah

As you are all probably aware, I have tentatively handed in my notice.

However prior to confirming my resignation, I wish to engage in a discussion as to the reasons why. I was employed as a Team Administrator with a job description included in that offer. As part of the recruitment process, I was also interviewed and had my duties outlined to me therein.

At no point in that discussion or in the detailed job description was it outlined to me that I was to constantly cover reception phone calls. I believe Lucy name changed at one point in the interview briefly stated that 'we all help out with phone calls and such' but that was the only mention of phones and clearly did not remotely explain what the actual job entailed. It was never explained to me that my phone would be ringing upwards of 400 times a day at my desk and that I would be expected to cover the reception overflow at all times.

Furthermore, at an Admin Team meeting last week, it was now stated, that not only do we all have to answer reception calls, but we also have to do incoming and outgoing post, answer the doorbell (despite being a 30 second walk from the door) and bring sandwiches and teas and coffees to meetings.

None of this was ever agreed as part of my signed contract.

I am annoyed that the phone situation was never explained. I am further annoyed that I am now expected to take on additional disruptive duties in an already stressful role with the phone ringing constantly. I believe this to be a breach of contract.

I would like to see your written response to my contractual obligations before tendering my notice. Of course, you are fully within your rights to dismiss me with one weeks' notice as I am still within my probationary period, but I'm hoping that I have demonstrated enough added value to the company to demonstrate my commitment to the actual role I signed up to.

I look forward to hearing from you.

Kind regards,

I shall be expecting my dismissal in the post I guess!

As you are all probably aware, I have tentatively handed in my notice.

Yesterday you said you had quit by text so which is it?

How exactly do you tentatively hand in your notice?

You continue to sound very unprofessional.
Regardless of the reasonableness of covering reception or not, your attitude of being above certain things would be enough for any organisation to want rid.
Do you not have any self-awareness at how arrogant you come across? In your interactions here, your behaviours at work (the outburst at the meeting is appalling), and now this letter.
You’re only an administrator on £28k, FFS. (Removing tongue from cheek.)

They wanted me to formally write to them to confirm my resignation which I haven't done as yet.

Oh dear op. So you handed in your notice via text, managers, HR etc aware, discussed it with you and accepted it, now you're saying to them you've only tentatively handed it in so wish to backtrack and negotiate with them?

By the way,if you have handed in your notice they can't dismiss you. The reason for leaving is resignation , not dismissal.

Fwiw if I received a letter like that after a resignation I'd still handle it as a grievance and investigate so some good may come out of it, despite everything. Serious word of advice though - do think about your approach and how you come across.

I'm sorry, but if I was a Director and had similar discussions regarding my duties would you be saying that I sound unprofessional? Or is it just because I'm female and an administrator that I can't object to a contractual breach. How fucking uppity of me.

It was kind of you to include mistakes in the letter so they'd feel better about losing you.

What do you want from that message? Do you want to stay? It's really unclear what you're looking for.

I want to see whether they are willing to negotiate in writing.

if I was a Director and had similar discussions regarding my duties would you be saying that I sound unprofessional?

You texted your resignation! So, yes.

You sound like me when I'm trying to justify one of my PMT/perimenopausal rages, to be honest.

'Its just wanting everyone to help out' is what the HR lady told me on the phone yesterday. Well put that in writing.

You'll need to check your contract and job description before you talk of contractual breaches op so you don't make yourself look a tit (genuine advice)

I want to see whether they are willing to negotiate in writing.

Why? Yesterday you were delighted to leave. Why have you panicked and back-pedalled become open to negotiation?

They don't have to put anything in writing btw

Although tbf if they did put that in writing it would be absolutely fine and wouldn't be a "gotcha!!! You admitted it"

You'd be better off humble pie-ing it, resignation in heat of the moment etc, hoping they accept the retraction and then look for something else so at least you don't have to worry about bills etc.

'Its just wanting everyone to help out' is what the HR lady told me on the phone yesterday. Well put that in writing.

Why? What will you gain from that? Genuine question.

Do you want more money because your role now includes more telephone support/sandwich responsibilities? Do you want a different title?

Do you want to be excused from phone/coffee/biscuit action?