I’m an Engineer In Training and graduated in April of 2020 during the worst of the pandemic.
Nowhere was hiring but eventually got a junk drafting job and worked there for a year and change before calling around and finally found a position open for an entry level engineer at a small county government.
It has been a disaster.
The previous department chief had retired and groomed another young engineer in training to take his place.
This little emperor won’t listen to any input and everything he’s built is beyond reprieve.
My position to him is to be his secretary. Anybody off the street could do what I do.
My actual boss that I report to has continually told me “I see no improvement” and the little emperor continually tells me “I don’t need robots. I need critical thinking.” Being a person of color robot has a very racial context to it I’ve been dying to tell him but I won’t.
Everything I do is wrong and any input I have might as well be from a five year old.
One day after I get reamed out by my boss I ask “is there any way we can work this out?”
And responds “I don’t know but work it out!”
Didn’t care to have a conversation. Just wanted to yell at me.
It seriously has depressed me to the point where I started taking medication and seeing counseling because of how much of a failure this job makes me feel.
I worked my ass off at a top public university, received a STEM degree and here I am. I can’t even send an email right.
A couple weeks ago I take the initiative to do some basic calculations on a project and little emperor flips his shit. “That’s not what you were supposed to do! I don’t have time for this! I have to call contractors and other departments.” On and on until he realizes. In the 1.5 years I’ve been at this job I haven’t even done some of the most basic tenements of my educated profession.
He gets real quiet and then sends me back to my desk.
After some counseling I work up the courage to quit and find another job with a big pay raise. If there’s no improvement and I can’t do anything right I’m just wasting this departments time and I’ll just try harder at my next job.
I go to tell my boss I’m leaving and like a light switch.
“Did you get an offer? What can we do to get you to stay? What can be improved? It’s so hard to find qualified workers! You’re young and educated we want to keep you!”
Where the fuck was all of this the last 1.5 years Jim? I thought you didn’t care about this job and you won’t be here forever. I thought you weren’t seeing any improvement. I thought you didn’t need this tension between me and little emperor.
I asked you if there was anything that could be worked out and you brushed me off. But now that I’m leaving you want to have that conversation‽
During his fit I say exactly one thing.
“I’m leaving because of personal reasons”.
Good fucking luck and thanks for the lesson.
I own my labor and I’ll do with it as I please.
I don’t owe you shit.