How to tell your job is toxic

[Exengineer]

If everyone in your department is issued business cards except you.

If there is an assigned parking spot for each department employee except you.

When you go into a favorite after work pub and recognize several management people there and they stop talking when they see you.

If your manager has ever asked "Is there anything you can do well? Or should I put it this way, is there anything you can do?"

You are hospitalized for a cardiac emergency and no one from management comes to visit or inquire about how you're doing.  

Everyone gets an email memo about the upcoming profit-sharing bonus except you, and when you mention to your manager that they missed you on it, you're told the memo is only on a need-to-know-basis.  

 

[Brancity]

If everyone in your department is issued business cards except you.

If there is an assigned parking spot for each department employee except you.

When you go into a favorite after work pub and recognize several management people there and they stop talking when they see you.

If your manager has ever asked "Is there anything you can do well? Or should I put it this way, is there anything you can do?"

You are hospitalized for a cardiac emergency and no one from management comes to visit or inquire about how you're doing.  

Everyone gets an email memo about the upcoming profit-sharing bonus except you, and when you mention to your manager that they missed you on it, you're told the memo is only on a need-to-know-basis.  

This sounds so sad

 

[txjennah PE]

Yiiiiiiiiikes. I know it's easier said than done, but I hope you find yourself in a better situation very soon.

 

[PowerStroke79_PE]

I worked for a short period of time with similar conditions. The learning experience in engineering was incredible and I stuck around, but after a while I could't take it. I came to the conclusion they insisted on seeing me as payroll. That's my best way of putting it. Everything I did was questioned, looked down on EVEN after proving my point correct and not necessarily correcting my mistake. After a while and searching in google I came to the conclusion they were "Snobs" and quit. 

 

[P-E]

 

[Dleg]

There are toxic people everywhere. One thing that has taken me a long time to realize is that my own mindset is the biggest factor influencing my own working environment (or home environment) regardless of how terrible or toxic other people may be. I do not mean to sound critical in any way, but based off the way you described the situation, I would highly recommend you read this book, which I came across earlier this year as part of a leadership initiative at my work. It perfectly describes how I had previously seen the world, which led to a lot of negative feelings and negative outcomes. It's a very short read, describes really only one principle and technique for changing your mindset, but it takes some deep thinking, honesty, and willingness to evaluate yourself and try to see things differently.

Leadership and Self Deception

 

[Road Guy]

If everyone in your department is issued business cards except you.

If there is an assigned parking spot for each department employee except you.

When you go into a favorite after work pub and recognize several management people there and they stop talking when they see you.

If your manager has ever asked "Is there anything you can do well? Or should I put it this way, is there anything you can do?"

You are hospitalized for a cardiac emergency and no one from management comes to visit or inquire about how you're doing.  

Everyone gets an email memo about the upcoming profit-sharing bonus except you, and when you mention to your manager that they missed you on it, you're told the memo is only on a need-to-know-basis.  

Hopefully you left that situation and moved on?  I know you have a grudge against the galactic engineering empire but most situations are not like that in my small sliver of the world

 

[Audi Driver P.E.]

Any one of those things happen and I'm sending out my resume to companies that are hiring.

 

[tj_PE]

Hope you find a more positive situation soon. I wasn't anywhere near those conditions in my last job but I was definitely being treated very poorly - in comparison to other employees, even -and the grass is so much greener over here, even though I'm now on the same side as the other side, if that makes sense? if not, blame it on the jetlag.

 

[FLBuff PE]

 

[Exengineer]

Relax, most of those situations are hypothetical and may have happened to some.  I have actually experienced two of them in separate companies.  I have not worked as an engineer in over 4 years now and have no intention of doing so again.  The rewards are not worth the effort or stress anymore.  Semi-retirement with just some part-time contract work is fine with me.  I will start receiving one government pension next month while continuing to work as a semi-retiree.  My only regret in life is going to university for a terrible engineering degree that isn't being offered anymore except in a very few schools.    

 

[PowerStroke79_PE]

Relax, most of those situations are hypothetical and may have happened to some.  I have actually experienced two of them in separate companies.  I have not worked as an engineer in over 4 years now and have no intention of doing so again.  The rewards are not worth the effort or stress anymore.  Semi-retirement with just some part-time contract work is fine with me.  I will start receiving one government pension next month while continuing to work as a semi-retiree.  My only regret in life is going to university for a terrible engineering degree that isn't being offered anymore except in a very few schools.    

What engineering field is it? 

 

[RBHeadge PE]

 My only regret in life is going to university for a terrible engineering degree that isn't being offered anymore except in a very few schools.    

What engineering field is it? 

Nuclear?

 

[Exengineer]

The field was Metallurgical.  A dismal field to start off with in the 1980s and it has only gotten worse.  Hence the discontinuation of this degree in nearly all universities except a few highly specialized exceptions.  Knowing what I know now I would never have given it a second glance and may have even skipped university entirely.  Might have chosen Accounting instead but that's all hindsight.  

 

[wilheldp_PE]

We just hired a metallurgist at my office.  It is probably too niche to be anything other than a specialty in an ME program, but they are particularly useful individuals when it comes to investigating failures.