Lack of overtime can suck it

Okay, to follow-up on the previous post, Overtime. And lack of recognition/reward for working it, or not.

Like my compadrettes, I also work in a job where OT is part of the equation. And we get thanked by getting paid extra. Like one generally does when you're basically hourly. The rub of it is, that basically, our overtime is dependent on the needs of the client, and when the client doesn't want us to do OT, we can't do it. This is, generally, a fair proposition. No running up the bills on the client. I get that.

But, if I don't get OT, then I don't get paid for it. And I'm used to getting paid OT. It enables me to use money for things, like food, and debt payment. Not having extra money makes me a sad panda. But that's not the real problem. For the past couple weeks, due to the client no longer having a "hurry-up" mode, I have been cut back and capped to a maximum amount of billable hours in a day (8, the standard no-OT workday).

Working in the type of place where I do, your evaluations and your bonuses, and most indicia of your performance are based, subtly, on the amount of hours that you bill. that, and your evaluations. But mostly, your hours. There is an unspoken minimum of billable hours that you, as a person in my job, would be expected to hit. And working only the bare minimum amount of hours that I am currently allowed to, I won't be able to hit that annual number. I'll fall short by something like 20%.

We are assured that hours are not factored into our evaluations. But that is not true. Last year, I got castigated for failing to hit this unstated number, in my evaluations. Not because id didn't bill enough hours, but for the stated reason that I "wasn't a team player" because I didn't volunteer for extra work when the call went out. (I did, but whenever there were opportunities, I was usually busy on a big case. Bad timing). But in this case, I don't even have the chance to do that. I'm cut back with no recourse. And I can't get a different assignment, because I am the most experienced person (within my particular job) on this case. So, what am I supposed to do? I've been cut back for a month. If I get cutback for the duration of this case, I'll be doing this for a couple more months. How am I supposed to do what my bosses expect me to do, when our clients don't allow me to work any more than I am, and my bosses don't seem to have any work?

At this point, it's only partially about the money. It's more that I would fall short of hitting an implicitly required target, because they won't let me put in enough hours. Makes me look like Lazyassy McGee. If you never work OT, you can never hit this target. and it makes you seem like a lazy ass to anyone who doesn't know you, and is simply reading your numbers cold (read: the committee that does evaluations). So, what's an Optimistical Cynic to do?