Always on annual leave

[Abitboring]

I have a relatively new hire (but not direct report) who has been in the job since January. She took annual leave in February, April, May and June. Always about a week and always a 'holiday', so not family stuff etc. It made her training slow and difficult as there was only one full month she worked in her first five months of employment. There's been a bit of 'sorry, just got back from annual leave' as an excuse for one thing or another. It also made me wonder whether she's going to do this every year now and will effectively work part time a few months in a row.

I wouldn't mind as much if she was fully competent in her role, but she isn't. I find her a slow worker and I need to remind her about a lot of things, which I feel I shouldn't have to do if she just kept a list or something to remind herself what needs done when and how.

AIBU to be annoyed?

But you are a trainer. If you are training her, you are a trainer. It doesn’t matter what your formal job title is or what you normally do in your job.

I'm glad I don't work with you lot that think's it's ok to take a week off every month for four months.
I don't understand this.
Why us it a problem taking g a week off every four months. We are actively encouraged to spread our annual leave so we can have a break and refresh.
Even if you took a month f every four months that is only 3 weeks leave a year so I would still have over would still leave me with 3.5 weeks to use up.

I thought it would be common courtesy to tell colleagues when they need to cover for you because you'll be off.
I don't think I've ever discussed.
my holiday requests with colleagues except for peak time such as the main summer holidays. It's the managere job to sort out staff leave and who covers what. ( same rhe it her way round, staff don't ask me, they go through the annual leave policy of booking time off)
Op, let's face it, you just don't like this women.

it is not "playing the system" to take annual leave to which you are entitled.

If your company doesn't have systems in place to restrict AL during the first few months (or probation period if you have it) and doesn't have a system in place where they have to have a backup person who agrees before the boss does - the issue is with the company and your systems not with a person.

Get them put in place and there you are. And a proper training schedule where the onboarding is set out clearly, and the stages or processes are signed off by trainer and trainee.

You may be highly qualified but qualifications don't necessarily make a good manager with common sense.

you've had plenty of practical advice on her, from a holiday planner that you seemingly can't check, to communications directly with the employee to coordinate specific training dates that don't clash with her annual leave which you won't do because you can't trust her and communications with the AL approver, which somehow can't happen either.

how do you survive in your highly qualified job?

on here

I'm getting increasingly confused.

Are you the same grade/level/job title as this person OP? And you are just training them in an informal capacity because you have been there a while and she is new?

If so, back off, and let other people who are paid for the privilege worry about what she is and isn't doing and when she is and isn't at work.

The best run organisations have clear lines of command and hierarchy. This all sounds haphazard and shit.

No that's manager's responsibility, especially if she’s new.

Cynical me would say it's probably time to start covering your arse and sending weekly progress reports to your and her manager on progress of the training - you don't want her to turn round and blame you if she doesn't reach the required standard. I would summarise the attempts you've made to show her the pieces of the role and the outcome (ie, 'I planned to demonstrate x, y, z this week but it turned out A was out on leave. We reviewed the X system and agreed that she will take ownership of all tasks related to this going forward without prompting').

As others have said, I would also ask her (with managers on copy) to put her holiday dates into your calendar and schedule a check in prior to her time off to do a handoff to you.

But it’s all relative isn’t it? She’s taken loads of annual leave this last few months, so all through autumn and winter she’ll be in work. I’m someone that loves saving AL up ‘just in case’ and end up with loads of it. Sometimes I use it all up over Christmas, sometimes they let me carry it over. It all works out the same surely? If everyone has roughly the same 22-27 days, it’s all much of a muchness. She’s got to take it at some point.

I'm not claiming to be a good manager. It would take years to become one and I have never had that training myself. I'm just in a specialist role. That's all. And I happen to show this lady how to do the work. There are no training dates from my side. This is training on the job. It takes a long time and isn't even the issue. I know it takes forever to learn. The issue are more simple things like 'you need to include this excel table in the document every time' and it's still being forgotten.

Pareto's Principle from a manager's perspective: 20% of your reports give 80% of the management problems.

There is a 'type' of employee who is trouble. You can see them coming whether you are a manager or someone who has to work with them and cover their absences.

I'd put my money on this too. And no, I hardly take any sick leave and am mostly the one covering for others' AL and various absences. If she is still on probation the manager ought to have a good discussion with her.

But the manager in OP's situation sounds pretty clueless.

It's also unclear whether you have the same manager.

It's their responsibility to ensure work, including training is being done.

Just raise it with them

When you train a new starter that also includes going though how things work and things they need to know. Not just the process of the job.

Besides which, if it makes life easier for you if she tells you when she is off just ask her. You don’t need to be a manager or trainer to do that

Have you raised with anyone that she's not doing the job properly

I find it bizarre that your organisation has highly complex roles, but doesnt have an annual leave and cover policy that everyone has to abide by. Do you have no set work handover rules or 'holiday buddy'
system?

Most work places you apply for annual leave, it goes in the calendar as requested and then gets changed to approved when that happens .

Your line manager should be fully aware of the work you will have outstanding, and allocate another member of staff to cover it.

That's absolute bang standard work place procedure.

None of this is your colleagues fault, it's their line managers if anyone's.

And I happen to show this lady how to do the work. There are no training dates from my side. This is training on the job.

I'm confused now, I assumed you been officially appointed to train this new employee up by your boss. Is that not the case?

how is she a useless slacker

ive had time off work every month so far this year apart from Jan, does that also make me a useless slacker?

The thing about annual leave is that it runs out.

Your colleague is following procedure. If current procedures are problematic vis a vis training then you should raise that with management. Is there a system for informing each other about annual leave? That should be covered in the induction, because you don’t know these things when you start a new job if you’re not told. If things aren’t working in terms of the current communication on annual leave then suggest a change to the system.

I'm actually baffled that people get confused about it. I haven't been officially appointment (which job does that?). Everywhere I worked more experienced people have trained new joiners without it being announced. My boss doesn't know every job inside out. He knows enough to provide emergency cover but I know more about this specific job than him, so I train the new person.

You need a paper trail of what she's been trained on, what she's been told the process is, when, and that she's agreed she understands and has taken it on as a task she's now doing without supervision.

Every job I've ever started has had a list of tasks I need to be trained on, that's signed off by the trainer and me as each item on the list is trained and understood.

When I've trained people I've written guides and step by steps, so they can refer back to it.

In a situation like the one you've given, with a table repeatedly not being put in a report, it would be documented when that training was given, signed off by trainer and trainee as training complete, a guide on completing the report would exist, and all of that could be shown as evidence that it wasn't lack of training, it was poor performance.

I can see not everyone is as organised as me and I need to once again blame my manager for not giving a fuck.

You can't be that organised if you don't regularly check the holiday tracker, when it's so vital that you know who's available to do the work at any one time.

Lots of jobs have a training period, with an official trainer. Or they at least have an official person who is told to train them for a specific period of time. It's not uncommon.

If your just a colleague who has been there longer than her then I can't understand why this is even your issue? If her work isn't getting done, thats her problem, and your boss's issue. If you can't cover her work when she's off, tell your boss. Not mumsnet.

Is this a very small business? Is it run in an ad-hoc way?

You sound like you’re lacking processes and procedures in many aspects of the business?

Is it the case that your experience is only in this particular firm and so your view of ‘normal’ is distorted and you haven’t worked in bigger or typical environments where there are clear procedures and roles for training, for annual leave etc?

Is this all about your perception of normal not being quite in line with what is usual?