Work Issue – What Should I Do?
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Hey Guys,
Advice/Opinion would be appreciated.
I’m having a bit of an issue at work in that management won’t acknowledge my vacation request.
I spoke to the general manager in person right before Christmas and I told her that I was planning to go back to Scotland this spring and that I wanted to request 3 weeks out of office, but that I’d be available to work remotely during that time. I asked her if she thought there would be any issues.
She told me to talk to my immediate colleague to get an idea of where he was at and discuss how to cover any tasks. So I did, he confirmed that all is good and we can work it out and to put in my request.
First week back after Christmas, I submitted the official forms by email to the general manager and the controller. Reiterated that even though I’ll be out of the office I’m happy to work remotely, I can still get all my usual tasks done, and said if they have any questions about how my colleague and I will organize our duties while I’m away to let me know.
No response. No acknowledgement.
I followed up a week later and asked if there were any issues or if there was anything they wanted to discuss. I let them know that I’m eager to book my flight, as prices are climbing the longer I wait, and my partner is waiting on me to finalize my dates so he can request time off as well.
No response. No acknowledgement.
I followed up yet again another week later and said I know everyone is busy but I would really appreciate a response as I need to make my flight arrangements.
Still nothing.
It has been nearly a month since I submitted my request, I’ve sent four emails in addition to talking to her in person before Christmas.
I want to talk to the general manager in person again but she’s always off in meetings or working remotely. I asked specifically in my last email if I should be following up with the controller (and I made sure he was CC’d) and still no response from either of them.
I’m really frustrated. I wish someone would at least ACKNOWLEDGE my request. If there’s uncertainty about the dates, about me working remotely, just tell me and let’s talk about it so we can work something out.
What do I do next? I’m really stressing out. It’s hard enough being away from my partner as is, not knowing whether or not we’ll see each other in March is making it even harder, and the ever increasing flight costs are giving me anxiety.
Should I just go right to the controller in person and ask him what’s going on?
Yes, just drop by in person and say that although this was verbally approved, you want to make sure it’s in the system. I doubt there’s anything going on here, they’re probably just busy.
FWIW, I would avoid sharing details about flight prices, your partner’s PTO, etc. Not relevant to them, and the less you share about your personal life, the better. You just want to be sure your PTO is in the system so you can book travel. Period.
Set up a meeting. Work it through her admin if she has one. If you don’t get through – call her.
But at some point you have to either
1. Risk it and email that as you have received no answer, you are writing to confirm that you have made the request, and have done the requested follow up and you assume there are no issues so you are going. This could backfire and they could deny your request and you have no recourse because you have no policy/HR to back you up.2. Assume the answer is “No”.
If there’s no way to ever catch the gm or controller in their office, can you book 15 mins on their calendar? Email isn’t working, for whatever reason, so you need an in person follow up.
Yeah, I definitely want to follow up in person but I don’t have access to management’s calendar (as in I can’t even see when it’s available or blocked off). So I never know if they’re going to me around or not. I’m going to try to just catch the controller today.
I’ve been so frustrated at work lately for other reasons, this is just adding to my stress.
Be careful about showing frustration or stress. Keep it breezy. Basically stalk her til you catch her, but appear calm and positive.
I think you’re quite lucky to work somewhere that lets you take three weeks off/work remotely for three week stretches. I don’t think many companies offer that kind of flexibility so it’s great that you have it. So yeah, I understand why you’re frustrated, but maybe it’ll help to reframe the situation more positively. 🙂
