PA and Secretary Community - Deskdemon.com

If y'all remember, last week I posted a couple of times asking advice about how to deal with a couple of jobs I had that did not end well.  I mentioned that I had a third one to ask about and here I am.  I've been postponing this one because it was such a confusing situation that I'm not sure how to write about it clearly - but I'll attempt it!



In February of 1997, I took a temp job at a law firm as a secretary in the IP department (this was immediately after my ill-fated year at the retirement convent).  The department consisted of:  A (partner and department head), B ("of counsel" - a retired attorney who was supposed to work part time but was actually there full time), C (associate), D (associate) E (paralegal just a few months from retirement), F (paralegal), G (secretary for D and B), H (secretary for A and E) and K (temp secretary who worked for C and F).  I was supposed to fill in for H who was going to be out for a few months following surgery.  At this point, A wasn't in the office, as he spent the winter in Florida and worked via Fedex and e-mail.  C and F were unhappy with K and after I'd been there for awhile and they'd observed my work, they asked if I'd be interested in applying for a position as their secretary.  I did so and the Office Manager suggested that K and I switch positions for awhile so I could see how I liked working for C and F.  Everything went fine and in May I was hired on as a permanent employee while K filled in till H returned.



C and F were thrilled.  They took me to lunch and C spent several hours one afternoon with me going over the patent process from beginning to end.  He even suggested I might be interested in becoming a paralegal someday.  (By this time, A was back at work and E had retired.)  Unfortunately, before the end of the year - early that fall, actually - C quit and went to another firm.  He wanted to do more patent litigation but A didn't like the associates doing it.  So C left, which left me working solely for F.  F was the only one contributing to my 3-month review and she gave me a wonderful review, the best I've ever had.  Things were great.



In the meantime, H returned from medical leave and the firm hired L (another paralegal) to replace E.  H was working for A and L.  I got assigned to D, which left G with only B.  D was nice enough but one of those people who are a nightmare to work for (his office was a mess, completely disorganized, parts of files strewn all over so when he'd give someone dictation, they couldn't find all the papers that went along with it and when they'd ask for them, neither could he.  You know the type!)  Fortunately for me, D quit as well after a couple of months, sometime before the end of the year.  L was unhappy in our department, so she transferred out.  The firm decided to hire a patent assistant rather than a paralegal and H applied for and got the position.  Then F decided to quit and go elsewhere.



And it goes on from there!  They hired another secretary (M) to work for A but she hated our department (IP is extremely demanding and more labor intensive than most other legal departments) and transferred out.  When F quit, B asked if I'd be willing to take over some of her duties and I agreed.  A liked the idea as well and agreed to it.  In steps the Office Manager, who decided that she would take over F's duties - or rather, I would watch the docket and write all the letters and Office Manager would put her name to them.  She also told me that there would be no extra compensation since I was just doing my job.  A left for his annual Florida sojourn and H adopted a baby and went on maternity leave.



Just a recap:  at this point, I've been here for less than a year, everyone I've been assigned to has quit and I find myself doing paralegal work for no added compensation.  B was the only attorney physically in the department and G and I were the only support staff.  While A was in Florida, I also got assigned to him.  So for four months, G and I did all the secretarial work, all the paralegal work, and all the patent assistant work.  B supervised us and Office Manager signed her name to everything that an attorney didn't have to sign.  We did it all without being allowed any overtime and we made not one major (and, IIRC few if any minor) errors.



In April, A came back to town and they hired a new patent assistant and a new paralegal (let's call them 1 and 2).  Within a month, G was fired.  She never saw it coming.  I never saw it coming.  She was fired on Friday and they had a replacement for her on Monday (and it turns out that the replacement, call her 3, had been hired a month previously for that position).  (Just an aside - G was older - nearly 50, short, chubby, and dressed casually all the time.  3 - her replacement - was 28, a size two, had long curly blonde hair and wore skirts about three inches below her bottom every day.  Which didn't mean she wasn't a good secretary - she was and was very nice to boot.  It still seemed kinda odd, though.)



In May I had my annual review, which was just average.  A bit of a disappointment, but not much of a surprise, since I'd been working for A since only February or March and he was out of town much of that time.  He just didn't have a whole lot of personal observation to go on and those that did had nothing to do with my review.



So we're finally all settled down, things appear to be running fairly smoothly.  No new associates yet, though they were looking and they were also looking for a partner to step into A's shoes, so he could step back and eventually retire.  Fast forward to January.  They hire the new partner, Z.  He doesn't come to work till February.  In the meantime, I'm working for A and 2, 3 is working for B and she gets assigned to Z.  I don't have much interaction with Z but when I do go into his office, he always looks me up and down, with an expression that suggests I'm a bug on his plate.



