A careerist at work does everything with someone else's hands. What to do if someone else's work is transferred to you. What you must do and what you must not do

They say the road to hell is paved with good intentions. And, probably, you begin to understand the meaning of this phrase especially clearly when, out of the kindness of your heart, you offer to help a colleague with the performance of his duties, and then you yourself do not notice how this colleague is already climbing onto your fragile neck and preparing to hang his legs. In general, it’s a rather risky idea to take on the solution of other people’s problems and do it regularly.

However, it is not at all necessary to voluntarily agree to fulfill other people’s duties; sometimes they fall on our heads regardless of our desire. It is enough just for one of your colleagues to resign, and the management will immediately offer to save the company from “collapse” - to temporarily work for a person who has not yet been found for the empty position. But it also happens differently: guided by the attitude “if you want it done well, do it yourself,” we did someone else’s work a couple of times, instead of explaining to the person what his mistake was. As a result, part of the responsibilities of the person who makes the mistake quietly becomes ours, and no one even thinks about paying extra for the work.

How to behave in such a situation? Some will just give up and continue to put too heavy a load on their shoulders, complaining about the lack of time to communicate with family and relax. And others will think - should they do something that is completely irrelevant to their responsibilities? And if they shouldn’t, then how to get rid of unnecessary things? If you are determined to put your spoiled colleagues and bosses in their place, then our advice will help you.

Think before you offer help

Kindness is a wonderful quality, but many do not value it and believe that you can “ride” a kind person, ask him for any favors and never encounter a refusal. That is why it is worth being kind in moderation, especially with work colleagues. If you see that one of them is toiling, tearing out their hair and complaining that they are catastrophically unable to complete one or another order of their boss, then think ten times before offering your help.

Firstly, initiative is punishable, and your great desire to help (after all, no one even asked you to do this) will be regarded as a green light - now you can be loaded like a draft horse. Secondly, it will be much more difficult to refuse a colleague’s request next time - being confident that such “charity” makes you happy, he will be extremely surprised why you suddenly ignore his suffering. Some may even take offense at you for your callousness.

Stand your ground

If other people’s responsibilities become more numerous than those spelled out in your job description, and it now takes almost the entire day to complete them, and there is no talk of raising wages, then it’s time to have a serious conversation with your boss. Only the boss can solve such a problem, but you must understand that without your initiative no one will even think about changing anything. Therefore, go to your manager and, having described the current situation, ask either to relieve you of unnecessary work or to increase your salary.

Of course, the boss may perceive such a statement as an ultimatum and, angry, refuse both the first and second options for solving the problem. In this case, all you have to do is write a letter of resignation. That is why you should only go to the boss’s office if, in case of failure, you are ready to say goodbye to exhausting work.

Negotiate deadlines

If you have to combine your own and other people’s responsibilities because they are still looking for a person for the second position, then do not forget to discuss in advance with your superiors the terms of work as a “double agent” and the amount of additional payment for your “exploits.” This way you will let your boss know that you will never carry an extra load on yourself forever. If the boss avoids answering and invites you to “work for now, and then we’ll see,” then explain to him that your strengths are not limitless and sooner or later you will no longer be enough to do everything at once, so it will be better if a new employee is found as quickly as possible .

Cheat

If spoiled colleagues and bosses do not want to understand you and regularly ask you to do someone else’s work, then you will have to give up your principles and put on a one-man show. Step on the throat of your own diligence and simply put aside assignments that do not directly concern you. Carry out your duties all day, and towards the end, when the person who likes to dangle his legs asks if everything is done, pretend to be very tired and say: “Sorry, I didn’t have time. So much to do, so many calls! Like a squirrel in a wheel!

The next day, repeat the scenario, and on the third day, consolidate the result. You'll see, this situation will not suit your colleague, and he will decide to either find a new victim or do everything himself. By the way, if you can’t simply ignore the request, then complete the task assigned to you with errors. In the end, although you are an expert, but only in your own field, you should not know the nuances of someone else’s work.

Management is unlikely to think that this or that job is unnecessary for you. Like, work is work. It doesn't matter if you have to work at it or if it's the responsibility of completely different people. You need to be able to politely refuse processing for your own good. How to do this without scandal?

