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It's about time
Saturday, February 17th, 2007 09:08 amYesterday afternoon, I got a call from my supervisor telling me I had been scheduled for interviews on Monday, 10-1:00 in MLW. Sheesh! Give a person some notice, whydoncha? I'm not sure how I feel about this or how it will go because I applied for this job in Jan '06, and again in Jan '07, and last week as well. I got home and found the email notifications, and how is it that everyone I know in the company is forced to use Lotus Notes, but the HR person sent me stuff formatted for Micrsoft Office that I can't get open?! I don't know who I'll be interviewing with, other than I expect to see my supervisor. At least I'm 90% positive he wants me for the position.
They practically chained me to the computer to get me to fill out the first app. B had been in the hospital the week before, and I had other things on my mind. They got 55 applicants that time, and didn't interview any of them. Decided they couldn't fill the position until they had more backlog. Strung me along on it through May, when I realized we'd maxed out our out-of-pocket amount, and quit worrying about changing jobs for the rest of the year. In Oct, they asked me what I wanted to do, keep on as hourly or apply for something permanent 2-3 grades lower than what I was doing (with the corresponding cut in pay). I told them about the insurance issue, and said I wanted to wait till the end of the year to make any changes. They were okay with that.
In Dec, they got rid of my former supervisor on the Library job, and had to find a replacement for him, but didn't post the position until Jan. I tried to apply, but tech difficulties intervened. Then they pulled the posting, "for revisions." So they put it back up on Feb. 7, and I finally managed to get my updated resume turned in. It turns out the revision was an increased grade level. So instead of applying for a Project Manager position, I applied for Sr. Project Mgr. More pay, sure, but also more stress and responsibility. As in, "if you don't meet your financial objectives, we will can you." So much fun.
OTOH, even if they don't give me the Sr. position, they've got lots of work to be done and not enough bodies to do it, and I'm involved in about 8 projects, with 4 of them being officially assigned, so I should have enough billable hours to stay employed for awhile longer. They need a Sr. & a regular PM dedicated to WI, and they need some kind of PM dedicated to IL, and they're only interviewing for one of those positions right now.
Pros: Permanent status means *vacation* & holiday pay, a steady paycheck, regardless of hours of billable work, cheap and comprehensive medical insurance, and other typical benefits. It would be nice to take more than 1/2 a day off at a time. No more stressing about getting enough hours, or being told they don't need me at all. Stability. Getting access to systems & training I need to do my job effectively, but haven't had because I'm a temp. Wearing a nicer wardrobe.
Cons: 40+ hours/week when I've spent 14 mos working 28-32 hrs. No overtime pay (not that I got many opportunities for it as a temp). Less flexibility with where and when I work. Work-related Stress from scrutiny of every damn thing I do. Dealing with practically non-existent or non-functioning work systems - I can't believe an international company of this size and success has such lackadaisical operating procedures. Having to drive all over WI for work again. In my own car. Having my current supervisor be my actual boss (I'm not the only one who feels this way). Being expected to *want* to climb the ladder. Buying a nicer wardrobe.
Yeah, not sure how this is going to go. But if I get it, I'd like to think I could stick with it until Rupert graduates at least. Stability would be a welcome thing in my life right now.
They practically chained me to the computer to get me to fill out the first app. B had been in the hospital the week before, and I had other things on my mind. They got 55 applicants that time, and didn't interview any of them. Decided they couldn't fill the position until they had more backlog. Strung me along on it through May, when I realized we'd maxed out our out-of-pocket amount, and quit worrying about changing jobs for the rest of the year. In Oct, they asked me what I wanted to do, keep on as hourly or apply for something permanent 2-3 grades lower than what I was doing (with the corresponding cut in pay). I told them about the insurance issue, and said I wanted to wait till the end of the year to make any changes. They were okay with that.
In Dec, they got rid of my former supervisor on the Library job, and had to find a replacement for him, but didn't post the position until Jan. I tried to apply, but tech difficulties intervened. Then they pulled the posting, "for revisions." So they put it back up on Feb. 7, and I finally managed to get my updated resume turned in. It turns out the revision was an increased grade level. So instead of applying for a Project Manager position, I applied for Sr. Project Mgr. More pay, sure, but also more stress and responsibility. As in, "if you don't meet your financial objectives, we will can you." So much fun.
OTOH, even if they don't give me the Sr. position, they've got lots of work to be done and not enough bodies to do it, and I'm involved in about 8 projects, with 4 of them being officially assigned, so I should have enough billable hours to stay employed for awhile longer. They need a Sr. & a regular PM dedicated to WI, and they need some kind of PM dedicated to IL, and they're only interviewing for one of those positions right now.
Pros: Permanent status means *vacation* & holiday pay, a steady paycheck, regardless of hours of billable work, cheap and comprehensive medical insurance, and other typical benefits. It would be nice to take more than 1/2 a day off at a time. No more stressing about getting enough hours, or being told they don't need me at all. Stability. Getting access to systems & training I need to do my job effectively, but haven't had because I'm a temp. Wearing a nicer wardrobe.
Cons: 40+ hours/week when I've spent 14 mos working 28-32 hrs. No overtime pay (not that I got many opportunities for it as a temp). Less flexibility with where and when I work. Work-related Stress from scrutiny of every damn thing I do. Dealing with practically non-existent or non-functioning work systems - I can't believe an international company of this size and success has such lackadaisical operating procedures. Having to drive all over WI for work again. In my own car. Having my current supervisor be my actual boss (I'm not the only one who feels this way). Being expected to *want* to climb the ladder. Buying a nicer wardrobe.
Yeah, not sure how this is going to go. But if I get it, I'd like to think I could stick with it until Rupert graduates at least. Stability would be a welcome thing in my life right now.
