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May 2016 Moms
arj14
member
Work situation and need an outside opinion - am I overreacting? (whining & extreme TL;DR warning!)
arj14
member
I've mentioned a couple times that I work in an elementary school library during the afternoon, and a public library during the evenings and weekends during the school year (my schedule is obviously more flexible during the summer when school is out). Between the two jobs I shelve books a *lot*. I know my shelving speed is slower than it used to be due to pregnancy - I can get out of breath from just standing still and explaining various policies etc. when I make a new library card for someone, not to mention the struggle of constantly standing up / squatting down to shelve, my hips hurt, sciatic pain, or just happening to move the wrong way and all of a sudden it hurts to walk. I know you all know what this is like and slowing down / being exhausted in general.
Background: there are two other people that do the same job as me who work mostly during the day, and from what I understand is that the supervisors have them on desk (checking books out, checking books in, helping patrons with questions, etc.) for extended periods of time - at least 2 hours of a 4 - 5 hour shift, so they don't have as much time to shelve which leaves me lately with at least 4 carts (usually more) for night time. Shelving an average cart takes about an hour, I have a 4 hour shift at night, and there are other things I'm expected to do as well. I had mentioned back in January to them that I was having a harder time shelving even then, and the basic response from my supervisor was that they could not make accommodations for me. My supervisor even mentioned how once she had a clerk at another location who had to stop working because she was pregnant. I don't know what the exact situation was there, but I would certainly hope she wasn't forced out just because she was temporarily slowed down by pregnancy.
So, on Thursday night, I got called into the branch manager's office at the public library because she feels I'm not shelving as fast as I used to (wonder why that is), and they depend on me to do a lot of shelving at night when it's quieter so we don't get backed up. The talk had a "go faster or else" tinge to it. Despite the fact that my supervisor told me they wouldn't accommodate me, I still feel completely flabbergasted that they can't even do something as simple as maybe reducing the day time people's desk time so they have a little more time to shelve and thus won't be leaving me quite so much in the evenings, or just understanding that yes, I am going to be slowed down. Of the four higher ups at the branch all of them are over fifty, two are women who have kids, one is a man who has kids, and the branch manager, who has no children, says she understands how hard pregnancy can be on a body because she's the oldest of seven children.
I left that meeting crying, and spent the next four hours of my shift crying on and off and hoping no one saw me. The whole talk really made me feel like a failure that I can't keep up with the work I did before. Talking about it still makes me feel upset. I did make myself move faster and got two and a half carts done within two hours, but there were still two carts left at half an hour before close (didn't help that we had to do a state mandated tornado drill for 20 minutes since I obviously couldn't be out shelving during that time). At the half hour to close is usually when I go around and straighten up the library, but the night supervisor said we couldn't leave two whole carts left so I spent the next 25 minutes busting my way through a cart as quickly as I could which meant that I didn't have time to straighten. I swear to god if I get talked to on Monday about how the library wasn't orderly enough when staff came in on Friday morning I am going to have a breakdown.
DH is furious at the library, and we talked about it with some other family members on both sides and they all feel it's ridiculous as well. I feel all around bad about myself over it which DH finds frustrating since how much I can do is obviously not my fault right now. Am I overreacting by blaming myself? Am I under reacting by not being angrier at the library? The library doesn't have a dedicated HR person; we're part of the county government so we use theirs. I'm not sure what would happen if I went to them with a doctor's note - if they would make me take my six weeks of leave early or not.
If you have made it this far, thank you. Here's a picture of my current craving as a reward:
Background: there are two other people that do the same job as me who work mostly during the day, and from what I understand is that the supervisors have them on desk (checking books out, checking books in, helping patrons with questions, etc.) for extended periods of time - at least 2 hours of a 4 - 5 hour shift, so they don't have as much time to shelve which leaves me lately with at least 4 carts (usually more) for night time. Shelving an average cart takes about an hour, I have a 4 hour shift at night, and there are other things I'm expected to do as well. I had mentioned back in January to them that I was having a harder time shelving even then, and the basic response from my supervisor was that they could not make accommodations for me. My supervisor even mentioned how once she had a clerk at another location who had to stop working because she was pregnant. I don't know what the exact situation was there, but I would certainly hope she wasn't forced out just because she was temporarily slowed down by pregnancy.
So, on Thursday night, I got called into the branch manager's office at the public library because she feels I'm not shelving as fast as I used to (wonder why that is), and they depend on me to do a lot of shelving at night when it's quieter so we don't get backed up. The talk had a "go faster or else" tinge to it. Despite the fact that my supervisor told me they wouldn't accommodate me, I still feel completely flabbergasted that they can't even do something as simple as maybe reducing the day time people's desk time so they have a little more time to shelve and thus won't be leaving me quite so much in the evenings, or just understanding that yes, I am going to be slowed down. Of the four higher ups at the branch all of them are over fifty, two are women who have kids, one is a man who has kids, and the branch manager, who has no children, says she understands how hard pregnancy can be on a body because she's the oldest of seven children.
I left that meeting crying, and spent the next four hours of my shift crying on and off and hoping no one saw me. The whole talk really made me feel like a failure that I can't keep up with the work I did before. Talking about it still makes me feel upset. I did make myself move faster and got two and a half carts done within two hours, but there were still two carts left at half an hour before close (didn't help that we had to do a state mandated tornado drill for 20 minutes since I obviously couldn't be out shelving during that time). At the half hour to close is usually when I go around and straighten up the library, but the night supervisor said we couldn't leave two whole carts left so I spent the next 25 minutes busting my way through a cart as quickly as I could which meant that I didn't have time to straighten. I swear to god if I get talked to on Monday about how the library wasn't orderly enough when staff came in on Friday morning I am going to have a breakdown.
