Work colleague thinks it’s ok to steal my job because I’m “just” bank!

[fib88]

I work in a hospital and been in my job 2.5 years - I am on a zero hours contract (bank staff) and as such considered a temporary worker (so basically have no employee rights). The hospital are making 500 redundancies and looking at which staff to get rid of with bank employees being first in the firing line.

A permanent staff member, being a woman that I work closely with, who sits next to me (and I considered a close friend) has gone behind my back and offered to do my job resulting in her being allowed to do part of my role at weekends and is being paid overtime for this. She has made my position even more vulnerable now. To say I’m devastated at her betrayal would be an understatement. Because of her actions I’m literally hanging on to my job by a thread. She is very close with our manager (go back years) and this is how she has managed to talk her away into being allowed to do this. She is lazy, constantly being complained about my other members of our team for passing her work to others, including me. She talks all day and doesn’t pull her weight. She has had at least 10 weeks of faux sickness over the two years I have known her whilst I’ve had four days in total (Covid) and work very hard with hardly any holidays off over that 2 years.

I don’t know how to handle this, she knows I’m unhappy and has said such to other employees and passes it off as “it is what it is and she need to get over it”! if I complain to our manager, he will take her side as they have a long history together. She is going on holiday and keeps complaining she needs the money badly as she in debt.

The fact that a so called friend would betray me, who incidentally I’ve stuck up for repeatedly has gutted me, my question is how do I behave going forward - if I kick off they’ll get rid of me anyway for being a troublemaker. I just don’t know how to behave and what is my best course of action?.

Needless to say she is not my friend anymore, but I still have to keep up the pretence/professional front in the office. I haven’t been able to sleep for days over this. Maybe I’m just got to accept what she’s doing is acceptable in the workplace. I feel very disillusioned with people right now.

I would consider looking for another job or join an agency. You have already given up your pension and employment rights so looking at agency work might be worthwhile if it pays more.
Is there a reason you want to stay as bank staff?

I'm sorry that you have ended up in this situation where you feel so anguished. I do wonder however if you are projecting some frustration onto her.
She is an employee with rights, and you are not. It sounds like unfortunately you were in a very unstable position anyway. Presumably you have stayed bank for the flexibility and higher pay, but the flip side is you are more vulnerable then when it comes to cost cutting.
You haven't been privy to the conversations with the manager.
It might be mutually beneficial for the department budget and for hers to be able to take more shifts. There will be huge pressure to get shifts filled internally rather than paying bank- you've acknowledged yourself the drive to cut staffing costs.
The sick leave is also her entitlement and she will have been subject to absence management.

Mkuter Thanks for replying - maybe, but the role due to budgets was only ever offered as bank and the department budget is rolling every couple of months. I love my job and not paid a higher salary either. I get holiday pay but no sickness so considerably disadvantaged opposed to permanent staff.

Porridgecake I do pay into a pension so not lost my right there.

Respectfully, what your manager chooses to do to reconfigure the team is not your business, because you've chosen to take the higher pay for lower commitment of being bank staff. You must understand that the NHS can't afford to keep bank staff in permanent roles, so it's natural for this sort of clean- up to happen. Meanwhile another area will be short staffed, so you'll find other roles to apply for.

The colleague is clearly not a friend; you speak badly of her and she isn't fussed about you leaving. That's OK, being friendly at work is enough. I'm not sure why you referred to her as a friend though, was it because you expected her to prioritise your income over hers because she sits next to you?

Sorry OP, what a slap in the face. Personally I think this is very black and white, she’s meant to be your friend and has fucked you over. She could’ve come to you to discuss it at least, “I’m really sorry but I’ve been offered your hours and could really do with the money” etc. The fact that she’s saying you’ll have to get over it to other colleagues shows her attitude towards your friendship

I hope you manage to sort something work wise but the simple fact is (in my opinion) she’s clearly not the friend you thought she was

This kind of staffing decision isn’t personal. Bank staff are the first to have hours cut. Faulting a coworker for recognizing reality and accepting available hours isn’t fair.

if you know heavy cuts are coming you should be job hunting.

GRex

I don’t get higher pay flat basic rate same as permanent staff - I would much rather have been a permanent member of staff it wasn’t offered. it’s much cheaper to employ people this way as you don’t have to pay sickness.

Ponderingwindow

I am - not an easy task when there are many others in the same area looking for work. I obviously haven't expressed myself very well. I’m upset of so called friend would’ve seen an opportunity in my vulnerability and jumped on it for their personal gain.

cheerfulaf

THANK YOU, I was starting to think I must be going mad by the reply’s. - It’s more the fact a friend who I’ve stuck up for repeatedly over her failings has betrayed me in a callous way. She’s got a job but happy to take mine along side with her own for a bit of extra pocket money.

