Time to move on? (New job? major rant!)

[speedpro]

Put everything in writing and present them with it. As you say it could get heated otherwise. If you hang round a bit get yourself a notebook and keep a daily diary of events - all of them, good or bad.

I was having a similar bad experiance a few years ago then one Monday after a week working in Sydney it was all good and has been ever since. Honest it was a chalk and cheese thing. Turned out the boss had done a "Forum" course. I'm not (too) screwed up but I ended up doing one as well, mainly due to the positive change in the boss, and found it quite mind clearing.

[scumdog]

Thanks Riff Raff. Thats the plan. Hopefully tomorrow... if he's not out fucking up one of my projects...
It may be difficult to keep it amicable, as this has been going on for ages. Can't see him changing as he is a total control freak. He has thrown the whole company into dissaray in the three weeks he has been back from Aus. There are so many other issues I haven't mentioned, but the plan is to keep it simple, only mention the issues above, otherwise it will turn real nasty...

Sounds like the MD has too much time on his hands - what IS his job description?
Ask him how he sees his 'input' is going to benefit the company, be explicit with examples and point how you see his 'input is REALLY affecting morale/productivity/costs etc - stick to known provable facts.

[750Y]

the clouds are parting ...yes... i'm seeing a big black line out the workshop door.

[James Deuce]

For the record, the MD is the owner/ founder of the company.
As for the contract, I don't have one. Been there for 5 years plus. About two years ago they insisted that I have one. I actually paid to have an employment lawyer alter it and add some clauses. It scared them, and despite my prompting them several times, I still don't have one. The problem with family companies is that the MD's don't have to be good, they just need the right last name...

Wife and kids will definitely appreciate it if I can sort this out. As you can imagine, I'm not always that cheerful.

Thanks to all for the advice. KB is a great place!

Right. Been exactly there, done exactly that. Leave. Don't discuss anything with anyone, you will just end feeling more worthless, because the MD sounds like the kind of person that will ultimately convince you that YOU are the mental case, not him.

If it is affecting your demeanour at home, then the problem is already worse than you think it is. Leave. Leave. Leave. Don't hesitate. Start looking for jobs today. You will wonder why you held on so long when you find another job, probably comparatively easily. Sounds like your project management skills are up spec, so don;t be afraid to try a different industry.

Leave. Write the letter now. Make sure it doesn't contain anything emotive, and isn't any longer than two sentences. Leave.

Leave.

[FROSTY:Me]

I agree with the above posts. Also keep in mind YOUR reputation is beeing tarred with the same brush as theirs.
If you want to stay in this line of work then I'd suggest its time for a change.
different company -same line of work.
Maybee even a competitor thinking of moving into you area of specialisation.
BTW -new industrial law as at april this year-it isn't legal to not have a contract.

[ManDownUnder]

Yup all of the above. If you know you're good you don;t need to keep covering for your boss.

If he take stuff out to site and it has to be moved later to get the job done. That's ok. It's his company - he can do what he wants. But... the buck stops with him - not you.

I have a rule with my 5 year old... "You mess it up, you clean it up." . For some reason it came to mind while reading your (well deserved) rant.

I'd also keepo in mind that the best time to find a job is when you don't need one. No time pressures to mov on etc - meaning you won't be forced to take any that come along.

Only you know if it's time to go, but if you and the MD can't sit and talk this over I suspect it might be time to start looking. If it's so bad your family is being affected I'd suggest the price is already too high... it's one of those indicators...

Good luck chap - your situation is not a fun place to be!
MDU

[Sniper]

Sorry to hear that mate, I know just how frustrated you are

[TonyB]

Not entirely sure of this yet, but I think the only option is to keep quiet, try not to go ballistic the next time it happens, sort my CV out, and get another job. At the very least I'm going to mull it over for a few days. As I said back near the start (and most people have agreed with), the MD's personality is not likely to change. He can't help himself.
I have now found out that the workshop manager feels exactly the same as I do. In fact I think he is probably having more trouble than me.
Then the manager of a company we use to do construction for us in NZ and OZ told me that he will no longer be doing work for us in OZ. The MD is usually based in OZ and as a result things there are hopelessly disorganised, and he is sick of the MD's overwhelming arrogance.
On the face of it, it would appear that this company is falling apart at the seams. Time, I think, for this rat to desert the sinking ship.

Thanks yet again to everybody for your support and advice. It means a lot, and has genuinely helped me to clear my head.
Some day I will repay you all, unless of course I can't find you or if I forget © Shrek 2

[geoffm]

I have been in a very similar situation, in my first job (a plastics factory in South Auckland). There for 4 years - the first 2 years were great, the last 2 were hell, and knowing what I know now, I could have done them for constructive dismissal... I never realised how stressed I was until I left. I should have done it sooner, but jobs were hard to find in the early 90s. When i was talking to someone there a few years later, it hadn't improved at all, and a couple of key staff had left for the opposition down the road, as they had had enough.
Now is the time to leave, especially if you are in the metalworking trades. You should have no problems getting a job at present. Drop your CV into the specialist headhunters, ask around and knock on doors. What qualifications, skills, etc have you got and where do you want to work?
The hardest part is getting away for a job interview (my pet peeve with headhunters - want an interview with everyone, even if the job doesn't exist).

