Negotiating a schedule for a new job - advice needed!

PurpleCat · February 2019

I'm looking into a possible promotion at work. I talked with the potential new supervisor today to find out more, as the job description includes quite a laundry list of duties, including a statement about evening and weekends. It sounds like they know they won't find one person who fits every single qualification, but will end up hiring the person who seems the best overall fit, both in hard and soft skills. I asked just how many weekends and evenings would be required, and didn't get a definite answer, which gives me the impression they want some wiggle room on that and may adjust based on their chosen person's availability, but it's definitely a requirement. There is also a high likelihood of overtime.

My dilemma now is that although I am interested in the job, I'm not interested in a hectic schedule that will require me to sideline my health and relationships, and I'm not sure how to communicate that or at what point. I know more than 40 hours per week will be too stressful, and life's too short to spend a lot of evenings and weekends away from family and friends.

I think what I need to say is something like "Due to personal circumstances and other commitments, I need to limit my regular hours to 40, my evenings to 1 per week, and my weekend to no more than one out of three, and I think I could fit my duties into that schedule as follows ... " But I'm not sure at what point to say that. Should I have said it in today's conversation with the supervisor, and since I didn't, I'm now applying under false pretenses and they're going to be mad at me? Should I mention it in my cover letter? In the interview? Or not until I am actually offered the job? Assuming I am selected for an interview, the HR rep likely to be present will be the one who handled my FMLA claim, so she will likely surmise to what personal circumstances I am referring.

NotVeryBrave · February 2019

I think I'd wait until the interview. Let them decide what they want to about you based on paper and then see where things lead. If you are asked to interview - that will be the time to gather more info. If they don't bring it up then, you should. You could phrase it as wanting to "clarify the expectations" or something. Just be sure to be honest at that point. No sense wasting anyone's time and effort - even your own.

vlnrph · February 2019

If this a salaried position, unpaid extra hours may be expected but perhaps you can take 'comp time' during the week to offset. For instance, should you work into the evening, you come in late the next day or leave early the following afternoon. It may not match each hour however would allow some degree of balance, an opportunity to run errands when shops might be less busy, etc. Do you know whether some people are currently doing this?

You already had an informal interview so I think waiting until you are further along in the process to share your limitations is a good idea, maybe when you meet with the human resources person. Let your cover letter emphasize your excellent skills (writing and communication seem strong to me, just from your original post!) and interest in the job. Hopefully there will be a significant pay raise to cover the additional responsibilities...

edwards750 · February 2019

I agree wait until your interview. Also my husband works long hours but offsets it by going into work later which he likes anyway. I like to go in early and leave early - he is the polar opposite. It worked really well when our kids were young.

I went on an interview for the legal department at FedEx. The two guys interviewing me said from the onset there would be late hours and weekend work. I already knew I wasn’t going to be able to commit to that because I had a young child at the time. It’s a trade off but the time spent away from my family was time I couldn’t get back so decided the job wasn’t for me.

Diane

Negotiating a schedule for a new job - advice needed!

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