Stressed in my new Job, serious concerns about several issues

forthaven

Hi,

I am new on this forum but I would like to know what other people think.

I started a new job recently, which is remote (I live in the north west, but the job is based in london). I was sought out for this role by an employment agent. I am Autistic, have PTSD and depression, and also have had serious issues with employment in the past (a lot of it unrelated to my condition).

I am registered for in work support, and also have had the access to work assessment (which seems to have stalled in process, due to strike action by DWP proabably). 

the concerns I have in this role are:

1. fixed hours of 9.30 to 6pm. This means i effecitvley have to kill time in the morning, while i am actually raring to get started. I belive the assessment will say I should have more flexability, im waiting for that before opening a discussion about it (becuase then it will fall under reasonable adjustments)
2. I was not asked for my Passport when I started. This seems unusual, pretty much all employers have to check this for right to work reasons
3. my team members are Indian (native) and sometimes very hard to understand. We have had major communication problems. I am making the effort but its hard to hide the frustration. With my issues with communication too, I worry this is heading for trouble.
4. they have not provided me a laptop to work on, i am using my own computer equipment (I am a web developer). this is standard usually. 
5. there are some absotuley shocking reviews from former employees on glassdoor. I know this is to be taken with a pinch of salt, and every place gets one or two aggrevied people, but this is something else. [Removed by moderator - external linking)
6. I wonder where this is leading me. I am doing some intense coding and site building, but for career development im not so sure. The pay is however good (40k p/a). so I think i had best stay put for now.

Thanks
Jay

Edit: I am feeling stressed out just becuase of the situation I am in- I live alone (but have 2 cats) and dont go out much, becuase of past abuse by other people. Ive turned into something of a recluse. pretty much non existent social life. I do have a couple of close friends but are always busy themselves. Not really enjoying the endless struggle to keep going becuase we have no choice- im sure people on here know that benefit payments simply do NOT cover costs any more. I do worry if I have a meltdown Ill lose my job. but for now, as I said, im just keeping on keeping on.

janer1967

Hi and welcome to the community 

You are correct your right to work in UK should have been checked but this is the responsibility of the employer not you as long as you have the right to work any issues will be down to them as they should have a copy of every employees documents on file 

Working hours I agree wait for the outcome of the assessment and then request reasonable adjustments as long as there is no specific need to work fixed hours it could be so there is support available and that's the hours they work 

Was a laptop agreed as part of your contract or discussed at all prior to you starting it's not unusual for remote workers to use their own resources 

As for the issue with communication there isn't much can be done and could be just as frustrating for your colleagues to understand you.  Can communication be done more via email or other mens 

I'm sorry you are getting stressed maybe give it more time to find your feet and adjust as its remote working it seems this is better for you than working in an office 

Have you raised any of the issues informally with the company 

Adrian_Scope

Thanks for sharing this @forthaven.
I just wanted to mention I've removed the link to the company's Glassdoor reviews, only because this is a public forum and it might be possible for the employer or your colleagues to identify you through the information you have provided here.

When it comes to your wellbeing, you mention having depression and PTSD as well as a number of current frustrations, can I ask if you're receiving any support with your mental health at all?

L_Volunteer

Hey @forthaven. Welcome to Scope’s forum. It is great to see you have joined us. Thanks for already finding the courage to reach out to us. I appreciate the courage it can take to reach out, especially when you are new and finding things difficult.

I will try to address each point you have raised in turn. The first point relates to flexibility in working hours. Are you able to locate policies your employer has about flexibility? Within their policies (or information on their website more generally), they should have information about the flexibilities they offer and whether or not this usually covers flexibility in hours. This often depends on the needs of the service, among other things.

If you are concerned about the legitimacy of this employer, you can search for them on the Government’s Company Register or Charity Register (depending on the type of employment). Have you been able to raise your concerns about not showing your passport yet to your employer? It could be that this is something they have missed but would appreciate or they have seen other information which is similar to the passport for them and they do not require this.

In terms of your difficulties with communication, could you explain a little more about what this looks like for you at the moment? I am wondering what adjustments might help here and this is likely to differ depending on the particular communication difficulties you experience. For example, would it help to have it in writing rather than spoken or recorded so you could refer back to it and take notes?

Again, in terms of the equipment they will provide, have you been able to look at the particular benefits this employer offers? I find some provide this but some cannot afford to provide every employee with a laptop or IT equipment which means they do not.

 I can really hear that you recognise the pay is beneficial to you but you are concerned about this, particularly having read their reviews too. It seems this will, overall, be about pinpointing your concerns like you have here and thinking about possible solutions for each point. Reaching out to your employer if this is something that feels comfortable and safe is key too.

In the meantime, please do not hesitate to let us know if we can do anything to support you. It is always really tricky starting with a new employer, regardless of how high quality or low quality they may be!