Human Resourses type employment question (I think)...?

Question

I have been with my company for just over 2 yrs. About 6 mths ago I obtained a certification in order to further my education (I am also in school and this certification was necessary in order to get into the program I am pursuing). My boss allowed my to work under my certification in another position so I could obtain hrs for school. Recently, however, my boss has put me in this position 2/3 of my time b/c he is short staffed in that area and over-staffed in my original full time position (his fault b/c he hired an un-needed additional person several months ago). A couple weeks ago, I finally got the nerve to express my unhappiness with the situation and was told to "be patient" b/c he's trying to hire someone else (this ended up not being true b/c there were no job openings posted). He also said that the reason he was doing this is b/c if he doesn't, he would have to send someone (on my original position) home b/c he would be over-staffed on some days. (Is it my fault my boss hired too many employees???) Yesterday, my boss tells me casually in passing that on the next schedule, he will be using me even more in the disliked position b/c he's loosing an employee. Now I can only assume that 3/3 days will be there.

What are my rights/options? Can I refuse to do this job for which I was not hired to do more than 2 yrs ago, or do I have to keep being "shoved around"? I would appreciate some advice also on how to professionally, maturely, respectfully handle this situation.

Answer 1

Your rights depend on company policy and if your workplace doesn't have a union, that means the company can do pretty much what it wants.



If you refuse to do the job, your employer is within their rights to fire you. You have expressed your displeasure. You can reiterate it, but beyond that, there's little you can do. Can you afford to lose your job? It may come down to that.

Answer 2

This is long, and based in fact. Also, it's impossible to answer your question without knowing what country/state/province you are working in - as the laws differ depending on location of the work. That said...



If you are in the US, and are in a "work at will" job, then your company is able to change your job and responsibility at will, and you are then in a position to say either, "Yes, I will do this."; or "No, I won't." If you say no, they can fire you, and you can leave for any reason or no reason at all.



However, if you are working under contract or are part of a union your contract or union agreement will dictate what your rights and responsibilities are.



The longer term question I have for your situation is:



Is this company a company that you see yourself working in and eventually doing what you want? If not, then I'd be professional, but very clear that you are interested in the job you were hired for, let them know that you would like to track that career path, and ask if that's a realistic goal. If the answer isn't positive or is a strong "well...maybe", then it could be time to quietly start looking for a company that will support your personal goals.



So to boil it down, your rights are to look for another job and/or do the job for which the company needs. Your options are to continue to work in a job that you don't want - and see if there is a better opportunity to use your training/education, or seek other work.

Answer 3

You have no rights as you are just an employee. He is the boss, so he makes his decisions, be them right or wrong. Thus, either deal with it, or move on.

As you have found out in the world of business, the boss may not always be right, but the boss is the boss.