I'm a graphic designer. My job isn't high volume or fast turn around or anything, it's a church and i'm doing church stuff. Whatever, it pays well. The problems arise with management and how, literally, stuck in the past he is.
First off, I have to come into the office. What do I do when I get here? Sit in Photoshop and browse the internet. Last year when a co-worker asked to work from home for a few weeks because his wife had just had a baby and he wanted to help out, my boss told him “No, I don't think that'll work. If we let you work from home, then gustygardens might also want that.” Which I did. We later found out, because he let it slip, that the real reason he doesn't want us to work from home is because he doesn't like working from home. What's more important is that one of our other co-workers (there's 4 of us here total) WORKS FROM HOME and he championed that move for them.
Second. We're officially not allowed the internet. We all still connect and use it, but we do so in secret. We have a dedicated computer called “the internet station” that's used to check our company email and upload work to printers. My first few months here, my boss caught me playing a video on my phone while I worked. I didn't even have earbuds in at the time, so I couldn't hear shit. Anyway, I got a lecture about how the internet is a bad distraction. Besides that internet station, my boss' computer is connected. Obviously.
THIRD. He's desperately stuck in the past. Literally. He will not let us update ANY of our software because he's worried that older files won't be read. Files that haven't been opened in over 10 years. This includes our operating system, which is why my computer (THE MOST UP TO DATE IN THE OFFICE) is running Mac OS 10.14.1. Our *internet station* is still running 10.13 and the actual iMac itself is VERY old. It's thick, still has a DVD drive and a firewire port.
Fourth. The micro-managing is insane. Some days it'll be chill and he will not say a word to you, and other days he's relentless. Because we're not connected to the internet or a local network, we don't have inter-office communication beyond walking over to that person or calling them on our office phones, which are also old. I start work at 830am and there has been times where this man has called my desk phone 25 times before it turned 9. I wish that were an exaggeration. I once spent 20 minutes on the phone with this man while he lectured me about my font choice of Times vs Times New Roman. Again. Not an exaggeration. Most mornings are met with a “what are you working on today” and a bunch of other questions implying the need to rush, and then he'll casually say “no rush” and then rinse-repeat the next day.
Fifth. During the pandemic, when we were told to work from home unless we were essential workers, our boss said “you're essential to this office, we won't be changing anything.” This same man has come into the office no less that 3 times with Covid. No warning or anything to us, just came in and stayed in his office. When the first vaccine rolled around, I was met with a “you want that thing??” when I left early to get it.
Sixth. The only other in-office co-worker besides my boss and I is a real piece of shit. Any horrible take you could possibly have about ANYTHING, this man has that take. I've told him off, more than than once. He's currently ranting to me about the posture of women on TV. This man who is half-shrimp most of the time at his desk.
I don't mind doing this work, I'm not religious or anything, but whatever. It's easy enough that I can work on personal projects and freelance stuff here, and the benefits are decent. I have 20 vacation days, 20 sick days and every holiday off, even two weeks off with pay in December. The pay is good for me, too, about 60K/year, though I am living in California. The problem here isn't the work, it's the people.
tl;dr boss sucks, stuck in 2004 and won't let us work from home and makes for a stressful workplace.
I just wanna be warm in my bed instead in this frigid ass office with people i dislike, sorry about the rant.