Don't show that you can handle things easily

If a person has time to drink tea and talk, then often colleagues and superiors do not perceive such behavior very well. They think that you are chilling out instead of working, you have a lot of free time; and not about the fact that you simply know how to properly distribute your time.

What to do? Just don't show that everything comes easy to you. Although we all understand that work is not done easily. Be less distracted, but don't overplay it.

Deadlines

So, you have been assigned a task that is not your responsibility. Sometimes it is either impossible or inconvenient to refuse outright. What to do? Tell your boss that to get this done you need consultation with people who are professionals in this (which will distract them), additional information, and that you may make a mistake. Say that you can do it no earlier than a certain time and warn about the labor costs. The boss himself may come to the idea that it is better to entrust the task to a person specially trained for him. However, remember: for some individuals, the phrase “I can’t” means “I don’t want,” which implies shirking from work and ineffectiveness of the employee. In this case, do not blame yourself and think about whether you need such a job?

Direct and clear

Helped a colleague a few times and now it has become the norm? It shouldn't be this way. A little help is one thing, outright use is another. Say directly and openly that you will not do someone else’s work, otherwise you will have to work for the entire company. And in general, why do some colleagues work in this company if they cannot cope with their responsibilities and constantly ask for help?

Do you recycle constantly? Talk about a salary increase. There are two outcomes: either the requests will stop, or your salary will be increased.

No tears

There is no point in asking colleagues and complaining about overload. Even if they sympathize, they will not help. Who needs extra problems and things to do? Talk personally with your manager. Just be tactful and careful. Explain your claims in a reasoned and clear manner. No ultimatums, otherwise the boss will decide the issue definitely not in your favor.

What? I didn't hear

Most requests and pleas are sent via mail or other means of communication. Turn them off or set them to receive messages and calls from people who do not take advantage of your good nature. It is clear that you will not be able to constantly ignore some colleagues, but the number of requests will decrease. Don't answer once or twice, and they'll have to look for another good guy. Constantly running to your desk will be too noticeable.

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Experts tell you how to respond to your boss's requests to do something that is not your responsibility.

What does the Labor Code say about this?

How to respond to the offer?
OLGA POZDNYAKOVA
HR Director of the Retail Sales Department of the Askona Trade House

The likely actions depend on what and why you are being asked to do. If you don't know how to respond, answer the following questions.

Whose job is this?

Colleagues who are on vacation or sick leave. Then we act based on the accepted corporate culture: if today you work for him, and tomorrow on your vacation they will also replace you - start completing tasks. If they won’t replace you or the company accepts to pay extra for the combination, be sure to check with the boss how this will be rewarded.

This is the work of the boss himself, a new task that no one has performed before. In this case, it is worth finding out whether this is a one-time task or an extension of job responsibilities. A one-time task, especially a developmental one, needs to be completed. In modern companies, tasks first appear, then a specialist is hired for them. Therefore, there is no point in making a fuss over a one-time task, even if you don’t like the task.

If we are talking about new responsibilities, then it makes sense to discuss pay and additional privileges. The same needs to be done if new tasks do not have a specific deadline, that is, you are asked to perform them temporarily. Remember, there is nothing more permanent than temporary - negotiate payment.

This is the task of a lower-level employee. If this is your subordinate who is not keeping up or cannot cope with the task, then you need to do it. You are responsible for the team's results. However, if we are talking about completely alien, uninteresting responsibilities, then you need to find out why you are being asked to do this. If it's part of the company culture, then the choice is simple: you either accept it and do the job because it's the way to do it, or you leave the company.

Why does it need to be done?

This question often helps when such situations arise. Clarify for yourself the goal that the leader is pursuing. Often he pursues non-obvious goals when giving a task, for example, he wants the employee to gain experience in project work. Or he has a need for you to work with certain people. Sometimes managers prepare their deputies this way.

Why you?

So, we found out that these responsibilities are not yours, are not interesting, do not develop and there will be no additional payment for them. You shouldn’t be indignant right away: find out why you were chosen to do this job.

It happens that a task is unpleasant, has nothing to do with you, and you don’t want to do it. But the likely consequences could be catastrophic. In this case, the task must be completed. As well as talking to your boss after finishing work about how you don’t want similar situations to happen again.

