Post # 1
Member
10 posts
Newbee
I just started my new job a few months ago and I don’t like it. It’s a toxic work environment (my senior is nice and my coworkers are fine), but the head of the department (who manages everyone) is rude and inconsiderate. In rare occasions where someone missed a deadline or did something wrong, he yells at them with comments like “Are you stupid?” and “Why do we even hire you?” Very personal attacks. There is no growth in this firm either. It is so small and no one likes to be there. I am debating whether I should just quit the job and find a new one. I know it’s always good to have an offer on the table, but I dread going to work everyday.
Also I want to just quit and work on this certification for IT consulting. With this certification, I can break into the IT consulting field who can increase my current salary by 20%. I currently work in a client facing environment and my hours are not super stable (it can run up to 50 hrs a week and I am salary, so I don’t even get compensated for that time). I basically have no time to study for my certificate with this current job, because we have unstable work hours.
My dilemma is that we are currently a little understaffed (turn over rate is super high since everyone hates it here), and I don’t want to burn any bridges by leaving early. I have only been in the job for 6 months ish~ so I know less than one year is bad.
Any hiring managers here who can give me some insights? Will leaving a job at the 6 month timeline be bad? I can tell future hiring managers I took the time off for personal issue and studying for the certificate, because I don’t want to badmouth the firm and say I’m leaving because of the environment.
Post # 2
Member
5476 posts
Bee Keeper
Do you have the savings to cover unemployment if you just quit? You could be unemployed for months if you leave your current job without a new one lined up and even with a new certificate getting a job in a new field, with limited experience might not be as easy as you are hoping.
Post # 3
Member
47 posts
Newbee
I would never advise leaving a job until you have a new one lined up unless it’s seriously damaging to you and you can afford to survive without an income.
Post # 4
Member
209 posts
Helper bee
Who does the head of the department report to? I would ask for a private confidential meeting with that person or go to HR. The behavior is inappropriate and the company will want to know about it. Plus, document what is said by this person, when it was said, and the circumstances. Bring this to the meeting. I’d try this first before leaving.
Post # 5
Member
4966 posts
Honey bee
Find a new job and then quit.
I managed to finish a bachelor’s degree working an average of 50 hours a week plus overtime half the year. My friend finished her masters degree working full-time plus being on call and traveling to client sites out of the country every other week. With some creative thinking and buckling down you should be able to carve out some study time for an IT certificate. It is totally do-able. Might be hard, but most things worth doing are. Studying should not necessitate quitting a job unless you are independently wealthy and don’t care about gaps in employment history.
Post # 6
Member
10 posts
Newbee
zzar45 : I have enough savings for a 6 month emergency fund. I am afraid of leaving within the first couple of months though. I know it won’t look good to future employers.
Post # 7
Member
567 posts
Busy bee
I started a job and knew within 6 hours I was going to hate it. I’d ask my boss a question and she’d snap “I told you the instructions were on the public drive!” in the most condescending tone I’ve ever heard. First of all, I’ve never done this task before. Second of all, I am sending freight containers across the world, I want to make sure I’m doing it correctly! I stuck it out for 6, long, depressing, anxiety riddled months. It was so awful there, that after work I had no energy to job search because my adrenaline was going non stop the entire day. I’d just come home, cry, and sleep. I also gained like 10 pounds in 6 months. I ended up giving my notice without anything lined up and just had faith in myself that I’d find another job. Sure as shit, 4 days after giving my notice I was called for another job. That manager was one of the WORST managers I’ve ever had. UGH it actually makes me emotional reliving how shitty I felt during that time. If you can swing it, quit and make it your new job to find a new job! Life is TOO SHORT to be miserable at work all day. Fuck that shit.
Post # 8
Member
950 posts
Busy bee
I’d quit. Who cares if you burn bridges at that job, it’s a wide open market out there. If you have to explain to hiring managers, say you had an opportunity to study for this certificate and while you hated to leave early, you were not able to juggle both working full time or with unpredictable hours AND study/attend classes.
And make sure you tell HR on the way out.
Post # 9
Member
240 posts
Helper bee
Can you work on the certification course while at the job, or is this some sort of full time training where you can’t do both at once?
If the former, stay in your job. Work towards your certification after hours. Continue to make (and save) money, while strengthening your relationships at work and gaining experience—even if just on paper.
If the latter, I think it’s fine to leave your job to do the certification if you can’t do both at once.
It’s SO much easier to find a job when you have a job than to find a job when you’re unemployed. The caveat to this would be if you were in full-time training where you simply couldn’t do both at once—then at least you have an explanation as to why there’s a gap in your resume. Future employers might balk slightly at you having been in your job for less than a year, but it’s easy to explain if you’ve decided on a career switch—and if you have a reason for wanting to switch careers other than making more $$$. This can be a fine personal reason to switch, but employers don’t want to hear that—they want to hear you love the work, have an affinity for IT, yada yada…
One last piece of advice. Your career is yours alone and you have to look out for yourself. Typically, leaving a job after half of a year that’s not working for you—especially because you’re interested in a new field—is not burning bridges. If your company acts like you’ve betrayed them by leaving, that’s a sign of an immature and poorly-managed workplace and you don’t want to be there anyways. As long as you give your two weeks, act professionally, don’t badmouth your employer (that’s not to say you can’t be honest with HR as to what caused you to leave) it’s not burning a bridge. It’s not your responsibility that they’re understaffed and you shouldn’t be expected to sit around to fill the gaps if there are other things you want to do.