The "I Hate My Job" Thread

[Otis Day]

Talk about shitty parents and shitty kids, I am a juvenile probation officer. This is what I deal with 24/7. Most of these kids don't have a chance due to their upbringing or lack thereof. Majority of the kids are from single parent, mother only, families. they have no respect for their mothers and less respect for anyone in authority. They take out their frustration for being "fatherless" by being pricks to everyone.

There are the few kids who just made a dumb mistake, but like I said they are few and far between.

You have the kids who continually reoffend and their mothers who want to blame everyone but themselves and the kid.

It really boils down to the parents being worse than the kid. they minimize, deny and place blame on anyone and everyone except themselves and the kid. I actually had a parent last week blame the school for holding a grudge against her son for things he did int the 5th grade. he is now in high school and none of his teachers knew him 6 yrs ago.

I have been looking for about a year. This job pays shit. I have 22 yrs experience with the emotionally challenged and delinquent crowd. Far too long. I am pretty much stuck due to my age I feel and taht pisses me off. Not many people/companies/employers want to take a chance on a 45 yr old.

[MamaBear]

Otis, I feel for you I really do. It can be so frustrating. In my line of work, there ARE the occasional payoffs. Not so for you? Have you ever felt like you managed to make a difference in a child's life? Even ONE makes you a hero in my eyes. I was really feeling completely burned out 2 years ago but then I started to see some payoffs in the last two years and I am refreshed and totally into it again. I hope that can happen for you.

[DaDitka]

I have 22 yrs experience with the emotionally challenged and delinquent crowd.

No wonder you feel so comfortable around here.

[UOK]

Hell he probably should head to "the other place," him and their admin would get along if he can handle the emotionally challenged and immature.

[wab]

I used to clean septic tanks during summer breaks in college. Part of my job was to drive from park to park every Thursday and replace the piss-pucks in the port-a-johns.

[gaba]

Wifey just got insurance (finally) but that means money's gonna be a little tight this X-mas. I'm considering a night job or a weekend job. (Probably weekends since I can't just sleep all day with the little one home.) With my crappy attitude and epically bad job history... I might be limited to either McDonalds or the pickle factory (I swear every time I've looked for a job, the pickle factory is hiring... that job must really suck).

So uh... setting myself up here but... any suggestions what would be a good job for gaba?

(I think I'm going to start referring to myself in the third person from now on.)

[Otis Day]

Is there any night stocking jobs at the grocery stores? Custodial work? I clean an office on the side and I can set my own hours, works out pretty well. I am looking for more but the economy in my hometown is really depressed.

[gaba]

Thanks for the suggestions Otis. I was actually just setting myself up for a little gaba-bashing. I was thinking something along the lines of animal-wrangler at a donkey show, or mop-boy at the gay-porn shop.

Hmmm... I wonder if I could get away with a job as a bouncer for a strip club. I don't consider myself an intimidating person but my bosses always seem to feel a need for extra protection when they fire me. Maybe if I wear lifts I could be big enough to intimidate sexually frustrated drunk guys.

[RumpShaker]

Well, I am getting into this thread a little late... But have been reading along as it went, though I have a few responses on mind I will get back to that later....

But for me, I finally started work again doing my real job (after 4-5 months out of work). I did side jobs to pay the bills till now but it does not pay into my benefits.... As some of you may know, I am a Carpenter. Work has obviously slowed down to a hault for the most part, I got lucky and got a job on the new mega casino here in Atlantic City.

http://www.revelentertainment.com/media.html

http://www.revelentertainment.com/revel ... roval.html

This Project is HUGE! You really dont realize how big it is going to be until you are only standing on the first typical floor (first typical floor is the first hotel floor) at about 160ft in the air. There is suppose to be about another 47-48 floors above to be built. Standing at roughly 710+ feet at completion it will be the tallest standing building in Jersey. But the rest of the project including the low-rise will be just as impressive. If you click on this link, http://www.revelentertainment.com/imagegallery.html you can check out the images of how it will look. At the moment, I am working at about where the top of the low rise is. So this will take about 2yrs to build.

Though I am really excited and happy to be working again, This is tough work and the conditions are pretty bad. I just started working last thursday and it rained for two days and was cold as hell the last two. The cold isnt that bad, ( 28-35 degrees) but its going to be a long winter being that its not even december yet! Being on the beach makes it pretty cold too. The wind is the biggest factor. Some call Chicago the "Windy City", but Atlantic City is just as bad if not worse (wind). Plus, the higher you go, it gets worse. (I almost fell down today from a wind gust today) So standing on a concrete slab, cold, wind, water, it is pretty tough. Oh yea, the work is tough, but I can handle it. I just freaking hate the weather in the winter on jobs like this. Your feet and hands are numb for 9 hrs a day. However, come summer time..... NICE!

I may take pictures of this job and make a thread. Its pretty cool watching everything go together...

[gaba]

That looks like a hell of a cool building. Working up there in the winter's got to suck, but nice to have the steady work for a while. That's the kind of job I'd take just to say I did it. I spent ONE DAY working for a carnival. I helped put up the ferris wheel. Aside from almost getting into a fight every time I turned around (I hate carnies) it was pretty cool to watch the thing go up and be a part of it. It was like playing with a giant erector set.