Don't have a big scene / trash the place/ etc when you go. You want to leave on good terms, so you can get a decent reference, and to make sure no rumours follow you around the employment hunt. NZ is still a small place in a lot of ways.
Geoff

[ManDownUnder]

Not entirely sure of this yet, but I think the only option is to keep quiet, try not to go ballistic the next time it happens, sort my CV out, and get another job. At the very least I'm going to mull it over for a few days. As I said back near the start (and most people have agreed with), the MD's personality is not likely to change. He can't help himself.
I have now found out that the workshop manager feels exactly the same as I do. In fact I think he is probably having more trouble than me.
Then the manager of a company we use to do construction for us in NZ and OZ told me that he will no longer be doing work for us in OZ. The MD is usually based in OZ and as a result things there are hopelessly disorganised, and he is sick of the MD's overwhelming arrogance.
On the face of it, it would appear that this company is falling apart at the seams. Time, I think, for this rat to desert the sinking ship.

Thanks yet again to everybody for your support and advice. It means a lot, and has genuinely helped me to clear my head.
Some day I will repay you all, unless of course I can't find you or if I forget © Shrek 2

Dude - at the risk of requestesting something that's too much to stomach, it would be worthwhile contacting the other shareholders and letting them know of staff feelings. It sounds like it would be inappropriate for you to lay out what the issues actually are - you're probably too close to accurately diagnose them and leave the emotions out of it... not to mention the fact it'll come down to you vs the MD... no prizes for guessing who wins that fight.

If you have good sources confirming 10% of the company is currently planning to leave due to a common problem, the shareholders will be interested... and you'll possibly come out the shining knight.

[edit]... what I should have said is that you can tell them you believe you know of a contributing issue, but leave it to them to assess what the problem is. There may be more than you know going on behind the scenes... a power struggle or something equally fruitless.

Hopefully they dig in and find out what you know about anyway...
[/edit]

However... you might not, and at that point leaving will be a very attractive option...

A big call... cojones the size of pumpkins needed... but at the same time a company (and therefore people's jobs) may be on the line...

all from me. PM me if you want on this or anything else ok?
MDU

[TonyB]

More hilarity! Today, the rep for one of our most important suppliers visited from Europe. MD, rep and I spent about half the day together. Much BS was spouted by the MD, particularly when the subject came up of a huge order he made me put in last year for a project that wasn't signed and then never happened- he couldn't pay, so his response was to ignore all of the reps correspondence, despite me pleading with him to just explain the situation.

Anyway, MD said, on three diferent occasions, infront of the rep that Tony is big headed. I laughed and joked about it, but my thought was "another nail in the coffin". The rep was puzzled to say the least. The history behind this is that I will design something, and MD will always and without fail want to change something, which I always resist as a great deal of thought has gone in. Sure, sometimes the changes are a good idea, but usually it seems to be ego related. He has apparently done this for years- to anybody that tries to design anything. Even his wife admits to it- we often do things in such a way as to make him think he's thought of it (seriously) just so we won't have to waste hours making unnecessary changes.

So people, what would you do? My take on it is that he is too gutless to bring it up face to face, so he wants to do it in a situatuion where I can't retaliate. That and he want's to belittle me infront of others.

[James Deuce]

You could do what I did and resign the day after a very similar meeting I once had.

Best thing I ever did.

[Frankie]

Similar thing at my work but not as bad... Found a new job with more money told them to get stuffed in a nice way... last day Wednesday and start new job Thursday

[onearmedbandit]

Tony, mate I feel for you. Start the search, find somewhere that values you (and pays well!), you'll have a better outlook about everything. An arsehole like that (and he's allowed to be, he owns the company) is not going to change and you'll end up doing your head in over it. It would appear thats already begun.

Informing your contacts in passing conversation that you're moving to a new company wouldn't hurt either. Not that you're trying to poach them, more just letting them no you will no longer be in contact for them, well for that company anyway.

Best of luck mate.

[gav]

Hey Tony, I just left my job after 7 years and started a new one, its tough to actually leave to be honest but I started applying about 6 months ago before I found the right one. Talk to some of the reps that come and see you if possible, just quietly put the word out that you could be interested in moving on, usually a quiet word in the right ear can turn up some pretty intersting leads. While its been suggested just leave now, you certainly need to line something up first, but I found that once I made my mind up that I was going, work actually didnt seem to bad, and when I left it was on good terms, so all good all round. If people are interested in you they'll make time to see you, no problem. All my interviews were after work, err one was actually before work at 6.30 in the morning, that was different!