Not so Hooray?

Well, today was my first day. Talk about disorganized - my new company is in the dark ages as far as offices go. Really, you walk in and think you're in 1978. The carpet, the cubes, the decor, the bathroom (!), the hairstyles, etc. Seriously, it's a bit rinky-dink, for lack of a better term.

I'm slightly disappointed. Not necessarily hating it, but it's not going to be quite as nice as my last place. So the job wasn't so great before, but the people were wonderful, and the atmosphere itself was OK. The building had at least been brought up to code, and I might have been in a cube, but at least it was semi-private. Now I'm in the middle of the room, with my back to the door.

The new place doesn't even have an HR department. It has the one woman who apparently runs the whole show. And she still hasn't told me my salary. We discussed it vaguely during the interviewing/hiring process, but we have not decided on a specific amount yet. And when I asked her about it again at the end of today, she waved me off and said, "Oh, we'll talk about it tomorrow."

Also--I so took this for granted at my last job--I have to clock in - 3 times! There are 3 different systems to keep up with time, even for salaried employees. First, you clock in with your fingerprint (misleading, because that's the only piece of real technology in the place), then write on a sheet of paper what time you came in so that the receptionist knows at a glance who's in the building (this is because there are no individual phone lines - all calls go through the receptionist...don't get me started), then you have to keep a time card at your desk and turn it in every two weeks. All this, and I'm probably getting a pay cut, which I frankly thought was financially impossible!

And, when I go to lunch, I must tell the do-everything woman so that she knows exactly when to expect each person back. We are expected to take the same lunch hour everyday. It can be whenever you choose (11:00, 12:15, etc.) but it must be the same hour each day. Huh? Couldn't she just call and if I don't answer, leave me a message?? I mean, my fingerprint, list at the front desk, and time card will all prove I didn't stay gone longer than an hour - why would she need us all to check in with her? So I guess I stand corrected: there are 4 methods to keep up with my hours. Ugh.

Also, I have no job title or description. All day long I heard, "Oh, and I might ask you to help me with this. And this. And this." Now, anyone who knows me knows I don't mind responsibility, as long as it is RELEVANT. But these were totally random items like, I might need you to answer the phones during lunch, or volunteer to clean the kitchen, or make travel arrangements for people. Seriously. What does that have to do with me? And then when people found out what I used to do at my old job, they immediately linked me with the woman who does that for this company, saying, "Oh, well, you have experience with that, so you can help her." Excuse me, but was I hired to be her assistant? Why would I help her with that? She's been doing it for 35 years. I did it for 10 months. I bet she's fine. And I have my own job! It's as if I'm expected to continue doing everything that was on my resume from the past. "Oh, I see you were once a writing tutor. So I'll expect you to edit all my emails before I send them out..."

And we're only allowed to use the Internet for personal reasons twice a day for 10 minutes at a time. And we are to limit personal phone calls to 2 minutes. Here's how I feel about that: if I am hired to do a job, and I do that job, I'm going to take as many 10 minute breaks as I need to stay sane. If I'm salary and will occasionally have to stay late with no extra pay, then I expect to be allowed to stay at lunch 10 minutes late sometimes without penalty. If my work is good, my attitude is good, I'm not MIA at weird times during the day, and I don't smell like pot - leave me alone. Otherwise, I am mature enough and responsible enough to know when I should not be checking my email or chatting away on the phone. That what I went to college for - to know how to act in society. (I feel like George Costanza: "Ya know, we're living in a SOCIETY here!")

With all that being said, it is NOT that bad. I was just expecting so much more. I mean, realistically, the place is at least 5 times smaller than my last office, and it's run by 3 people who have been there since the 60's, so I should have expected them to be outdated and a little clueless. But really - no eating or drinking at our desks?? Sometimes I want a freaking pack of crackers at 3:00 in the afternoon and I don't want to fingerprint out and go sit in the break room for 10 minutes...

(Also, I would just like to point out that I was asked to show up 30 minutes late this morning so that everyone could get there before me and get my paperwork ready. I had no idea I was going to be hourly for the first 90 days, so I would like those 30 minutes back please.)

Z and I originally thought we could carpool, but that would mean, in order for him to be at work on time (downtown traffic can be a real bitch) I would have to be at work probably 30 minutes early, and leave 30 minutes late. And sometimes I'd be stranded for lunch. I realized today I'm not going to be spending ANY extra minutes there. [The reason he would be the one dropping me off and stranding me is because he will be receiving a state car. His department actually has money.]

So, I'm not giving up. Tomorrow will be better and the day after that will be better. But, here's the honest truth. I was underpaid and underappreciated at my previous job. If this turns out to be a step backwards, it is not going to last. At least I had really great friends at my other job, and that made it OK. Now there is only one person semi-near my age. Everyone else is either in highschool (only about 3 people I think, out of 32) or 50+ and that is proving awkward.

I guess we'll see, and I'll definitely keep posting about it.