My job

My job sucks.

There's not really much else there is to say about it. Oh wait, yeah there is...it really sucks.

So basically after having the pressure piled on me to just take any job, rather than continuing spending time trying to get the job I really wanted, I really took their advice to heart and took any job.

I work for a medical agency that basically organises the medicals that people need to have when they've had car accidents and the like and are wanting to claim compensation. The solicitors contact us, we find an expert, arrange  the appointment, deal with the medical report. In a nutshell that is the basic job.

Sounds simple enough. And it is, don't get me wrong, this job isn't massively taxing for the most part - it's a case of learning the processes and logging the right things in the right ways, which isn't always as clear as you would think, but it isn't intellectually challenging.

But boy am I in a different world  to the happy cosy joyful world of the Third Sector, where we all love one another and are just trying to make a difference. This is the cold, hard world of the private sector. And not even the bit of the private sector where the wages are higher than public/Third sector wages - this is the scrag end of the private sector where people are commodities and cheap ones at that.

It's a truly miserable working environment, that's essentially a call centre set up (although thank the lord we're not a call centre, thank heavens for small mercies). People are paid a crap wage and worked as hard as possible.

I have to literally account for every minute of my day. Literally.

The tasks I undertake are allocated a certain number of minutes. For example when I make a call, I get 3 minutes for that call - whether the call was a quick 30 second job or a 5 minute tirade from a client/solicitor/medical expert. So there are 430 minutes in a working day and I am expected to make sure I've logged 430 minutes of work.

Actually because I'm a new starter my goal is small - I'm only expected to get 60% productivity for my first month. I'm currently about 83% so I'm well above target but boy is that a different environment to the one I'm used to. No getting up and having a chat with the person in the next office to you, no going for a cup of tea when you fancy it, the pressure is on and I swear at times I can actually hear a clock ticking.

Now before the solicitors (if there are any reading) pipe up and say "We have to do the same thing" let me nod and say,

"Yes you do. But I'm betting you get paid more than £13,000 a year to account for every minute of your day."

People are low paid, there are literally no incentives to do well, (other than that you have to do well to keep your job) and thus you are left with a workforce that is evenly split in two - people who have been there for years and years (how someone can stay in that job when there is no chance of progression is beyond me) and new starters. People who've been there for a long time don't make any effort to talk to new starters and make them feel part of the team - why would they, the turnover of staff is incredible - and you're left with bitter long-term employees who feel hard done by and new starters who want to hang themselves from the nearest rafters.

And the best thing about this new job? It's absolutely, 100%, nowhere near where I live. So my commute consists of a walk to the train station in Preston, a train journey and another walk to my work. All in all I walk 5.5 miles every day and pay £85 a month for a train journey that last 11 minutes each way.

And. As predicted by yours truly. I'm knackered at the end of each day and have no energy to put into finding the job I really want to do. Which is how people end up trapped in this cycle.

Told you my job sucked.