Would it really be so awful not to work my notice?

[DaisyBug]

In a nutshell, I've been unhappy in my current job ever since I started last summer. My immediate colleague is a real bully and I feel now that she has turned our whole team against me. She has made my life a misery to the point where I dread going to work everyday and have begun to seriously doubt myself and lose confidence in other areas of my life too.

Management are aware and supportive, yet do not have the back-bone to stand up to this sort of behaviour unfortunately. Their strategy instead has simply been to offer me more and more money to stay and put up with it.

Happily I have been head-hunted by somebody I have worked with previously (thank the Lord as I would otherwise honestly be exploring therapy options now). However, my current job is in education and the expectation is that I will stay until the end of the academic year. I have tried to negotiate a shorter notice period with management but they are not keen.

Would it really be so awful to say that I have decided to leave early on account that the job is destroying my confidence and affecting my well-being? My new job is completely secure (contract signed, glowing references gone through, and with a personal contact who knows me well anyway). I would also be very unlikely to need this employer as a reference in the future.

i wouldn't work my notice. sounds like a hell hole. good luck with the new one.

I wouldn't go back!

You would lose your holiday & notice pay but what you have written sounds like a completly unworkable enviroment

Could you ask new job if you can start after Easter?
Then take 2 weeks holiday or sick?

I wouldn't work the notice period either, given that your new job is secure and the references have already been dealt with.

It's taken me nearly 40 years to realise that sometimes it IS OK just to walk away from something rather than risk one's mental health. Go for it OP.

Do you work with students?

What Mrs McEnroe said.

Your mental health is way more important than some misplaced, misguided loyalty to an organisation that doesnt even treat you properly.

Thank you everyone for your thoughts.

It's taken me nearly 40 years to realise that sometimes it IS OK just to walk away from something rather than risk one's mental health. Go for it OP.

I'm definitely not wanting to guilt you into staying, as it sounds utterly dreadful and your management team deserve nothing more than you walking off site. But do you have any students depending on you? I'm assuming you would have mentioned it if you did.

I guess you may lose the opportunity of an exit interview by leaving early, but it sounds like even if you used that to explain to your management team that managing a team involves more than sticking your fingers in your ears and going 'la la la' they wouldn't believe you anyway. I find it astounding that they would imagine they had the right to ask you to honour their request when they have done virtually nothing about yours.

Good luck with the new role and I hope you thoroughly enjoy both it and being away from this poisonous atmosphere.

Without knowing your role, it's not possible to say how much the students would be affected. A teacher in my department is off sick long term. We cannot find a supply teacher who is appropriately qualified (or good enough TBH), and the students suffer. We have done everything we can to minimise it, but they are still disadvantaged. Of course they are.

Personally I would leave and then file a claim for constructive dismissal as you say managment are aware of the issue but have failed to deal with it, you should also be able to leave with no notice as they have are allowing you to be bullied which may constitute a breach of contract on their part.

For anyone else in a similar situation I would reccomend keeping a log of all the times you feel you were bullied, with the time/date and names of anyone who witnessed this, will help at a tribunal.

Good luck in your new job and hope it all works out for you.