Worker Shares A Sign Posted At His Office That Tells Employees To Never Say ‘That’s Not My Job’
Employees are being pressured to take up tasks that weren't originally assigned to them.
GaudiLab / Shutterstock An employee shared a sign that was posted in his office that has left many people feeling outraged. Posting to the subreddit "r/antiwork," the employee asked what other people thought about the controversial message.
He shared a sign posted in his office that told employees never to say, 'That's not my job.'
In the sign posted by the unnamed employee, the company urged other workers to pitch in, even if it wasn't considered part of their job description. If they said the phrase, "That's not my job," it was considered lazy.
"That oozes arrogance and laziness," the sign read. "Chip in to help with what needs to be done, even if it's not your responsibility. Do what needs to be done or help someone find the solution. Period. Even when nobody's watching."
Photo: Reddit
In a subsequent TikTok video directly responding to this company's sign, a career content creator, Robyn Garrett, explained that at one point or another in our various careers, we have all seen or heard things like this from our employers. From the outside looking in, something like this speaks to the part of us that never wants to be seen as lazy at work.
"If we really care about our reputations, we want people to know that we are trustworthy and that we have good character. That is why this works on us," Garrett said in her video. "In some environments, I'm pretty sure this is perfectly fine."
However, Garrett pointed out that if an employer insists on cultivating this type of work environment, they are trying to squeeze as much work out of you as they can, and the end result is never beneficial. It shows that you are unaware of or bad at setting boundaries, especially with your employer. It says that you should always be selfless for the sake of work and that you give more than you get.
"I think the most difficult thing about this is that attempting to break your mindset of this type of thinking violates certain values that we have," Barrett continued. "The reality is that we have reached this point [of] you either have to be extremely cautious about the environment in which you're going to work or you have to be extremely cautious of this because otherwise you will get eaten alive."
It's been found that many employees are feeling the pressure of being overworked.
There's nothing inherently wrong with stepping up to do a task at work that isn't necessarily in your wheelhouse of job description. However, there is something wrong with your employer demanding it of you all of the time, especially when you have your own work to do on top of the other tasks and projects that you're being asked to help or complete.
This expectation feeds into the reality that many working-class adults are feeling burnt out and overworked at much higher levels. According to a survey of 1,857 U.S. employees, nearly all respondents (96%) said they were dissatisfied with the tools they were given to manage work and that they couldn't keep up.
Similarly, a survey of 3,150 people conducted by Deloitte and Workplace Intelligence found that nearly three-quarters of employees said they struggle to take time off or disconnect from work, with about half reporting that they “always” or “often” use all of their vacation time each year.
A lot of people in both the Reddit comments and Garrett's video comments pointed out that there needed to be more incentives for employees who were constantly going above and beyond with doing projects and tasks that weren't originally assigned to them.
It would likely go a long way with overall job satisfaction and productivity, and in a time when more and more people are feeling the burden of being overworked, it seems that there needs to be more done to encourage employees in the workplace.
Nia Tipton is a Chicago-based entertainment, news, and lifestyle writer whose work delves into modern-day issues and experiences.