DH is furious at the library, and we talked about it with some other family members on both sides and they all feel it's ridiculous as well. I feel all around bad about myself over it which DH finds frustrating since how much I can do is obviously not my fault right now. Am I overreacting by blaming myself? Am I under reacting by not being angrier at the library? The library doesn't have a dedicated HR person; we're part of the county government so we use theirs. I'm not sure what would happen if I went to them with a doctor's note - if they would make me take my six weeks of leave early or not.
If you have made it this far, thank you. Here's a picture of my current craving as a reward:
Re: Work situation and need an outside opinion - am I overreacting? (whining & extreme TL;DR warning!)
It wouldn't take much for them to have more empathy, and it sounds like you're working as hard as you can. As far as
what you should do, I don't know.
When they imply that another woman had to quit due to pregnancy, that was pretty shady. If women are being forced out due to pregnancy, I'm pretty sure there are legal issues there....
It looks easy to most people, but it will straight up mess with your back, knees, and feet after awhile. Mostly due to the awkward angles you have to put yourself into sometimes just to put a book where it belongs. And that's even before pregnancy! I didn't realize just how horrible I'd been feeling when I was a shelver until about two weeks after I switched to a new job - it was like I was in a new body.
According to the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC):
It doesn't say anything specific as to different treatments for full/part-time employees, so I don't think that your employer can say that she can't provide accommodations for you. And while they might have to provide unpaid leave (as long as you've put in the required paperwork on time), I would think that they can't force you to do it sooner than necessary.
That all being said - take advantage of the county's HR. At the library I worked at as a shelver, it was a small single-branch system, and we used the city's HR. They were fantastic, and it's their job to help you in situations like this. At the very least they can go over with you the policies in place for pregnant employees, including the one I linked to above. I'd also highly recommend getting a doctor's note anyway, and researching the EEOC and taking a copy of the page I linked to with you. In addition, I'd keep a copy of that page on hand the next time you go into work, and if they bother you again in the meantime show it to your supervisor/branch manager. Heck, most (if not all) places of employment should have some form of the EEOC's basic policies stapled to the wall in the break room or something for employees to refer to. There should also be copies of employee policies available on the city/county's HR website. Take advantage, and do your research to protect yourself.
Also, consider tracking your shelving times on paper, if you aren't already. They may not be as ideal as they used to be (for which you have good reason for), but it might help to have a written record to show exactly what they are, and not just what they say they are. Include the times that you are performing other duties/on break/etc, and keep a record of it. I had the exact same conversation with a supervisor about a year or so ago when I was still shelving, and the only reason I was able to counter her accusations was that I had a personal record on hand of everything I'd been doing for the past month or so (but that supervisor and I had long had issues with each other, so I'd been super paranoid about it for awhile).
Good luck with it all! Don't let them keep you down.
Also, when do you plan to go on FMLA?
Overall, I'm surprised that they aren't more accommodating, but if your job is 100% physical work, then I'm not sure how much they have to work with you, especially if you're part time. It could also be an unfortunate timing thing- busier in the day, so there's no way anyone else can do it.
Honestly, I'd talk with your supervisor to get her thoughts. If she's on the same page with her manager, I'm not sure how much help HR will be.
I get the impression that you must be the best at shelving the books, and your supervisor is selfishly reluctant to pass any of the task onto the other two people who share your position. Unfortunately, I've found that some workplaces focus too heavily on what they think an employee can do, and not enough on the employee themselves.
Either way, I agree with PP's: I'm not sure a workplace is legally able to say that they "can't" make any accommodation. It also strikes me as odd your supervisor would so freely say that another woman in your position "had" to stop working. I would have taken that as a threat, especially when coupled with the uncomfortable conversation that made you cry. In all honesty, I am upset on your behalf: It sounds like your supervisor is literally unable to see past the temporality of your pregnancy (once you give birth and return from leave, it is likely you won't have many of the limitations you do now), and that simply isn't professional behavior at all!
I definitely think this is a situation you need to take higher up. In the meantime, I wouldn't overexert myself...especially to make someone, who made me feel so inferior, happy. If you need to stop to take a breath, stop to take a breath! Having a doctor's note might also be helpful.
Yesterday I got a letter in the mail from the company that handles the county's short term disability and FMLA coverage saying that I was denied due to not working the required number of hours which I'm guessing is because of the more hours in summer / less hours during the school year arrangement. So, honestly I'm not sure how I want to play this out now. They sent more forms to fill out and bring to my doctors, who I see on Wednesday. Honestly kinda feel like life is imploding right now with six weeks to go.
@proudparent2b - my job is the same as the other clerks - I'm trained to man the desk, assist with computer software issues with patrons, gather holds for patrons, and complete cash and check transactions. They've been having the other two clerks on desk during the day a lot more than usual lately though, leaving them with less time to shelve. Part of that is because our busy season is coming up, but each clerk is usually on scheduled for desk time for 1 - 1.5 hours at a time... all the supervisors just leave them on there longer.
You have a medical condition, they are REQUIRED by federal law to accommodate you and your temporary "disability". Get him to put it in an email and sue the pants off your school district.