[MamaBear]

Wow Rump, those buildings look so cool! How narrow are they? Don't tell me in feet, tell me in rooms or suites or whatever they plan to have in there, how many rooms/suites wide?

My step-daughter's step-dad builds and/or renovates kitchens, he has his own business. I know they are suffering big time right now. It's the first time we've been better off than them for a change (considering she gets 1/3 of my husband's check). I'm really happy for you that you found a long-term job, that's great! I can't imagine how much it must suck to do it when it's cold and/or wet and/or windy.

[UOK]

I tell you what, people: being at work? It sucks.

[Xee]

I tell you what, people: being at work? It sucks.

Can't you play games on your comp?

[UOK]

Nah. Just browse forums and the like. I run too much flash it crashes all my shit and then I get noticed for fucking around.

[G08]

99% of the time I don't even get god-damned lunch/dinner breaks, let alone a computer to play with

[UOK]

Yeah I got it pretty good at work, considering. You're likely getting paid far more than I am, however.

[G08]

I honestly think though dude, everyone that works 8 hours should get 30 freaking minutes for lunch. Isn't it a federal law?

[RING4CHI]

I honestly think though dude, everyone that works 8 hours should get 30 freaking minutes for lunch. Isn't it a federal law?

Shit man, where I'm working we HAVE to take an hour long unpaid break if we work 8 or more hours and I'm just working a shitty part time retail job right now.

[gaba]

I think there is some sort of law that says they have to give you a meal break if you work more than 5 or 6 hours. That doesn't always mean much though. I've worked 12 hour days and been given a half-hour lunch at the end of my shift. They wouldn't even just let me go home. I had to sit in the f*&king break room for 30 minutes so I could clock out before I went home. Okay, that was a one time deal, but I have repeatedly gotten my lunch at 2:00 for an 8-4 shift. They can do pretty much whatever you let them get away with. I guess you could always report them, but good luck going anywhere after that. Hmmm... should I promote the guy that doesn't know sh*t but keeps his mouth shut, or the guy that called OSHA on me. Trust me, I've called OSHA twice and been unemployed within a few days both times.

Once was just kind of vindictive on my part. I was forced to wear a plastic bump cap while working in the 100degree heat and 30mph winds. I couldn't keep the f*&king thing on my head and kept getting written up for it. It was really stupid because we only needed the safety gear while working with the backhoe but they forced us to wear it all freaking day, yet the crappy plastic caps they gave us were no wear near the safety standards required. I figured if they're gonna suspend me for not wearing the f*&king hat, it should at least be the right f*&king hat. So when another guy had to go to the emergency room after hitting his head on the shovel (while wearing the grossly inadequate hat) I made a call. I got fired a couple days later for "not wearing proper safety equipment." F*&Kers.

The second time though, they asked me to dump plastic containers full of transmission fluid out on the ground. An OSHA employee actually drove up to the fence just minutes after I was asked to do this. He asked what I was doing and I told him I hadn't done anything yet, but I was asked to and would it help him if I went ahead and dumped one so he could write it up. Instead, I just walked the guy to my supervisor's office and explained to him that I couldn't do what he'd asked me to do. They ended up having to buy a big metal container to collect all the transmission fluid from that point on. Eventually they had to shut down that branch and move it to the main plant because it was too expensive to install all the equipment that they were supposed to have but didn't. Of course, I was long gone by this point. A week after the incident, after being put on light duty for a back injury (complete with orders from THEIR doctor) I was transferred and "asked" to spend a day stacking pallets by hand. That's not terrible unless you've been told not to lift anything over 20lbs. Apparently they didn't believe I was really hurt. I probably could have sued, but there was a chance if I did, I'd have to go back to that sh*tty job. No thanks.


Bottom line... you either take it or you hit the road. Complaining never helps anyone.

[RING4CHI]

I think there is some sort of law that says they have to give you a meal break if you work more than 5 or 6 hours. That doesn't always mean much though. I've worked 12 hour days and been given a half-hour lunch at the end of my shift. They wouldn't even just let me go home. I had to sit in the f*&king break room for 30 minutes so I could clock out before I went home. Okay, that was a one time deal, but I have repeatedly gotten my lunch at 2:00 for an 8-4 shift. They can do pretty much whatever you let them get away with. I guess you could always report them, but good luck going anywhere after that. Hmmm... should I promote the guy that doesn't know sh*t but keeps his mouth shut, or the guy that called OSHA on me. Trust me, I've called OSHA twice and been unemployed within a few days both times.

