Published on 12, July, 2020
Some of you may know, I'm underpaid at work and on the verge of burnout.
I work for a small business, 5 of us, and we all get on. Marketing.
I sent an email mentioning feeling burnt out, would like to clarify my workload on an upcoming project, and a review of my compensation. I mentioned my mental health, that this burnout feeling is getting worse and I'm struggling to manage it.
Work know I am autistic, they have been supportive of me, and have accepted that I struggle to do things such as socialising, networking, and phone calls.
I worked on an email with my dad today whilst working from home, and the reply I got... I just burst into tears.
My boss referred to me asking for support with phone calls as "grievances", nowhere in any email had I even brought support up in the first place. I simply asked for support with my workload, clarification on responsibilties, and a review of my pay.
I had (obviously wrongly assumed) that requests for support, which wer happily accepted, were reasonable adjustments. But now they are being classed as me having "grievances."
There is a paper trail to back what I'm saying up, and I have a meeting on Monday to discuss everything.
My head is spinning, and honestly they are making me feel like my disability is a difficulty that the business has to navigate, and that because I'm disabled, I'm not good enough at my job.
I feel heartbroken, I love my job, my boss said she classes me as like a sister to her, and then this... I'm not even sure what to say.
I'm terrified about Monday, I don't handle any of this well.
Do you belong to a union who can advocate on your behalf? If things get really sticky then ACAS can help, maybe you should read up on disability legislation before monday so as you at least know the legal facts. Information is power in these circumstances, you're obviously doing the job properly, so if it were me, I'd ask if I could record the meeting, so as I can go away and go through it line by line and see where whats said fits with the legislation. A paper trail will be useful in case you should need it at a latter date.
Thank you for your reply again. :-) I don't belong to a union and I'm not sure what covers marketing. I'm reading up this weekend to prepare and will prepare some notes, along with having copies of the emails, so I can go through this with them. It just feels very unfair, and that this has all been brought up over pay. I feel discriminated against, which is heartbreaking
Hi Emsa
Im really sorry to hear that this is happening to you and understand how distressing this can be. I don’t really have any advice I’m afraid but I’m hoping that it just a simple misunderstanding or crossed wires. Try not to worry about Monday and just be as open as you can, remind them of how much you love your work and what your exact intentions were when you sent your email. You sound like you’re a great asset to the company you work for so go and remind them.
Good luck