So I have worked in Higher Ed for 5+ years now in support staff roles. So “production” and “managerial” structuring is not like standard companies or retail or fast food… you end up a lot with overqualified people in support staff roles and faculty (who started their careers with subject specific goals and knowledge) in leadership roles and steering the ship.
I have a Masters degree in a subject area but decided early I didnt want to be faculty. I enjoy helping people and am very good at high levels of administrative and clerical duties so thats the route Ive been on.
3 positions in across 2 different “companies” I feel burned and actively traumatized. These companies like to call themselves “a family” and that leadership has open doors… its a farce.
Position 1 – I was emotionally abused and treated like a lowly personal assistant by one faculty member who created such a toxic workplace for me that Title 9 told me they would step in if our supervisor recognized the problem… but the supervisor didnt… actually would remove duties from job to limit issues arising but that wasnt followed through so it didnt change matters. I move departments… months and tears later.
Position 2 – Supervisor is a faculty member/leadership role and a friend. But after a year and one month after a glowing performance review I start getting told I am failing at my job duties. And am being told about how new things and larger size than before tasks are coming up that just permenantly grow the role. Also… this role and the sheer volume of the duties grows with the number of students the role supports… this role has lile 5 different full time job hats and I was at the point where the role's responsibilities and the number of students it supports had surpassed the ability of one single person to do all the things well. And when I asked for assistance I kept getting told I was failing. Weekly… and with tge discussions looking ahead I decided to put in a month and a half notice because my mental health could not handle that future. 2 weeks into my notice I am “encouraged” to take FMLA. Which I agree to only because they werent listening when I said no Im fine to finish and help the office prepare for my departure. They didnt think they needed help.
Current job… due to some timing in the school year and some personnel changes, my office gets some abnormally high amount of normal things that need processing, and due to other duties within our roles, we get behind on that processing… new personnel are slow at picking up their duties to the pace they were being completed previously… to try and stay caught up, certain procedures or steps are set aside so we can focus on processing and getting back to processing as new come in… that takes over 4 months to do.
A month ago, I requested a meeting with the department supervisor (big leadership role person and my new personnel boss's supervisor) to come up with plan for what we need to do differently or if we can get some extra help in to get caught up before the new semester… this entire meeting I requested ends up with me being chewed out the whole time for creating a toxic workspace… that Im not nice… that ive created tension and that i disrespect my supervisor (all of which is not true… we have become friends because we are drowning together) and im discouraged from working overtime because Ive already had to take sick days (cause stress gives me bad IBS) and had a day off planned for some personal business and my non-medical professional leader said that I might have an autoimmune disorder and then told me about anotger coworker's journey to diagnosis and gave me the name of a doc I should see. This leader is not my immediate supervisor and so when I take a sick day I dont tell her or get her permission which means my boss told her why i was sick.
Fast forward a month and a half later. Ive caught up on the incoming tasks and am now transitioning into getting caught up ob what piled up in the mean time… i had ti work late to make this happen. Took work home…
My boss's high volume incoming task thay is also 4 month behind is still like that and a retired person that used to have my boss's role and is working part time for the company in a different capacity, volunteered to work part time for a temporary period to assit my boss in catching up. And my boss gets praised bt the leader for being proactive in getting help… no my boss had asked for hired help and was told by the leader there was no funds for it shortly before my meeting where I got chewed out and my boss sat there silently.
From little things Ive heard the higher up levels are just as toxic or I would have filed a complaint. And Ive been applying for other jobs outside of Higher Ed. But I also have people tell me that bosses suck everywhere and no one has a job that is good and they enjoy… but its not normal is it for your job to traumatize you and make you cry? Is it? Im scared of staying but Im scared of starting somewhere new.
Advice?
Has anyone successfully went to their bosses in similar scenarios and got the help they needed and not been burned?