worried about being fired

[sungrl]

I have only been at my new job almost a month.

 

Someone or a few people ratted me out about AIM and using my cell. The thing is--i am not even at my desk much so i dont use AIM that much--only if i have done most things needing to be done. And with my cell--i did not want to use the company phone--so i would use my cell for personal calls and did not even stay on the phone long--but i guess if i someone saw me --they just think she is constantly on the phone, constanty im'ing. One of the guys who hired me--spoke to the girl i work with and i guess who has been training me in a way--asking how i have been working out etc etc. And she said she would tell me what is going on as opposed to him. She told me what he said and said i am not sure if management is going to approach you monday and he might tell so and so--another girl who hired me. And i am worried--this is a warning since its only been a month or am i being fired??

 

I went to file for the rest of the day because they said a lot of the filing has not been done--i was busy doing a lot of other things and did not file.

I was close to the office of the guy who to spoke to the girl i worked with and couldnt just wait til monday--I approached him, asked him a question about the company and then after--talked to him a little about what happened. I said to him--if people saw me on the phone or texting--the last 2 weeks have been stressful b/c i was in a group project and the members were horrible and would never get back to me or didnt want to do anything. And i even complained to the professor about all of it. I said so i was here but also was worried about my class. I said i am graduating and now i can just concentrate on work. And i said i only used AIM after completeting most things that needed to be done or if i was taking a break. He said he was a student once too.

I then asked--will i be give more responsiblities as time goes(i wanted to see if he knew i was being fired) and he said i am not sure what so and so sees you doing(the girl he might approach) but he says he would like us caught up on a lot of things that havent been such as filing. He said the last guy was part time so he didnt care so much about filing and he went on the internet a lot to point he was locked out of the system and fired. He said it was his own fault a little because he gave him a long leash, he took advantage of it but it wont happen again. And he said that is what he sees and he would like someone who would be able to know what to do if someone is out on vacation.

 

Anyway--from all of this--do you think i might get fired? Or was it a warning? what if he goes to the girl and tells and she says its only been a month and she is doing all that, let her go? I told him my side of the story so maybe its good i approached him and said its just been b/c school is ending. Please write back.

[Touche]

I don't know if you'll be fired based on what you wrote since it was kind of confusing. But it does sound like you were making a bunch of excuses for slacking off at work. If I were you, I would stop the IM'ing/texting immediately. They're watching you closely now. You're on probation.

 

And how do you justify doing that when you say you had almost all your work done? That means you didn't have it ALL done. They're paying you to work not to goof off. Ever heard of an "honest day's pay for an honest day's work?" They're not paying you to goof off.

 

Maybe it's not too late to fix this. Don't give them any reasons from now on to fire you and maybe you won't be fired.

[sungrl]

what was confusing?

 

The thing is--its the truth--i was constantly trying to get in touch with people in my group but still--its no excuse if i am at work. I am really worried....

[Touche]

what was confusing?

 

The thing is--its the truth--i was constantly trying to get in touch with people in my group but still--its no excuse if i am at work. I am really worried....

 

It was just confusing..maybe it's just me.

 

But anyway, no sense in worrying now. Just do your best from now on and I'm sure they'll notice.

[sungrl]

i fully intend to. I won't even use it anymore. I do not think i like it there too much i need to be there atleast 6 months to be able to place it on my resume.

 

But what i am worried about--is not being to prove to them anything--i hope from speaking to him that i am not being fired. He basically took 30-40 minutes to explain to me my question about the company so it makes me think why would he take that time to talk to me just about the company if he was going to fire me.

[Enema]

Certainly shows a poor attitude towards the workplace and a lack of respect to your employers.

 

Impossible to say if you'll get fired. All you can do now is start behaving properly and hope.

 

When you're at work, your group project shouldn't exist.

[amerikajin]

i fully intend to. I won't even use it anymore. I do not think i like it there too much i need to be there atleast 6 months to be able to place it on my resume.

 

But what i am worried about--is not being to prove to them anything--i hope from speaking to him that i am not being fired. He basically took 30-40 minutes to explain to me my question about the company so it makes me think why would he take that time to talk to me just about the company if he was going to fire me.

 

I think you're wasting too much time defending yourself. You should've just apologized, made no excuses and moved on. Part of what they're looking at is your performance, but they're also looking at how you respond when someone criticizes you. From now on, whenever someone calls you on something, just listen and think about what they're saying. If you really feel they're being unfair, then you can address that at some point. But otherwise, I'd just put your nose to the grindstone. Even if it's relatively minimal, being caught on the telephone or net at work just looks bad...especially when your work's not getting done.

 

If you're on the bubble, you probably have about another 4 weeks to make a positive impression. Although 90 days is typically the probationary period, 60 days is usually enough time for an employer to decide whether to keep you or send you on down the road.

[justpassingthrough]

Someone or a few people ratted me out about AIM and using my cell. The thing is--i am not even at my desk much so i dont use AIM that much--only if i have done most things needing to be done. And with my cell--i did not want to use the company phone--so i would use my cell for personal calls and did not even stay on the phone long--but i guess if i someone saw me --they just think she is constantly on the phone, constanty im'ing.

 

Personal calls. IMs.

 

Read the company's policy manual; they're both likely against policy to begin with.

 

Because you suggested someone "ratted" on you, that leads me to believe you knew what you were doing was wrong to begin with.

 

And in the business world that's not a case of being "ratted on." More than likely, your co-workers found your behavior unprofessional, which it was.

 

Will you get fired? Hard to say, but if your duties include pretty entry level stuff like filing, it's certainly possible because it would be relatively easy to find someone else to do the job.

 

Have you learned a lesson?

[Trialbyfire]

I'll agree with everyone else except that the company itself, if it has issues with IMing, should block it or setup the network without external access.

 

Keep your head down and work from now on. It's not about ratting each other out like school, it's about relying on others carrying their weight because most office workers rely on each other in a chain of events, to complete each job. This includes filing. If someone can't find a document they need, it can be an intensely frustrating experience.

[magda]

If I were you I would get the filing done really, really fast. And whatever else they're watching closest. I don't think they've decided whether or not you're going to be fired yet, from the sound of it. Keep that girl you're reporting to happy and keep the stuff managers notice (filing) done and you will hopefully be okay.

[stillafool]

I suggest you use your lunch break to talk on the cell and text. You are a new employee and already you are slacking off. Your excuses are not valid. They are paying you to work. If you want to impress them you might try working through your lunch hour and breaks to catch up all the filing. That might prevent them from firing you.

[napoleandynamite]

It's hard to say whether or not they will decide to let you go. My guess, is they will give you a warning. However, you never can quite tell what employers will decide to do. And don't let this scare you, but that the way it goes-for everyone. Most employment is "at will employment" which means they can fire any given day for no particular reason. So who knows.

 

In regards to your cell phone usage, in the future, don't use it during working hours. During the probationary period of a job, they usually have you under a microscope and they're ready to point out anything negative. I'm sure as long as you stop using your cell phone to take care of personal matters, everything will be fine. After another few weeks, they'll probably forget it was even an issue.

 

In the case they do let you go, then you just have to move on. I know it's tough and all, but that's what you gotta do. If you really do suspect something bad, start sending out resumes and aggressivley pursuing new jobs. I'm sure things will be ok. Good luck!

[allina]

So..... what happened?