Discuss with your boss the fact that you are overworked. Bargain. Ask to prioritize your work.
NATALIA ZHAROVA
HR director of the logistics company V.I.G.Trans

Let’s say an employee has been working in the company for a long time, fulfills his duties perfectly, all processes are streamlined, results and statistics are growing, everything is fine. He knows at what moment to react, with whom to communicate, to whom to send the necessary information. This is the very cog in the overall system that does not fail. And now this ideal employee received another plan, which indicated a number of tasks that his colleague or the manager himself had previously done. The whole system is collapsing, and there is no longer an ideal picture at work.

At this very moment, the employee needs to understand why his responsibilities are increasing and react according to the situation. In fact, there may be several options:

1) They want to promote him and check how ready he is to work in a non-standard situation.

2) They want to increase his functionality, because he copes with his duties flawlessly, and they see him as a responsible and efficient employee.

3) The employee cannot cope with his job and is tested for professional suitability in another area.

HOW SHOULD AN EMPLOYEE REACT: Immediately after receiving a new task, enter into a dialogue with the manager and find out what the new responsibilities entail. It’s better to find out everything at once, rather than remain silent and quietly be angry with the whole world.
Is this legal?

KRISTINA LAPSHINA
lawyer
From the point of view of labor legislation, under normal working conditions, an employee must perform only those functions that are specified in his employment contract and job description. An employer's demands to do someone else's work are illegal. The Labor Code clearly regulates that the requirement to engage in additional work that is not specified in the employment contract or job description is an abuse of the rights of the employer.

Your position is indicated in the employment contract - this is a mandatory requirement. And all functionality must be specified in the job description, which the employee must be familiarized with when hired. I advise you to make a copy of the instructions so that in case of a dispute you have it in your hands.

Unfortunately, many employers currently do not have job descriptions. In this case, the employee can prepare a draft instruction himself and propose it to his boss.

You need to know that if an employee does not want to work “for himself and that guy” and there are no grounds for mandatory overtime (elimination of emergency situations, for example), then he should not, even if he is threatened with dismissal. Such a basis for terminating an employment contract will be illegal.

Write a letter to your employer refusing to perform additional work and send it by registered mail with acknowledgment. This may help in the event of a lawsuit with the employer.

But if you are still ready to do someone else’s work, you have every right to demand additional payment for it, formalizing this either by an additional agreement to the employment contract or by formalizing an internal combination of positions.

MAXIMILIAN GRISHIN
lawyer at Ilyashev and Partners
The Labor Code completely prohibits an employer from forcing an employee to do anything that is not specified in his employment contract. There are only two exceptions here. In the event of a disaster (fire, earthquake, etc.), an employee can be transferred to work to eliminate the consequences for up to one month without his consent. Also, in emergency circumstances, you can transfer an employee to another front in case of downtime. In all other situations, to perform someone else’s work, the employee’s consent and/or the conclusion of an additional agreement to the employment contract concluded with him is required.

Ideally, all working conditions - responsibilities, pay, terms - should be spelled out in the employment contract. Or it should contain a link to some document where all this is described. An agreement without such details is not considered concluded at all. But in practice, the employer does not always comply with these requirements. For example, instead of an employment contract, he may enter into an agreement for the provision of paid services with the employee. It is often very similar to a labor law, but it lacks all these details that protect the employee. If an employee providing paid services is eventually forced to do something completely different from what he verbally agreed upon with the employer, it will be almost impossible to challenge this if there is a signed agreement that stipulates the “rubber” scope and list of work. This is why you need to read the documents you sign when applying for a job very carefully.

If an employer forces an employee to do something that is not his responsibility, it is very difficult to resolve this situation without conflict. Here you have to either negotiate and ask for additional payment, or, unfortunately, quit. The new employer should be sympathetic to this reason for changing jobs.

The situation in which you regularly take on extra responsibilities in the workplace and it is difficult for you to refuse when asked or required to do something that you should not do is quite common in psychological practice. It significantly complicates the work process, as you have to do unplanned things, the workload increases, fatigue increases, productivity and interest in work decrease. And in addition, there is chronic irritation with colleagues and yourself and the feeling that you are being used. In this regard, learning to refuse to colleagues or superiors is a matter of personal and professional importance.