Is it a case of usually particular bank shifts are given to you? Do you do the same ones every week? She may not have realised the impact on you.

She's not really your concern. I'd be annoyed but professionally courteous. You should be more focused on your position. When taking a job, you do need to consider what protections are offered in your contract. I'd start looking for a role somewhere else as a employee with the usual leave and a redundancy clause.

She be dead to me but I’d be professional. In my head I’d pretend she was an anonymous online profile- you can reply politely if directly addressed, say a generic hi in her direction without really acknowledging her if you have to, never ever put yourself out for her, make up lies shamelessly if you get directly asked to help her ‘oh sorry it’s my mils birthday I can’t’, flat no i can’t do that if she asks to swap, neutral ‘yes she is like that’ if anyone says anything negative about her. If her work gets passed to you straight email to manager - I’ve been asked to do this, I think it’s usually done by <two faced bitch> , I haven’t capacity so someone else will need to. Anything you’d usually just fix, don’t - incomplete forms ping them straight back ’i can’t process this until it’s all filled out properly ‘ ‘we didn’t do x bc <two faced bitch> hadn’t completed the paperwork, waiting on that.

and looking at agency and other jobs.

Don't blame your colleague, it's management who made the decision.

As a worker, I've told my boss I would like extra hours if they become available - which did happen after someone else left. It's not a nice situation to be in and I hope you can find something soon, but try not to take it personally.

Itseatingmeup

I do the same hours every week, and have done so for the last 2.5 years. .

We sit next to each other and I thought she was a close friend. The senior managers have said in a meeting “oh we don’t think k of you as bank, you're one of us”.

She is the most disliked member of staff in the office, She talks all day, on her phone and is constantly off “pretending to be sick”. Other members of staff have complained about her to management and I’ve literally covered for her on several occasions because I felt sorry for her. I would go as far as to say I was her only friend in the office.

Very often, she doesn’t finish her work and gives it to me to help her out, which I’ve always done.

more fool me!

I do unfortunately think the workplace dynamics here sound pretty toxic to start with.
I don't think you should have been 'sticking up for her' (about what, to who?) if you weren't being authentic. It sounds like quite a bitchy environment.
I again though don't actually think she's done wrong by taking the shifts, they aren't really 'yours'. You also don't know what the manager, or others, have said to her.

If you have done the same hours for a couple of years now you may have some employment rights.

in terms of your colleague it’s not personal it’s work, she has the right to protect herself and her role. Try not to take it personally. I would be polite and friendly going forward. Given the rocky situation it might be best to look for a new job.

Mkuter

It is a tough environment, it’s very hard work and if somebody isn’t pulling there weight patients inevitably suffer. We as a team of 10 feel great responsibility to patients to complete our work in a timely professional manner. I do a specific job in the department but also help out other sides of the team. I thoroughly enjoy my job. This coworker isn’t taking my hours (at present I’m still doing the same) she ‘s asked to take my actual work for herself to get overtime at weekends, leaving me vulnerable to redundancy.

I work in hr in a similar industry. Recently we restructured and the permanent staff got some of the bank staff hours.

You can't compare bank and permanent it's not the same at all

I thought bank jobs were only hours other permanent staff were unable to do?
@fib88 are you on the bank and pick up hours, or do you have a contract for this particular role? Can't see how you are being made 'redundant' unless the bank are removing you?

IDontHateRainbows

I have been fully prepared for being made redundant - and was trying to keep working hard and my head down and being a useful productive member of the team. I feel this person has shone a spotlight on me at a critical time and probably hastened my demise.

Stop doing her work for her, for s start. Sometimes you have to let people fail.

Unfortunately this is the nature of people.

CaptainFuture - I signed up to bank and got this job on a 3 month period and they decided to keep me and it’s just been rolling ever since - I have no contract as such with the bank office the department just keep me. To many people they just think I’m a full time member of staff.

It’s not an easy job and not one you could just walk off the street and do. So bank staff able to do the role are be far and in between.

Obviously you need to stop helping her, stop doing her work and stop covering for her when other staff complain to management about her.

As you've said that they haven't cut your hours, but are paying her overtime to do part of your job, isn't this arrangement actually costing them more?

She sounds absolutely awful, but you have actually helped her get away with it in the past.

What did you stick up for her about? You say she doesn’t pull her weight so the other staff are working harder to cover what she’s not doing and to protect the patients who would otherwise suffer. Have there been complaints about this or is it a no snitching environment at the detriment of patients?
As pp’s said, carry on treating her with professional courtesy but don’t do her any favours and don’t stick up for her unless it’s actually the right thing.