I hate it when the management above you decides when you're "ready for your break." Where I work, we have this daily planner thing that one of the management fills out so we know whos doing what and at what time. Well, they're also suppose to fill in what kind of break (1/2 hour, hour break) we get that day. So a couple of weeks ago, one of the management fills it in and writes for one of the other managers to take her break at 2:30 in the afternoon (she was working 7:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. that day.) She comes to me (for whatever reason) and tells me how no one can tell you what time to take your break, just what kind of break to take. So I then worked the 11:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. the Wednesday before Thanksgiving with the manager that told me no one can tell you what time to take your break. So I told her when I got into work what time I would take my break. She responded with "We need to get the store ready for this weekend, I'll let you take your break when the time fits." Okay, whatever, talk about your double standards. So I ended up working 11:00 to 6:15 (7 hours, 15 minutes) without any kind of break to leave at 6:15 to take an hour long clocked out break to come back at 7:15 to work only 45 minutes until 8:00.

I hate when the people above you abuse their power. And if you try to go above them, they're able to find a way to twist it and put it on making you look bad with the higher ups. It's fucking bullshit.

[G08]

I hear what you're saying gaba, but I have the mentality that if everyone just succumbs to the bullshit, then why should anyone ever have to change? What's the harm in standing up and fighting for something and getting support from your fellow cohorts? I know for a fact that everyone I've ever worked with feels the exact same way. There's only so many Snickers bars and Diet Mountain Dews that I could take before my pancreas explodes

[gaba]

Okay, well I pretty much never succumb to the bullsh*t. I've been fired 15 times and I've quit after a disagreement (or just plain of fight) another 8 times. I think I can speak from experience when I tell you it never really helps to stir sh*t up. I guess it IS possible that standing up for yourself could make things better for the next guy that holds your job. Unless someone's got your back (and I'm talking union, national organization or significantly higher management) you're pretty much screwed.

I would DEFINITELY encourage you to stand up for yourself and make sure management can't ignore you. Just realize I'm not gonna take responsibility for the results. I've been in that situation more than a couple times and it's never turned out good.

[Ormazd]

There are several factors that you should consider:

1. The skill level required for your position.

2. The local labor market.

3. How bad do you need the job?

[MamaBear]

Sweet! I do NOT hate my job today because I somehow figured out a way around the block on my computer and now I can be on here at work! Before I was trying to use a link from my email and it was coming up blocked because supposedly it's a chat room. Today I googled it and waalah!

Ok, well, now I gotta go work with some kiddos. See ya on my lunch!

[MamaBear]

Damn. Another reason I do not hate my job. I make my own schedule. Teachers get a half hour lunch and I think 1 or 2 15 minute breaks. There is also 1 35 minute period where their kids are at a special. Once a week there are 2 specials in the day. During that time they are to be doing lesson plans or whatever. Our work day is only 7 1/2 hours long.

I have it even cushier though. At the beginning of the year I find out how many students are on my caseload. Then I start making my schedule. I have to work around their specials schedule, their lunch and their recess. Yes, you can't pull a kid from art, music, gym or library but math, reading, science, social studies...that is a-ok! Makes no sense. Anyway. While I'm making my schedule I try to work it so I have as much open time at the beginning of my day, during lunch and at the end of the day. It's pretty sweet! Right now I don't start seeing my first kid til an hour after I get there. I have hour and 15 minutes open at lunch and about 45 minutes of open time in the afternoon. Throughout the year a few kids will probably be added so those times might close in a bit. Mondays and Wednesdays, I'm at my other 2 schools where I'm more crunched for time and have much less free time. Also Friday afternoons I don't schedule kids cuz I use that time for testing kids, writing reports, meetings, or, um, researching on the internet. Yeah, it's a pretty good life. Did I mention I get summers off...holiday breaks too? The pay is not all that but it's worth it to me!

[gaba]

You get the core subjects pretty much every day. You only get art, music, gym or library once a week (maybe twice). You miss one it's like missing an entire week of math. I missed a day every week. I didn't get library for an entire year once.

[Rellim-64]

Well played.

http://www.customerssuck.com <--- full of great stories about how the customer is always an idiot.

My buddy is a pharmacist-in-training as well, and he's said similar things. Most older folks are basically bratty children wrapped in the guise of wrinkly old bags. They want everything right now and don't give a damn if you're busy. You're just a clumsy idiot who doesn't know what they're doing.

I shit you not. Its Christmas morning. I call an old lady at 8:00am. She starts off nice, friendly even. She had unpluged the coax from the back of her TV and had no idea how to put it back. The moment that i try and help she flys off the handle. Throwing more profanity at me, than "ands" or "ors." For 25 min. I am called everything but my name. She DEMANDS that I send a tech out this moment. I quote " I pay my F***ing bill on time every month but you can't F***ing call a tech for a F***ing old lady. Where is your F***ing christmas spirit!"
At which point she hung up on me. With in 5 min she had called back in and told another agent that she was able to fix the problem... she finally found where that cable should go.

Merry Freaking Christmas old lady

[UOK]

A very invigorating first post, Rellim! Welcome to thunderdome. The only thing that old wrinkled bag knows about christmas is greasing eggnog into her dusty tats. Merry christmas.

[gaba]

Welcome to the webw... doh... WELCOME TO BFO Rellim.

[Boris13c]

so, no posts in this thread since 2008?

everybody love their job these days?

or is it merely the economic situation, and we're thankful enough to have jobs that we've stopped bitching about them?