Move up to May.  I have my review.  I'm expecting another average review, nothing outstanding, nothing horrible.  What I receive is the worst review I've ever gotten anywhere in my life.  A and 2 don't review me - Z does, with Office Manager.  I'm so shocked that I'm literally speechless for most of the review.  They give me a list of things I've done wrong and, I'm not kidding, every one is a lie.  (The funny thing is, I never expected a perfect review but things I thought might be addressed never were.)  I ask for specific examples and they won't give me any.  I'm not allowed to have a copy of my review (no one ever is, it's against company policy) and am made to sign a letter stating that I have one month to change my ways or be terminated.  I quit a week later.  In that week, A acted like nothing had ever happened and 2 never looked me in the eye again.



Wow, if anyone actually made it through that, thank you!!



This one has me at a loss.  I never know what to say when asked why I left.  I liked the work; I didn't like the atmosphere at the firm all that much, but I thought our department was ok and finally beginning to develop as a team.  I was totally blindsided by that review.  Unfortunately, I was so upset that I never did discuss it with A or 2.  (I did e-mail them and ask them to please not give me a bad reference, just not to say anything if they truly felt they couldn't give me a good one.  A replied and said he'd be happy to give me a reference, but I didn't take him up on it.  Yes, I know I should've and may still do so.)  A few months after I left, A and B were both retired, so less than 3 years after I began there, there was not one single still person in that department that was there when I began.  (H never returned from maternity leave.)  Actually, the whole firm had a turnover rate of greater than 50% a year and now there are only 2 secretaries there that were there when I started.  (And they might even be gone.)



I've been tempted to call A and possibly B at home and ask what when wrong.  Would that be completely out of line?  Of the three jobs I've written about, this is the only one I felt bad about leaving.



Hope I haven't confused everyone entirely with this always-changing cast of characters.  If anyone has any advice *at all* about what to say about this job, I'd appreciate it so much!  Thanks, all.



Colleen

Oh my God Colleen!    I got through your post, but now my brain hurts.    That was a horrible experience.  Have you ever thought about writing for soap operas?    



In this case, I think I would tell the interviewer that:



1.  The employee turnover rate at that job was 50% per year & you don't know anyone that works there anymore.



2.  It was a stressful work environment, due to employee turnover & shifting of personnel.



I'm sure there are others out there with better ideas than mine, but that will at least get you started.  Good luck.  

Good grief!  Halfway through I felt like asking for a vowel, but since you had A in there that wouldn't have helped.    Understand now why you started like that though, it was the least confusing way to show relationships and turnovers.



Since this is a job you liked and a field you might want to get back into, it's touchy (IMHO) on how to handle it.  You want credit for the time there, but leaving directly after a bad review doesn't sound good.  Is there any reason (child's illness, family problems, etc) that happened around that time that you might contribute it to?  Ie., I liked the job even though turnover was high, did a good job, but at that time x happened, resulting in me quiting.  (pretty it up, but you get the drift).



I don't know about contacting A for a reference.  Depending on how you really feel about the relationship you had (will he remember you?) it might be beneficial to list him as a contact.  If you feel that he'll remember you, then definitely contact him and verify that he's still willing to do that for you, get an idea of what he'll say, etc.



I'm sure others will have much better advice for you.  All I can say is good luck!

uhh my head hurts. I think Im blind. Vanna can I buy a vowel? No? never mind.



 BUT, for your reason for leaving, give em the patented Andrea "I saw my career path differently than they did" and then do the hardest thing in the book.  Be quiet.  Not a word unless you're asked. just smile that bright interview smile, exuding all the confidence in the world.  For the resume, you don't (and shouldn't) list a reason for leaving, only the dates and company information.



 I wouldn't mention illness, child or otherwise, because that is a red flag to a potential employer, who of course can't NOT hire you for giving out that kind of information, but it's the real world and it happens all the time.

Let us know how it works out!



Andrea

I agree with Andrea.  The less said the better.



This reminds me of:

1 1 was a race horse.

2 2 was 1 2

1 1 1 1 race

2 2 1 1 2!

Cute RadarO.  Took me a few trys, but I got it!  



WS

I hope it doesn't minimize your problem, vegasadmin.  Just got my eyes spinning with all the letters and numbers.

I agree too, the less the better, Good Luck



Thanks Radar that was cute!!!



 

Hello everyone!  WhiteSatin, CountriGal, and Andrea, I'd like to thank you for taking my post seriously and giving it some consideration.  I realized before I even posted that it would be hard to write and even harder to read because the entire situation was such a convoluted mess.  I'm definitely happy to be out of that situation though as I said, I was unhappy that I had to leave there.  It's the only time I left a job, either voluntarily or unvoluntarily, that I felt as if I'd failed somehow.  (Though to be honest, I still don't see how I could have succeeded.)



Andrea, your suggestion made me grin.  Have you ever used that tactic?  What happened?



Thanks again!



Colleen

(At the public library to post this - we lost our internet connection at work and it'll be awhile before we get a new one.  *sigh*  The joys of moving offices.)