What to say to a PM who constantly questions workload?

[Ladyindahoose]

I work on a project in a senior capacity. Each time we start a new piece of work, everyone submits estimates and then the work is tracked etc. However, a project manager questions mine and everyone else's workload every week, often saying that they must have spare capacity as he doesn't see people working late/early hours and frequently thinks everyone is lazy and wants them to work way beyond 37 hours pw. He often schedules meetings outside the 9-5 and always will add additional unagreed tasks or move deadline dates which is irritating and stressful for our whole team. He will moan about people on the project to me even though I am not responsible for them. He is also the sort of project manager who does anything to avoid accountability and responsibility to boot.

Although I am comfortable refusing extra tasks or asking him to prioritse for me and my team, I do find his questioning over workload draining and stressful. How can I address this? I really want to tell him to * off and although right now I am working extra, this is not sustainable nor fair as other company projects are not like this.

@Ladyindahoose interesting and no doubt frustrating position!

Personally I'd turn his questions back to him. For example when he says people have missed deadlines, ask if they'd agreed to them and if they were achievable upon being set. Every time he mentions anyone's workload, replay that he can have his own opinion of course, but he doesn't have insight into anyone's actual workload or wider outputs. Also reference wellbeing and the whole work like balance piece. Tell him if people are consistently underperforming or not delivering, then he needs to formally escalate through the relevant governance. But to do this he must be confident the asks are all fair and stakeholders have been engaged and signed up to do them from the outset.

Then tell him where to go under your breath!

Use project tools and protocols:

Reject the additional tasks as scope creep. Raise a risk relating to deadlines being moved at short notice/without baselining.

That sounds pretty toxic. What's the company culture like? Where I work people try to avoid meetings before 9:30 and after 4:30. Our Directors signatures have their typical hours say that they don't expect anyone to read, or reply to their emails outside of their own working pattern. Therefore, this kind of performative bullshit wouldn't fly.

It sounds like a broader conversation needs to be had with him about expectations. Does he have a manager?