There are two types of inability to say no:

Situational

Chronic

A situational inability to say “no” and not take on too much can be caused by the following reasons:

- lack of a clear and specific understanding of their job responsibilities.

Often, an employee who does not know how to say “no” has no idea what he should and should not do. Sometimes this is the responsibility of the employee himself and the fact that for some reason he does not clarify his responsibilities. Sometimes this is due to corporate norms: work in the organization is structured in such a way that no one knows exactly what they are responsible for. In any case, in this situation, you can ask to tell you how responsibilities are distributed between employees in the company, and insist on clarification, clarification, specification and division of responsibilities, since your efficiency and productivity depend on this.

- fear of being branded a bad employee.

Sometimes the inability to say “no” is due to the fear of appearing incompetent and inept. It may seem that the more things you can do, the more responsibilities you can fulfill, the better you will demonstrate your performance, skills and abilities.

However, an employee is always assessed according to several indicators, and skills and abilities are not always the main criterion by which an employee is promoted up the career ladder, salary increases, bonuses, respect, love and appreciation. Surely you know examples where a professional sits in the same place for years, precisely because he is too convenient for management and the entire team. In this regard, it is important to understand that there is a good employee and there is a convenient employee. By maintaining the second position with your behavior, you risk never ending up in the first.

- fear of being branded a bad person.

This fear can be associated with two motivating reasons:

1) low self-esteem. In this case, doing someone else’s work is for you to “buy” a good attitude towards yourself, a payment for not being treated badly;

2) refusal is perceived by you as rejection, rudeness.

This may be due to the fact that in your experience the refusals were personally colored and were essentially rejections. The difference between refusal and rejection is as follows: refusal - “I don’t want tea”; rejection - “I don’t want your tea.”

Refusal is not the same as rejection, and it can be polite and tactful. Here are some acceptable forms of refusal: “If I take care of your business, I won’t do mine, and this is unacceptable,” “I’m very upset that I can’t help you now,” “I see that you have a lot to do, but I’m also in trouble right now.” same situation”, “I’ll be happy to help you when I’m free”, “I hear that you need help, but I can’t help you at the moment.”

At the same time, you are absolutely not obliged to explain what you are doing, justify your refusal and come up with reasons why you cannot satisfy your colleague’s request. Saying “no” without explanation is the inalienable right of every person. If this is truly a request from a colleague, then it should include a refusal. If your colleague does not accept a refusal, then this is no longer a request, but a demand.

If a colleague’s request is, in your opinion, manipulative, then even more so the refusal should be laconic, since manipulators force us to explain and look for a hole in the explanations where you will certainly fall. So it may turn out that your things are not so important, that time is still running out, and you are not yet as tired as he is.

E. Lopukhina suggests using a technique called “a broken record.” It looks like this:

- Masha, please help me write a report!

— Unfortunately, I can’t, I’m busy.

- But I have a lot of work. I will definitely fail!

“I hear that you are very worried, but I can’t help you now.”

- But I need it so much!!

“I understand that if it weren’t so important, you wouldn’t have contacted me.” I'm really sorry that I can't help you right now.

This technique is good because you don’t just refuse the interlocutor, but let him know every time that you hear him and that you are not indifferent to his request. However, your position remains unchanged.

If you have nothing to do, but you don’t want to fill this time by doing someone else’s work, don’t fuss, don’t lie, say straight: “Yes, I had a break, and it’s very important for me to rest now. When I have the opportunity to fulfill your request, I will do so.”

If your boss offers to perform extra duties, you have the right to clarify whether this work is paid additionally, how work that is not within the scope of your duties is taken into account and rewarded. The refusal can be argued by the fact that by doing so many things, you lose your ability to work, since there is a limit to your strength and capabilities. If you switch to a new job now, you will not be able to complete your current one. Offer to figure it out by referring to the employment contract and job descriptions, which should spell out your functional responsibilities.

If, despite the justification, your refusal is not accepted, and you are forced to do something that is not related to your functions and is not encouraged in any way, then this is violence.

There is also a chronic inability to say no. It is expressed in the fact that it is difficult to refuse always and everywhere, or this is repeated time after time in every workplace. It is caused, as a rule, by upbringing, rules that prohibit refusing other people, building one’s own boundaries, defending one’s interests at the “detriment” of others, and the value of serving others and sacrificing oneself.

