I know none of you know me as I am new here, but I am concerned over a situation at work and thought maybe someone here would either have something from the Lord about it or have a fresh perceptive since I've been dealing with it so long. I work in a small office. I am the only full-time employee and there is one part-time employee. I've been told that although the part-time person has a specific job she has to put first, when she is caught up, she is supposed to help with dictation and anything else that needs to be done. I have also been told that if I notice she isn't busy I'm to give her something to do or tell her things that need to be done. Further, he said when I interviewed for this job 11 years ago that if it was really busy he'd call the part-time person in to help. I took his word on this. Practically every part-time person we've had avoids dictation at all costs and that is the one thing that continues to pile up. The first one I worked with would have 4 grocery store tabloids at her desk each day she was here and would sit and read them while I worked. It is really hard to be pushing to get things done while someone else is sitting reading scandal rags when there is work available for her to help with. Needless to say, I complained several times about her not pitching in. Like I said, he told me the part-time person's job was to help when she was done with her own things. She did apologize one time for not helping and was much better by the time she left, but it was a struggle. She had been talking about retiring for some time and when she broke her arm and it had to be put together with steel parts, the recovery time was going to be too long so she decided it was a good time to retire. The boss wasn't sorry to see her go as she had made a mistake that had cost him a great deal of money. The second one we had was great. She worked hard and helped me when she was caught up. We had a lot in common and still get together for a bite to eat when she comes into town. She left because she needed health benefits and she found a job that was too good to pass up. The next part-time person we had didn't want to help me at all. In fact, I don't think she even wanted to be here. She had a business breeding hunting dogs and everytime anything came up with one of the dogs, she didn't show up. Sometimes she'd call to let us know she wasn't coming and sometimes she wouldn't. She also decided to make her own hours. Instead of coming in two full days a week like the others, she'd pop in at around 10:00 in the morning and leave at noon. Sometimes I'd hear her tell the boss that she'd be in on Monday and then she wouldn't show up and wouldn't call. I'd have people call in and ask when she was going to be here and I sounded like an idiot because I didn't know. She wouldn't answer me when I greeted her or said good night to her and althoughI tried to get to know her, she wasn't responsive. She told the boss she didn't like dictation so she wasn't going to do it. He didn't want to make her mad so he didn't say anything. At that time, I had five dictation tapes going at one time. This lasted for nearly a month. He had to buy more tapes because he didn't have anything to dictate on and I couldn't keep up. I tried to tell him I needed help because I felt like I was drowning and he had said when he hired me that he'd have the part-time person come help me if it got busy. He wouldn't call her in. He said if it didn't bother him, it shouldn't bother me. Well, since I'm responsible for getting it done and it keeps piling up faster than I can keep up with him because he keeps going like the energizer bunny, I had no hope of ever getting caught up. I got my resignation ready so I could just date and sign it when the time came and started watching for something else. Even emailed the second part-time person we had because she was a supervisor for a company that was putting in new offices. They didn't have anything available, but she would have hired me if they had. Then one morning since the part-time person seemed to be gone more than she was here because of her dog business, I prayed that if I was right and we wouldn't be able to count on her because her dogs were a full-time job, that she would figure it out and leave. If I was wrong, then I prayed that she would be more reliable and helpful. That same day she called to say something came up with the dogs and she wouldn't be in. She asked for the boss and when I told her he was out, she said she really needed to talk to him because, "I don't think this is working out." It was about a month later that she actually gave her notice, but that comment let me know it was coming. She was only here about six months. The one we have now is nice but she doesn't seem to think she should have to do anything she doesn't want to do either. I will notice she's caught up and say, "If you're caught up, he's got some dictation in his office" or I'll tell her something else that needs doing. She doesn't answer me. She hears me fine when I mention something I heard on the news or anything else, but if I mention something that needs to be done, she won't even acknowledge that she heard me. One time I knew he had a tape in his room, I had one I was working on and she wasn't doing anything. I kept working and didn't say anything wondering if she'd look on her own and pick it up. I finished my tape and went to get the other one. She looked up and said, "I didn't know he had anything in his office." She should have looked, but I didn't say anything. If she'd picked it up, we would have both been done at the same time. Then, I'll be working and she won't and the phone will ring. She waits to see if I'm going to pick it up before answering it. If she's not working, I don't see any reason why I should be interrupted by the phone. She's just as capable to handle it as I am and if she does have a problem, she can always give it to me.
