To speak up at work

[spanieleyes22]

Am so fed up of goody goody people at work. Am getting very worked up about it and I know I need to chill and just let it all flow🤣back story we are having a restructure and were told in a teams chat by manager that there was now a rota for covering reception. I just hate doing it. Just because I'm really busy I have so much to do and the thing is 99.9%of the queries are nothing to do with my role and I don't know the answer. I said this to my manager and she said if you don't know the answer just stick it in the big teams chat and someone will reply. It's really inefficient. I have someone sitting in front of me or standing and they ask me a question and I say sorry I don't know hold on. Then I type the query in the chat and wait for a response which can take a few minutes. Then that person usually has to check something and I'm sat there with the person staring at me and wondering why I'm not doing anything. Other members of my team have all said privately that they don't like doing it but they won't say anything to the managers. Even today a girl on my team volunteered to cover someone and I was like Wtaf. So when an email came round just now outlining the rota for the next 6 weeks I put up a msg saying nobody had told us this was to be a oermanent arrangement and I honestly felt it wasn't the best use of my time. Nobody even gave my comment a thumbs up. They are like little sheep or mice they won't say boo to anyone. I shouldn't have said anything should I. I wish I was meek and mild and didn't care but I do care about doing a good job - and I just feel I'm worth more than a receptionist.

I think it's the way it was done as well. Like there should have been a meeting and an explanation. I don't even know is this a permanent thing now or is it until Xmas or what . My managers are just so bad at human relations. But they don't even know as nobody ever says boo to them!!!! They think everything is hunky dory

Is there anything in your contract? If not, can you refuse? Has nobody put together an FAQ section for you all to utilise? I’d be seriously unimpressed if a front facing member of staff couldn’t answer a query, you either need training or a permanent receptionist who has been given all the information.

So tell them?! Looks shit for the business to have people unable to answer.

What is your actual role, OP? If your job description does not involve reception duties, can you explain to someone higher up (is there someone?) the problem you have highlighted here. Do it in a cheerful, constructive way rather than a complaining one, especially if your workplace is one where people feel constrained for some reason about speaking up. I hope you get heard. It sounds a ridiculously inefficient situation. Miserable to be the only one prepared to put head above parapet.🍷

Well I could but it makes me look like a trouble maker . I think the others hang back and wait for me to say something and in the meantime they are all so goody goody and sucking up to the managers whilst complaining bitterly behind their backs !! I asked for training and that was the response. Ask in the chat.

I think they cover themselves in the job descriptions. In the restructure we have all
Been given revised job descriptions that are very vague . The original job I applied for didn't have reception in it. I sound moany but I just don't like it and don't want to do it. But nobody has said that except in private so I look like a trouble maker and everyone else is a team player .

They cannot change your job description without your agreement. Speak up, no need to be confrontational or anything!

I assume you probably have a clause that says something along the lines of and anything else asked of you. I know I have at this and a previous job

It sounds like they're too tight to employ a ft receptionist? Unless it's just literally picking up phones when it rings out and reception is briefly unmanned. I think you should all say you don't have the time to do it.
Why can't they place someone on reception and pay them specifically for that role. Even if they use several part time/casual staff. Who are actually willing to be a receptionist.
Or at least seek consent rather than forcing it on people.

Yep lots of stuff like that in new job descriptions

@Cherrysoup yeh well we had to agree to the changes or leave. We were being threatened with redundancy

I think maybe people are scared. And some just don't care. Both annoy me !!! One guys motto is "ah well I still get paid the same". Drives me nuts I've given up talking to him tbh

If you want to address it, you need to do it directly with your manager. Doing it in a Teams chat to garner support from the team is ineffective. Be specific on what training you need and what tools will help you to do this aspect of the job effectively.

In the meantime, use your skills to manage the customer in front of you. Find out their question and if you need to ask a question to the Teams chat, manage their expectations. Tell them this can sometimes take a few minutes and you'll get back to them as soon as you can.

Yeh that all sounds very sensible @MaggieLynn . I want to be that person but keep getting bogged down at being annoyed and irritated at colleagues. Wish I could flip a switch and turn off my emotions

The business sounds like piss takers. They just don't want to pay for a full time person on reception.

It's the first impression of any business, why put people on there who don't have the answers.

Sorry but you do sound like a trouble maker and moaner!

What's the actual issue with covering reception for 1 day per week? When you say it's beneath you is very telling, no job should be beneath you, as a team you should pull together and be preared to do anything. For instance, I litter pick if I notice litter outside, not my job, but happy to do it so it helps.

If you need training / a guide / a FAQ then start to collect what you need support with. For instance - I bet the questions you get asked are the same say 5-10 questions, therefore start writing down anything your not sure of and get support with it.

This is your chance to show your willingness, adaptability and initiative.

Also agree re PP, Teams is NOT the place to raise anything! Put it in an email.

@MiddleagedBeachbum bully for you for picking up litter. Honestly I would have taken the job if I had known about reception. I e worked in the sector for many years and have a lot of experience and knowledge in my area. I feel it's a waste of my time sitting at reception. Plus I still have the same workload actually more as a full time person left and his work has been shared with me and a colleague so I have more work to do and less time to do it. It's annoying me

Meant would NOT have taken the job

So rather than bitching to colleagues and trying to pressure them into speaking out, put a professional email together, reharding your workload and say that you can't manage it, and ask for support and or some of the additional workload removed from you?

You come across as very immature in your way of handling this.

So she should just suck up a job she hates for a 1/5 of her time that she didn't apply for, to "show flexibility and willing". Umm no. And employers shouldn't expect that of people. It completely unreasonable.

Yes sadly I'm starting to think I am immature. Can't control my emotions . Get upset and annoyed rather than tackling things. I agree. I want to be more mature I'm trying

What is the function of reception at that workplace? Does the company fundamentally benefit from, or run for, the customers who have to start there?

It sounds a dreadful way of running a reception (essentially virtual with someone typing in the query who probably won't look very well informed), but in this case, you will either learn, which is probable, or customers will vote with their feet and be rather dissatisfied, so that will show that this is either a good thing or not. The staff too, may well vote with their feet which will lead to more turnover and hassle. My thought is that they're potentially planning a fully remote or AI-driven reception set-up instead of a replacement post (a screen or intercom) - who knows?

Try to band together to give some well expressed and good business sense reasons why this is currently looking like an unsatisfactory (or unprofessional) solution - for the customer or user, primarily. The business probably won't care about the inconvenience to workers.

A receptionist is not your role. Your manager can’t just tell you there’s a new rota for you to do a completely different job to what your paid for.

Well they won't speak up if they know you are going to . I learned my lesson years ago when the whole team were bitching about a situation that was causing stress so I brought it up in a team meeting and no one said a word to back me up . I later found out that one of the chief moaners actually said that I had ambushed them all in the meeting and they didn't know anything about it . Never again .

@StarSwooshSpangles had very similar experience . So now nobody says nothing .