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ALL the names are changed.
When I got back from CA last month and had to come back to work that first day, I decided I had HAD IT with the commute. I talked to Mrs. V. and decided to put my resume out there and see if there was any job I could afford to take in Southern MD or Southern PG County -- like in Bowie or south of there. I put it on Monster and I applied at three places I found that first day.
The only calls I've had have been -- naturally -- from staffing agencies. For DC. Even though my Monster profile states specifically that I am over DC and will not consider any interviews for jobs there.
But a woman I talked to on Wednesday, a staffing agency rep, asked me if the commute was the only reason I was leaving The Firm. I told her that I am taken for granted when I go above and beyond (hell, ALL the time but especially then). I told her that many of The Firm's policies BUG.* Told her that most of all -- even though all I have is a rumor, this REALLY bugs me -- that I've heard The Firm's secretaries are among the lowest-paid legal secretaries in the city. (After telling her this, I asked around and learned that it is true.) She then asked what I make, I told her, and she said "looking at your resume, I would say you're right."
She said she has a specific opening, someone who's looking for a dedicated assistant, and she said with my background they can start me at at least $8k over what I'm making now. Maybe it's a bill of goods but I'm going to see her next Thursday to find out. We'll see if it -- or anything else she can offer -- is worth continuing a daily 3.5 - 4 hour commute. I don't care so much about the money -- in fact, I'll accept a pay cut to work close to home. It's the change in atmosphere that's the most important thing if I stay in the city.
I was pissed with my raise last year. All staff was. And not to toot my own horn, but I have performed tasks and handled problems and assignments in the last six months that are so far out of my job description that they don't even QUALIFY for "other duties as assigned" -- and have there been any awards? No. There is a convoluted system for giving staff monetary awards, and Quincilla got me one two years ago. Quincilla has changed.
I love Quincilla (my "big" boss -- I work for 3 attorneys) personally. Under different circumstances we might be friends. But I can't work for her anymore. Everything is left until the last minute, and I am in a constant state of anxiety and nervousness. I never know what her deadlines are, so when they come up, I never know exactly what kind of Wonder Woman I am going to be expected to be. There is one such deadline on Monday, and I only know about it because I asked one of the other attorneys.
What's more, Quincilla frequently is irrational about many things. Last time I asked for vacation, I had to get a talking to about how this is a team, and the time I'm asking for is right in the middle of blah, blah, blah . . . .** And the last time I needed a somewhat urgent doctor visit, when I asked for the afternoon off for an appointment that was to happen two days later, she was angry at the short notice and wanted to know what I was going for. That's inappropriate!
I have had enough. I can't keep putting up with shit like that AND endure a two-hour-one-way commute.
Now: If this job I'm seeing about on Thursday won't work out, I am willing to wait quite a long time for just the right job. I am even willing to take a pay cut to be out of DC. I am extremely fortunate to have the luxury of a good job where I am an integral and valuable part of a team. I am just sick and tired of being taken for granted, underpaid, and treated like I should deny myself my vacation time and should just suck up illnesses like she does.
:rant: If you read all the way through, thanks for listening. If you didn't, hell, I don't blame you one bit. :hi:
I am open to coping suggestions that I can employ until I have a new job . . . I already have liquor in my desk, though. ;)
* One example: there is a small garage under the building. Space in it is allocated first to partners and of counsel, then to associates, then to managers and other non-attorney professionals, then to staff. But I know staff who have been on the waiting list as long as I have worked there (over five years), and still, new spaces go to new attorneys and professionals, no matter what level, before they go to staff that have been waiting years.
** I responded: Yes, this is a team, and I'm glad you have put your trust in me to make me part of your team. But I am not an attorney. I am not on salary. I earn an hourly wage and I earn four weeks per year of vacation and I will take it. (not in so many words, but she understood)
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