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WMFP? I hate my job.
I have worked in the private sector, for non-profits and am currently a government employee in a Red state. I’ve never been treated in as dehumanizing a fashion as I am in this agency. It’s a toxic environment that is very authoritative/authoritarian in many respects. In fact, we are so overworked, understaffed, demoralized and with outdated and inadequate tools to do the job with which we are tasked that it’s amazing the turnover isn’t higher than it is.
My agency (Public Assistance) has not had a staffing increase approved by the State legislature in the nearly 10 years I’ve been here (and longer-term workers say it’s been much longer than that). That period includes the economic disaster we experienced coming out of the Bush years, as well as the advent of the ACA and eventual Medicaid Expansion, and recent fishery closures, all of which greatly increased the number of clients relying on and enrolled in Public Assistance programs.
We also have a state hiring freeze in effect. Though some positions (Pubic Assistance Eligibility Technicians) in our agency were exempted from the freeze, management left those positions mostly vacant for the last couple of years, and only recently started a push to get them filled. (It takes a good couple of years for a new hire to be fully trained and competent at this job; kicking the can down the road has us in the position of having dozens of vacant eligibility tech positions statewide, or newly hired workers who need a lot of guidance and don’t produce at the rate of experienced staff.)
On top of all of the above, our budgets have been frozen and/or cut, State employees have had cost of living freezes, mandatory unpaid furloughs or office closures (for example).
It’s like being back in an unhealthy relationship, and I’m struggling; my mental health conditions are constantly triggered or exacerbated, as are physical conditions. I’m considering quitting, and GTFO by taking anything, such as an entry level clerical position in any other agency. (I need the medical, retirement and the money I’m making now. Taking a lower paid clerical job isn’t realistic, and there’s no guarantee the new job wouldn’t be just as bad or worse.)
WM(other)FP? I love my job.
LOVE it. I’m working with the same populations I’ve helped in most of my other jobs (the elderly, disabled, working poor, imprisoned and homeless). It’s satisfying work and I enjoy the challenge. I don’t even mind the constantly shifting priorities or assignments. I have an absolute belief that government and the social safety net it provides are integral to the health and betterment of our country and its people. I feel a moral imperative to help make the world a better place, one SNAP or Medicaid or cash assistance recipient at a time. Also, that change is often more easily attainable from within the organization than from the outside…not that some good oversight isn’t also required.
So, should I stay or should I go, now?
“To reignite creativity, innovation, and learning, leaders must re-humanize education and work. This means understanding how scarcity is affecting the way we lead and work, learning how to engage with vulnerability, and recognizing and combating shame. Make no mistake: honest conversations about vulnerability and shame are disruptive. The reason that we’re not having these conversations in our organizations is that they shine a light in dark corners.” From Daring Greatly, How the Courage to Be Vulnerable Transforms the Way We Live, Love, Parent and Lead by Brené Brown.
Though I may eventually move on and fight the good fight in a different manner or place, for now, for today at least, I will stay.
Clik here to view.
OK, open floor: How’s your work, health, family, or anything else you want to talk about or get off your chest? That is, WYFP?