To not be expected to work 2 jobs whilst my manager is away??

[mrspixie1]

For context my manager is going on an extended leave and I have stepped up to cover their role. Which is fine and something I wanted to do. I am not being compensated for it but there has been discussions of a promotion following all this goes well but nothing guaranteed. Now my gripe is its our busiest time of year (I work agency and have one client) however my team members are on leave for 2 weeks which has been approved despite it being our busiest and we are having major shift with my manager being away. My cover will only have started which means we don't have experienced hands on deck.I have flagged this as a risk and built plans outlining where additional help is needed and I’ve been told after asking for help (we have a lot of resource) that “oh you can manage this can’t” I said “how is it possible for me to cover 2 peoples role?”And I was met with well you have to if you want to prove yourself and get somewhere. I am worried about burnout and just not being able to manage doing 2 roles they say for 2 weeks but then in the xmas holidays and we have people off and it will be me picking up all the slack. Surely that can’t be fair. How do I professionally fight this. If they expect me to literally break my back for a “potential promotion” nothing in writing. I am feeling really hurt and used at this moment and it seems no one is considering my wellbeing.

And if you burn yourself out, unable to cope, any chance of promotion will fade away?
They're dangling a carrot because you want promotion and they desperately need cover. I'm sorry you're in such a shit situation. 💐

Thank you. Probably! Just not sure what to do :(

Sorry OP they are massively taking the piss… extra work for free! Bet the promotion never materialises…

Burn out is becoming an overused term, its just two weeks. Lots of people cover for colleagues leave or absence as required without promise of a promotion.
You can only do what you can fo

Give it your best shot, but not at the expense of your mental/physical health, responsibilities at home etc.

Sometimes the worst thing you can do is to bust your arse off and achieve it, because some managers will just think that what to you was an exception should become the new normal.

Let the chips fall if they have to.

Yeah this is shit management from above. HR shouldn't have approved so much leave in your department without arranging appropriate cover such as a secondment or agency staff if necessary. You've been dropped in it well and proper and their attitude when you flagged up the issues shows they did it on purpose, don't care about your wellbeing or development, and are going to keep putting unreasonable pressure on you without associated job title or pay for as long as they can. Find a new job if you can, this one is taking the piss.

Make sure your concerns are heard.

You could word it by asking what they would like you to prioritise as it will be impossible to complete both jobs at once.

This is so common now, the last time I remember it being this bad in terms of people being expected to do at least three other people's jobs and leavers not being replaced was in the early 1990s. Managers really don't care about their staff any more in my experience and the more senior the manager the less they care. I'm afraid I also think that promotion they're dangling won't materialise but you could always add "deputised for" to your CV....

This is really good advice.

Get all the experience in the managers role that you can, redo your cv and get it onto the market. And cover your arse while you are doing so.

Only you can prioritise you because they have shown that they don’t.

Not paying a higher rate when you cover a higher role is mean and not compensating you properly makes them happy. They are not nice people so will soon be time to go elsewhere.

I have seen so many times in my 35+ year career someone thinking "covering for a manager" means experience and promotion where it usually means monitoring their mailbox and day to day tasks, day to day line management for a short period of time - it is not about getting involved in strategic decisions which is the experience and skills needed to get you noticed and promoted.

Don't think covering for a manager, just because you happen to be the most experienced in the team at your level, will get you anywhere unless it is combined (not just when your manager is away) with proper involvement and responsibility which give you opportunities to showcase yourself in strategic projects, mentoring and effort being put into your career plan.