In order to learn how to refuse, answer the question: when agreeing to do something for a colleague or boss, what do you say “yes” to in this way?

Think about the last time you were asked for something. What do you remember best: certain words, timbre of voice, intonation, appearance, glance of a colleague/boss? What does this mean to you? How do you react to this - worried, anxious, inspired, calmed down, irritated, angry, offended, etc.? Who do you feel like at this moment - a rescuer, an important person, a servant, a victim, a child, etc.? Who is your colleague then? What quality do you notice about him - unhappy, weak, poor, domineering, uncompromising, cunning, kind, trusting, authoritative, etc.?

What do you hear when they say to you: “Please do this for me!” or “This needs to be done”? For example, in the first phrase you can hear: “Only you can help me!” And in the second: “You cannot refuse.” How do you feel when you hear this? How do you feel about hearing such a message?

Who has ever behaved like this or spoken to you like this? Who does this remind you of in your life?

If your inability to say “no” is chronic, make a note of it. This is probably caused by your early adverse experiences, and you have a tendency to settle and sacrifice yourself for other people. Don’t suppress it in yourself, but just keep it in your mind and remember every time you find yourself in such a situation. This will help you not to feel confused and not understanding what is happening, and to separate the situation from yourself, not to merge with it. Find differences between these situations: for example, before you were small, and the other person was big and adult and, probably, authoritative; Then you didn’t know that you could say “no”, but now you know; Previously you could have been punished for this, but now you are not; You can refuse politely without rejecting the other person.

(c) Elena Sultanova, psychologist, procedural therapist, trainer.

* The article was written for the portal “Women’s Passions”

Life is not an unambiguous and complex thing, at the beginning of his working life a person is looking for a job, looking for a place where he could apply his skills in practice, then he begins to struggle with doing only the work that he agreed on in advance, and not the one that management imposes on him.

Although nowadays there are increasingly cases when a manager tries to force an employee to do “extra” work for him, i.e. he is actually abusing his powers. And what can an employee object to such a boss?

How can he deal with such situations without losing his job, which he has been looking for for so long? After all, most often it is the loss of a job that forces many to perform work that goes beyond their functionality.

Refusal to work - right or dismissal?

Remember that if you are forced to do work that you should not do due to your official status, but you are forced to do it, and this is motivated only by the fact that someone still needs to do it, then this is not legal. Here there is a direct abuse of his official position as a boss, forcing you to do something that you should not do.

If you turn to labor legislation, you can see an article there that regulates precisely such moments, i.e. it clearly states that the employer does not have the right to require employees to perform work that is not specified in their employment agreements or contracts.

Moreover, everything that an employee must do, i.e. everything that is included in his functional responsibilities is prescribed in the job description. And the employee must sign this instruction when hired for this position.

Only under a combination of appropriate circumstances, the employer has the right to demand from the employee that he perform some work that is not specified in his job description. And these circumstances are:

• situations that can be classified as force majeure;
• accident cases;
• situations when a natural disaster occurs, etc.

And therefore, if, in principle, there are no such listed circumstances at your work and in the city, then the employee may quite legally refuse to perform those duties that his management imposes on him, and if such duties are not specified in the job description that he signed, or they are not specified in his employment contract.

At the same time, it is impossible to fire an employee because he refused to do such work - this is not legal. The only option for management may be to offer the employee a chance to combine his main duties with additional work, but all this must be documented, and there must also be appropriate remuneration for this work.

Moreover, the amount of such remuneration should be approximately the same as that received by another employee who performed this work as his main duties.

But when an employee does not want to do additional work even for compensation, then he cannot be forced. There is no such legitimate mechanism to force a person to work where he does not want to work.

If a dispute arises between an employee and his employer based on his labor duties, then the resolution of such a dispute is dealt with by a commission that resolves labor disputes, as well as through the courts. And if there is a trade union committee at the enterprise, then when resolving a dispute, its participation is simply mandatory.

The main thing to remember is that it is your right and even your duty to defend your rights if you see that they are being violated and are completely confident that the truth is on your side. Good luck with your work!