I had a meeting with the executive director (my supervisor) and went into it thinking if I have a job, great, if I don’t have a job, great. It just feels like a toxic environment & even though I would probably get paid less working elsewhere, I did want to work again.
Little things started adding up, and one day someone that I hired as a volunteer was trying to make me open up about my own (adverse) childhood experience which threw me off because it was a sensitive topic and grief about my brother came up. The following day we had a staff meeting, and ED is not there. After the meeting I asked about the new timesheet system. I noticed Thursday wasn’t on there and I work mon-fri, I asked the manager responsible and she came up to me face-first waving her hand around stating she has never seen me work a Thursday, she did and said that twice, would not listen to me and my other coworkers – that share the same office – did not chime in instead they press me for why I wasn’t there the previous two Thursdays. I send in my “time-work projection” on time and well in advance, I provide my reasons for why I won’t be in on whatever day for appointments, school, etc. I felt attacked and unsupported and began shaking and crying. I knew I could not focus, I felt gaslighted and had to get out of there. I ended up going to my old counsellors office and they let me vent, and told me I should let my boss know I left so I did about an hour after I left.
I had no verbal warnings, no written warnings… just slapped in the face with “since the exact time you left the office, you have been placed on suspension without pay.” As far as I know this is supposed to be a last-call, not a first line of defense.
Anyway. Back to the meeting with the ED. She finally told me why Thursdays are a problem. Some months ago, she had asked me what I was working on the next day, a Thursday, and I said I wasn’t working that day. I had the day off. She asked if it was because of a certain program which I run that takes place on the weekend. I just said no. (I felt overworked and pretty sure I had worked “too much”, and we don’t get overtime. She didn’t ask further because she “didn’t want to start an argument.” I am not argumentative, she is with others. I can’t refer to my timesheet because my email access was revoked and she didn’t give a specific day that this occurred.) Instead of pressing me for details, she brought up this concern that I was taking whatever Thursday I want off without cause to the managers. So they had this hate-on and impression that this one Thursday I “self-declared” to have off was an ongoing issue. And in order for me to get off of suspension I need to have a meeting with the two managers and explain why I left.
More info: I used to WFH Thursdays, that was switched out to in office 100% so I can go to school, but whenever I need to take a day off in-lieu of working on a weekend, it needs to be a Thursday according to the executive director because she only works Mon, Wed, Fri. We both agreed thursday would be the day I take days off.
The week before, I had pressing deadlines but ED wanted “all hands on deck” to plan and attend an event taking place on a Sat., I tried asking to be excluded but was not allowed (it was in two weeks as well) so I spent an entire week creating posters and pamphlets and another week taking stuff out of storage for the event instead of coordinating my two projects. She insists I always take off the Thursday prior to the weekend event so I requested to have that day off because I was just exhausted and know I can’t work 6 days in a row. She said “I don’t know, you’ve got a lot that’s due on Monday. Are you sure?” And so I couldn’t even rest while on my entitled day off.
Moving forward I refuse to work Sat or Sun and dropping my work to plan and attend events. I don’t need to market my program. They can get volunteers and I can help with that part. But I’m not bending over backward for the ED to get others involved in policing me while disregarding my concerns when I immediately bring them to her attention.