Hello all, long-time fan of this subreddit, first time poster here.
I am in a difficult spot at work and I thought I would share.
My company was purchased from an private Canadian owner to a publicly traded American company several years ago. Before my time, our “Business Unit” was left largely on its own to carry on like things were before. Then, we ran into financial problems and became less profitable. The solution my corporate masters arrived at was to merge our company with an American counterpart within the same corporation.
It. Has. Been. A. Disaster.
It sometimes feel like our “colleagues” are purposefully trying to run our company into the ground. I recently did the math and wrote out the list and discovered that in calendar year 2023 19 significant figures within the company have left – managers, project managers, engineers, etc. Only one of them has been replaced with a new, outside hire.
For two years my boss was basically the senior Canadian manager in the company, he worked mightily to hold the chaotic mess together. It has been stressful and very difficult.
A month ago I am called into an office to learn that my boss has been demoted (that's not what they called it, but that is what it was). However, no one considered what to do with me. Literally, my role was completely forgotten in the chaotic mismanagement and rash decisions. My role was to support my boss and now that he is gone… what happens with me?
I mulled over this upheaval over the weekend and on Monday morning I e-mailed my new boss (a person who lives and works on the other side of the continent) and asked for some guidance about my new role and responsibilities and how he'd like to work together. He reassured me four weeks ago he hasn't forgotten me, but we still haven't talked about it.
I've muddled along, working with a colleague or two on whatever help they need, but if I am working 12 out of 40 hours a week, I'd be shocked. I have been stuck at my desk for hours and hours with no work to do. A lot of my prior role was generating reports and updating data for my boss, now that is entirely superfluous, so I've dropped a lot of that work.
Two weeks ago I was called into another meeting and, from my perspective, I was offered a demotion of my own. I'm an analyst and my new boss and old boss suggested I take a role being a spreadsheet manager – putting together spreadsheets, helping people with their spreadsheet issues, etc. I found the idea insulting, and I told them very flatly that I wasn't interested in a position like that.
I just got home from an 8.5-hour day, where I probably did 2.5 hours of anything resembling work, while trying to give the semblance that I'm not just rotting in an office chair, bored out of my mind. I am a person who needs routine and structure, and being left adrift like this is driving me nuts. Working under capitalism is dogshit, but working under capitalism while your company is being purged and you are stuck in limbo is a mountain of dogshit.
Thanks for your time if you read, I appreciate it.