Something's been sticking in my craw lately, and I'm not quite sure how to put this little quandary to bed.

So like, most folks on here know that I work nights for a law firm in Chicago, which is why I'm always around to ban Althom and whatnot of an evening, right? Okay. Well.

(and believe it or not, I actually do a lot of work in between my nightly org thrashings)

I've been working support staff for law firms for over five years now, in both NYC and Chicago, and I'm getting to a point where I kinda think I know a little bit about what I do for a living. I've worked for several different firms, mostly in Chicago, and I know how these places are typically run.

One thing I know is, night staff employees are given cab vouchers to get home. At every night staff job I've had - and I've had a few - it's always just been a normal part of the job.

That is, except for the job I'm at now.

Technically, right now I don't work for a law firm. I work for a vendor that's been hired by a law firm. And while the law firm hands out cab vouchers for its employees, the vendor I work for won't afford its night employees the same luxury.

However, we get the honor of handing out cab vouchers to the firm employees every evening...which, more and more, makes me feel like my company is sending the message of "our clients' safety is important, but our employees' safety really isn't. But it's important that our unimportant employees help our important clients get home safely."



Now, I've been given a new position at my job in which I have more responsibility on top of old expectations. I wasn't given any kind of raise or any notification that this position change would entail a raise. We were all given staff-wide raises this month, but they were tiny...certainly not enough to cover all the added responsibility I've recently taken on.

But really, it's not even about getting more money (even though that would be nice). I just wanna get home safely and quickly, like anyone else who works late at night in my field of work.

I'm not quite sure how to phrase this to my boss without sounding like a disgruntled kvetch or without sounding like someone with a completely delusional sense of entitlement. Really, all I want to do is advocate for the option of folks on my shift having the option of using a cab voucher to get home instead of having to take public transportation in the middle of the night. At most, we're talking about maybe THREE people on our staff (including myself) who'd actually USE the vouchers, and I can certainly say with certainty that if I didn't have to worry about a bus schedule I'd be more prone to stick around a bit and work late more often, knowing I could hop into a car and motor home when I'm ready to go.

I'm sure this little grievance must sound weird to people who don't live in big cities - if I were still living in Indianapolis and had never lived in cities like NYC or Chicago, I'd be all like, "just get a car, you ass!" Honestly, where I live, not having a car is an option. It's a lifestyle. It's a big reason I choose to live in large cities.

And the more I'm going without it, the ride home was a big reason I've been attracted to working night shifts for law firms. Not the major reason necessarily, but a big consolation prize for all the inconveniences of working these hours.

One option is finding a different job which will either offer day hours (safer commute), or finding another night job that will offer a ride home at the end of my shift. But I really would prefer not to leave where I am now. I love the people with whom I work, and I really don't mind the environment, and generally speaking, the money ain't too bad.

But I don't feel safe going home on a bus after midnight. Increasingly, I feel like I'm cheating fate every time I take a bus or the train home in the middle of the night. And when I'm sitting on the bus, fending off Cracky and Twitchie, I'm thinking of all the other people who do what I do and who don't have to put up with this shit every night.

I can put up with it for a while longer, but my patience is running out. And it burns my ass that we have to hand out cab vouchers that we're not even allowed to use. That's just insult added to injury. And I'd love to communicate that to my boss in a way that doesn't sound horribly bitter or disgruntled, because really, I just wanna state my case, hear an answer, and carry on from that point forward. If I just plain ain't gonna get my way, fine. I'll keep on keepin' on, but I'll be keeping an eye on HotJobs and Monster. Otherwise, hey, awesome.

I dunno...am I just being a brat, and if not, what's the best approach?

Holy crap, this was long.

I work in a law firm too. Although it's during the day.

When an employee is working nights I think the onus is not only on the employee but also on the employer for "employee safety." If they don't care about you getting mugged then you know where you stand with them.

Request the security guard to walk you to the cab or a safe place to get home. Are you the only one in your firm that has issues for night time employment safety??

luv4u said:

there are a couple of women who take the train home, to an even less safe neighborhood than mine. the can of worms with them is that they're both temps and i'm not. of course, a criminal doesn't care who's temp or perm or vendor or not.

Anxiety said:

A criminal don't care - he just wants your money for dope. Maybe is it possible to take some tae kwon do lessons or do some "Jackie Chan" moves??

Hi Anxiety, subby here, taking over the asylum!

What if you wrote a letter to your boss explaining your feelings? Where I work it's a general rule that two people must be in the building at night but at your job it sounds like that's not the only issue.

You aren't being unreasonable if you say it's having an impact on your work. You can't be expected to be working without freaking out if you're thinking about after work and if you'll be making it home ok.

Maybe write a letter asking for earlier hours or saying you feel like it'd help you get things done faster if you knew you didn't have to worry about the after midnight issue as much.

It seems pretty hypocritical for them to expect you to take care of the clients (money) and not show the same care for the people they trust to handle those folks.

I say you speak your mind in a letter and try to keep your cool but in the meantime definitely explore the HotJobs or job hunting option.

Good luck!

-subby

Hon...I think you should talk to your boss. It's a perfectly reasonable request. Also, if something did happen to you on the way to or from work...your company would be responsible for your medical coverage. At least that's how it is here in Michigan.
Soooo...if it's the same in Illinois it would be in their best interest to provide you and your co-workers with vouchers.
FIGHT THE POWER!!!

I didn't read all of that.....can you just break it down for me?


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[Edited 9/27/04 23:14pm]

How expensive is it to pay for the cab? Just deduct if from what you earn and reconsider if you're making enough. Even if you had a car, you'd still have to be paying for gas and other car maintenence to get you to and from work each day, which many employers dont reimburse you for either.

Tom said:

Yeah, I considered this. My job doesn't give any kind of parking perks to my co-workers who own cars, and I know garages ain't cheap. I think I'm just gonna have to lump it if I want to stay at the job I'm at, or look for a place that offers better hours and/or better perks.

I WOULD ASK MY BOSS FOR A VOUCHER. THE WORST THAT HE CAN SAY IS NO, AND KEEP YOUR OPTION OPEN, ALWAYS KEEP YOUR EYES OPEN FOR ANOTHER JOB UNTIL YOU GET THE ONE THAT YOU WANT. NEVER STOP NETWORKING
ALSO ASK THE VENDOR THAT YOU ARE WORKING FOR TO HELP WITH YOUR VOUCHER

If you are not happy look for another job. Life's too short.

Maybe present this to your boss as a new idea for employee retention. Do a little cost analysis of what it would run your employer, ways it would benefit employees, etc. It could be a "new idea" from you as part of your new role?

As for the temps, it sucks but transportation expenses are details that would be worked out with their agency, I'd guess...


All I know is you'd better figure out something. We CAN NOT have our li'l Anxy kitty mugged/hurt on his way from work!

Talk to your boss Anx. Express your concern for the safety of your female co-workers, as well as yourself.

Present yourself in a non-whining fashion.. You will be surprised.

Go get em!