Anyway, I asked for an appointment to talk to the boss about the situation on Monday. He said, "She's not leaving." I told him I didn't expect her to leave. He said he'd gone through too many part-time people and implied that their leaving was my doing. Well, I didn't break the first woman's arm and I certainly had nothing to do with the fact that she was in her 70's and really wanted to retire anyway, I didn't get a better job for the second one (who I am still friends with) and I didn't cause the dog business of the third one to be too time consuming for her to be able to fit a part-time job in. In fact, I never complained to any of them. I only complained to him and all I've asked is for what he told me I'd have when he hired me. Yet, I'm the bad guy because I want him to keep his word. For the most part he isn't hard to work for, he's gone a lot, and during the summer if I'm alone at the office on Fridays or when he's on vacation, I can close up an hour early and get paid for the full time. The problem is that I feel he is always taking the side of the part-time person over me. I've been there 11 years, am good at my job even correcting mistakes of his when I find them, I am rarely sick, I put up with him yelling when he's frustrated, and I have been a really loyal employee. What I want to talk to him about tomorrow is that fact that the part-time person won't even answer me when I mention something that needs to be done even though he told me to tell her things to do. If she's just taking a mental break (we don't have actual breaks in our office) and still has things to do, fine, but at least answer me. I also think she should jump in and do these things without being told. She's been here over a year so she knows what needs to be done. I resent working while someone else is sitting on their chair looking around on the internet when there are other things that need to be done. If there's nothing to do she can play computer games for all I care, but if there's something to do, then help. I also want to dispute his accusations that I'm somehow responsible for us losing three part time people in 11 years. A guy down the street in the same business has gone through five people, and that's just the nature of part-time jobs - people don't usually keep them for very long. Further, he doesn't know it, but I don't think she's going to be staying too long anyway. She was retired when they moved here and only started working because her husband lost his job. Now he has a good paying job. She mentioned to me it was about time he got a decent paying job and when she said that, she had a look on her face like a little kid with a secret. So, I think she's just waiting to see if he keeps the new job before retiring again.
Anyway, I am concerned about the meeting with him tomorrow and am concerned about what he will say when/if she does leave in a few months. I am concerned about him firing me because he doesn't want to deal with my concerns. He's fine just to talk to, but if you have a problem he gets mad because he doesn't want to talk about it. I have decided I need to get out of there, but this is a small town, most jobs don't pay very well and I am 59 years old - people want to hire younger employees. As I said, I want to get out of there, but I want to be the one to tell him and I want to do it before another year has passed. I am praying for a way out of there that is not going to put me in a bad position financially. I'm also going to start speaking the word over this situation - am going to start a list today and decree it several times a day until I get my answer.
Any thoughts about this problem and my meeting tomorrow? Would appreciate any insights anyone may have.
It's nice to have you here. I'm sorry to hear of the troubles you're facing at your job. It's sounds like you work where I do! I could have written the very same things, though our job descriptions are different. I'm the one who works as unto the LORD picking up the slack the slackers leave behind, and so on. In fact, I could tell you story after story too. The best thing I can say is turn to the Word for answers. Jesus, the living Word has the perfect counsel to give. I am not set up to give counsel here, nor are any of my friends here, but we are here to love you and support you. We WILL pray for you, and for this meeting tomorrow. 
Suffice it to say, we prayed, our Life Group people at church have prayed with us, and our pastors, and the LORD has worked in the hearts of those involved better than we could imagine!
We may even find out pets there!
