Wednesday, April 22, 2009

bacon come home

The boy, highly intelligent and useful as he is, is still looking for a job (so if you're looking for someone who is both super-geek and super-senior IT manager, let me know). Which means that soon we will be trying to live off half an income.

I feel I should be putting myself forward for full-time hours, and I know that my boss is keen on the idea of me being available for longer - rather than swanning out the door at 2.30 to walk home and pick up TLM from daycare. I have until Friday to sign and return my employment contract, and this would be the time to ask for increased work hours.

But I hate the thought of spending all day at work - even if I still take Wednesdays off - and hate even more the thought of whole days in which I scarcely see my own daughter. Also, if and when the boy gets another job, then we'd both be working all day and missing out on hanging out with our daughter.

So what I'm thinking of is this - that I propose increasing my work hours but still have Wednesdays off; getting the boy to take care of TLM during the hours she is not at daycare; and asking to re-negotiate my hours if and when the boy is working again.

Considering we are in what I would call an employers' market, do you think I'd have a good chance at getting what I want?

10 comments:

Amanda said...

If you don't ask, you don't get, has always been my philosophy about these sorts of things. I possibly wouldn't mention the possibility of renegotiating your hours when the Boy is back at work at this stage. Time enough to do it when he is earning again when you will be in a stronger negotiating position and able, if they don't want to negotiate, to walk.

Violet said...

mtnw: thanks for your advice. If you hadn't said this, then I wouldn't have found out that the boy thinks exactly the same way. So when I go back to the boss I'll just tell her to crank up my work hours and leave it at that.

Anonymous said...

I think maybe you need to assume that he might not get a job real quickly (I have just this very evening been having a similar conversation with someone who works in highly paid IT-type areas - doesn't sound overly hopeful) - and then if he does then 'great' and reassess your options when the time comes. The other option is to not do it... and then later on find yourself wishing you did sooner? I think that makes sense...

Essentially the risk of increasing your hours is that you need to decrease them again. Whereas the risk of not increasing your hours is that you might not get the opportunity to later.

Watson Woodworth said...

I agree with MS Tea. At this point you only have control over this one move.
You don't even know if you'll get the extra hours much less the date the boy will be back to work.

Antoinette said...

Also in agreement with Make Tea. Good luck -- it is an interesting challenge to navigate this one.

Violet said...

It's a consensus then! I told the boss this morning I'd be willing to go to 28 hours per week and she's keen. I have this niggling feeling that that an added 28% of working hours won't necessarily translate to 28% more working getting done, but that's just the nature of part-time vs full(-ish) time work, innit?

Watson Woodworth said...

"Work expands to fill the time available." Betty Friedan.

Violet said...

I don't agree nigel, not when it comes to work.

ella said...

I agree it sounds like a good idea. Hope it all works out for you!

Violet said...

ella: thanks!