AIBU to think it's their responsibility to provide me with all the info?

[Funkyslippers]

Our team has a meeting every morning, which I can never attend as I start work later. Usually it's just discussing plans for the day and any changes to normal plans. Usually around 5 mins. I've heard through the grapevine that in the meetings last week the team were asked to each make a Powerpoint presentation, to be presented in a few weeks' time. The first I heard of it was an email from one of the managers saying "as discussed in the meeting, here is the sign up sheet, please put your name next to a subject". The email also mentioned some training on Powerpoint that they'd all had in one of the meetings. Apparently this week they were told that not everyone had put their names next to a subject and they expected everyone's names to be there. All of this was told to me by a friend in the team. She was not told to pass the info onto me or anything.

So now I'm thinking I'm going to be chased up for something I have barely any official knowledge of, and if this is the case I think I'm well within my right to say that unless I'm given all the info I am not equipped to do it?

Yes, what’s the purpose of the PowerPoint presentation? What are they trying to achieve?

You need to be proactive in your role - that’s exactly when you found out about it, so it’s up to you to chase it up.

You can't expect to be spoonfed as an adult. You do know about the task, why would you play dumb and pretend you have no idea?

Unfortunately you do know about it from the email, so you need to ask questions. One of them should be a suggestion that meetings like this are minuted and the notes shared to everyone afterwards.

I'd say its your responsibility to ensure that you are keeping on top of work updates if you're unable to attend the meetings.

It sounds like a shit place to work if meetings are so disorganised (no minutes??) and your manager doesn’t make sure that the people he is responsible for are kept informed and supported to be able to contribute to planning matters.

I think you should be raising this with your manager as a failure to support you adequately.

I had p/t staff that started at 10am when others would start at 8am. Staff meetings were arranged to ensure that everyone could attend or at least be kept informed and encouraged to contribute. This was in an Education setting, but not a school.

It isn't very satisfactory if you can't ever make the meeting. I do think it's the managers job to fill you in about what happened or else delegate that task to somebody else. They are the ones who agree to your late start. If every day you need to go round asking colleagues what happened at the meeting this isn't very satisfactory either.

I agree with the OP. I manage a team of 4 people who supervise a further 20 between them. We have weekly meetings and I send an email to everyone after to confirm everything discussed and everything planned for the week. Sometimes people can’t attend. It’s up to me to make sure they are all properly informed about everything discussed and the plans for the week/month. Doesn’t take long to send an email.

I agree with waterbottles too.

To whoever said 'everywhere they have worked there would be minutes from the meeting' has clearly never attended a staff briefing in a school. Nobody has the capacity to do that, the onus is on anyone not able to be in the briefing to find out - 9 times out of 10 the teacher the TA works alongside would tell them, but if they are a person that is timetabled to be all over the place, they would ask one specific person to let them know.. Quite frankly, in this day and age I'd probably share in a WhatsApp.
If they've mentioned something about Powerpoint in a briefing, it is hardly likely to be in detail training - just go along and ask whichever colleague you find approachable if you really have no idea how to do the task. It's what we all do. If you are working in a school you need to take some responsibility for yourself and your work.

@BackforGood that was me...and yes I have worked several schools. Minutes of a meeting were always provided. There's no point in having a "meeting" if there's no minutes tbh

Of course there is - it is about things that affect that day - not things that need to be kept on record.

When is the presentation going to be, surely there won't be time in the short meeting time they have in the morning?

Who attends the meetings, do other TAs attend?

Nobody has the capacity to do that

Generally most workplaces one of the attendees makes notes on a rota basis if clerical staff aren’t employed. I’m not sure why somebody at the meeting can’t do that?
Schools are subject to full disclosure and FOI so if your meetings are not minutes in some way your establishment may find itself in hot water.

Honestly, this doesn't have to be a big deal. Show some initiative and ask.

PowerPoint isn't rocket science, even kids can figure it out after a few minutes. Do you have a computer at home?

@Level32 then why/how are they talking about presentations in a 5 min "briefing"
Surely they didn't have time for that, or did they say oh and we are doing presentations for x and I'll forward on the details via email...the very email that the OP received. So really and truly OP has as much information as everyone else at the "meeting"

I would have agreed with others until I read you are a TA! Are they providing time during your paid hours for this presentation to be completed? If not, you absolutely shouldn't have to do it. I do think that finding out what happened at the meeting is your responsibility not the employer's BUT the meeting needs to be minuted or recorded so that you can easily access the minutes / recording (if virtual) and make sure you haven't missed anything. I would ask that,moving forward the meetings are minuted and minutes saved in an accessible location so that you can read them. Similarly any training delivered to other TAs that you miss out on due to your agreed working hours (which are presumably the only hours you are paid for!) should be made available to you for you to complete in any non-contact time. You should not be expected to catch up unpaid on meetings / training etc. Whilst the employer shouldn't need to seek you out to explain it all, there should be systems in place that enable you to access the same opportunities and information as your colleagues during your payable hours.

[quote scubadub]@Level32 then why/how are they talking about presentations in a 5 min "briefing"
Surely they didn't have time for that, or did they say oh and we are doing presentations for x and I'll forward on the details via email...the very email that the OP received. So really and truly OP has as much information as everyone else at the "meeting" [/quote]
Exactly, either it’s a quick 5 minute job and they said an email will be sent with details. In which case she’s missed nothing. Or there’s more discussion and it should be minuted. PowerPoint training couldn’t have been provided in a 5 minute briefing

Talk to your manager about how you are going to be kept up to date on things when your working patterns means that you can't attend the team meeting. I suspect you may be told to speak to a colleague to get the info later in the day, but at least it is "official" then. It is a shame that your manager isn't thinking about all the team and how they keep up to date, but bad management is a reality of life, you either learn to manage it or your try and find a way to leave it behind.

Exactly Level32 and BungleandGeorge

Are the meetings minuted? If so I would think that you are expected to read the minutes when you get into work.

To people who say there wouldn’t be minutes for a quick 5 minute briefing - I think it is justifiable to ask for actions to be minuted in a short bullet point list if nothing else.

I think you need to highlight the issue, request you are updated with the training and presentation information, and constructively suggest there is a more efficient process of noting who is present at meetings, and who is absent & therefore needs the information given to them effectively after the event.

@Santatizer

I would have agreed with others until I read you are a TA! Are they providing time during your paid hours for this presentation to be completed? If not, you absolutely shouldn't have to do it. I do think that finding out what happened at the meeting is your responsibility not the employer's BUT the meeting needs to be minuted or recorded so that you can easily access the minutes / recording (if virtual) and make sure you haven't missed anything. I would ask that,moving forward the meetings are minuted and minutes saved in an accessible location so that you can read them. Similarly any training delivered to other TAs that you miss out on due to your agreed working hours (which are presumably the only hours you are paid for!) should be made available to you for you to complete in any non-contact time. You should not be expected to catch up unpaid on meetings / training etc. Whilst the employer shouldn't need to seek you out to explain it all, there should be systems in place that enable you to access the same opportunities and information as your colleagues during your payable hours.

@Santatizer - why are TAs a special case?