Ask a Manager

It’s short answer Saturday — six short answers to six short questions. Here we go…

1. Company is letting me choose whether to interview by phone or in person

I had a phone message and email from an HR person about a position I applied for. Both mentioned wanting to schedule an interview. I called back as directed and agreed to the time they suggested, less than one week from now. After the date and time were set, she asked me if this would be on the phone or in-person. I was taken aback, because I assumed it would be on the phone. I also thought it was weird that it was up to me. Wouldn’t they set that? I told them I would let them know later today. She didn’t seem to care very much, but I do want to let them know quickly.

I don’t live in the same state and would realistically need to fly to make it there without taking lots of time off. I’m leaning towards doing the interview via phone right now, but I’m a little concerned it will hurt me if I am not there in-person. The cost to fly there may decide it for me. Do you think it’s OK to do a phone interview at this time? I was thinking that perhaps the next step, if that goes well, would be an-person interview.

Yes, it’s weird that they didn’t specify which they’d prefer. However, since they’re leaving it up to you and you’d need to fly there to do it in-person, I’d do it over the phone for now. If things go well and you’re both still interested, offer to come there in person for the next conversation.

If you run into this in the future, ask whether it’s an initial screen or a longer, in-depth interview, as well as whether they plan additional rounds of interviews beyond that. If there won’t be second interviews, then you’re better off going in person.

2. Managing without authority

I’m a supervisor in a call center, and while I am required to discipline people (write them up), whether the write-up sticks is HR’s call and they have firing authority. Sometimes, they seem to follow the process, and fire people when the handbook says they’re in danger of being fired. But sometimes an employee reaches the same level of disciplinary action, sometimes in multiple performance categories, and they’re inexplicably kept on. To the surprise of no one, these people generally still continue to have performance issues, like the person who took a 2 week “vacation” without actually clearing it with scheduling, resulting in a 2 week no call, no show. After they were allowed to come back, I found them sleeping on the job. What’s going on here? Turnover is very high, and I think there’s pressure to keep people on phones, but I don’t see how not firing helps, especially if the employee has attendance problems. And is there anything I can do to make sure my own write-ups stick and are given the proper weight? (So far I haven’t been in this kind of situation myself, but I probably will, since it seems like it’s happening more often.)

What’s going on is abysmal management above you. You can certainly talk to HR about the importance of employees seeing that there are consistent consequences, as well as your need to not have employees who sleep on the job, but horrible managers usually remain horrible managers. (By the way, I’m assuming that the reason HR has so much power is because this is a call center, which often operates differently. Normally, HR shouldn’t be making these calls rather than direct managers.)

3. Former colleague is trying to rile me up when I applied with the company again

I used to work for a company a few years back and was let go with 95% of the workforce due to a buy-out. I saw a job opening and applied with this company again. I received an email from one of the corporate directors that openly questioned my job title and my ability. This person also lured me into an argument with him, as he tried to question my abilities, and he actually told me I must be struggling to have applied with the company. It went back and forth, and he even said a couple of people that stayed were “doing just fine” in an attempt to rile me more, and that they definitely kept the “A team.” I would like to send this email to his HR department. Do I need to seek legal counsel to cover myself before I do this?

No. But this guy sounds like an ass, and you shouldn’t let yourself get riled up by such obvious jerkiness.

4. Applying with IT jobs without prior IT titles

Currently I am trying to get an entry-level IT position, but my experience in the workforce under the label of “IT” is lacking, even though my past positions have called for the knowledge of machinery, and on more than one occasion I have had to fulfill the duties of someone who worked for the Help Desk by fixing or setting up machines in the office I worked. I also have extensive hands-on training and multiple certificates qualifying me as an MCITP. Does this not count as experience I can put on my resume under the label as help desk experience or IT, even if the position I held was labeled as “office support”?

Sure. You can’t change your past job titles on your resume, but you can make sure to clearly describe the I.T.-related work that you did there, and highlight it in your cover letter.

5. Is this company charity drive mandatory?

I have a question about company charity drives for the holidays. Today, I received the following email from the company president’s personal assistant: “This year, [President] has requested we buy gifts for families not able to purchase their own… [President] would like each of us to spend about $25 on a gift, but you can obviously spend more if you’re feeling especially charitable.”

Is it implying that participating is mandatory? I’m worried because a) as the youngest and possibly lowest paid person in the company, I really don’t have $25 to spend for this — I’ll be lucky if my parents get gifts this year. Also, I used to work for a children-based non-profit, like the ones this gift would go to, and if I am able to give back, I’d prefer to give to my old nonprofit. What are my options here? Do I just ignore the entire thing and hope it goes away? My company culture is super uncomfortable at times, and the president can be very strict and demanding, but I’m not sure if that spills over onto this.

Ignore the email and assume it’s not mandatory. If someone follows up with you, explain that you support the drive but you’re not able to contribute financially.

6. Listing a current temp job on a resume

I managed to get hired as a temp at a local mortgage office, and they recently have expressed that they really like the work I’ve been doing and would like to increase my hours from 3 to 8 per day. I’ve been learning a lot and this is my first experience working in a non-academic office. Plus there are only 6 of us (including myself), so I have tons of work to do and have had increasingly more responsibility.

I’ve only been there 3 weeks so far, and I’m not sure how long the assignment is, but would it look weird if I put it on my resumé? For some context, the “big-girl” jobs that I’m applying to are mainly office-assistant/program-assistant jobs at nonprofits, and my other administrative experience listed on my resumé comes from a work-study position and a volunteer position in my church. This job is by far the most involved, even though it’s temping. What are your thoughts?

Sure, you can put it on there. Just be sure to indicate that it’s a temporary job, so that the places you’re applying don’t wonder why you’re looking to leave after such a short period of time.

It’s fast answer Friday — seven short answers to seven short questions. Here we go…

1. Email address when job searching

When looking for a job, do you have to get a new email addressed based on your name as opposed to a nickname, or do hiring managers really not care? I’m not talking “imhot4U” or anything. But I don’t have an email with my initial/last name, or first name.last name. I’ve gotten conflicting advice and I don’t necessarily need another email account.

It depends on what the nickname is, but in general, email addresses based on your name are going to sound the most professional. (And also will be the least confusing. It’s always mildly confusing when Kate Jones emails her resume from sarah17@__.com.)

2. Isn’t booting up my computer part of work time?

I want to know why I’m expected to have my computer up and running by my start time. I work at a call center and am told that I must get my computer programs open and be ready to answer phones at the start time. In order to accomplish that, I need to log in and open programs. Isn’t this considered working? If I give only 5 minutes a day to this task, it adds up to 25 a week. Over the course of a month, that would be over an hour and a half. When I expressed this issue, I was told that being on time and adhering to the schedule is crucial to my retaining this job. Am I wrong to think that starting up the computer is part of working? I feel like this seems to be a petty issue, so I would like clarification.

Are you clocked in while you’re booting up your computer? If so, and you’re being paid for that time, this is perfectly legal; it’s just a question of realizing that your “start time” is actually five minutes earlier — 8:55 rather than 9:00, or whatever. However, if you’re not clocked in and not being paid for that time, that’s illegal.

3. My boss is angry that we didn’t question her own managers

My boss was sick for five weeks and is now picking apart how our office handled things in her absence. She’s been at this for about three weeks now. In her absence, her bosses gave us templates emails and instructions on who to send them out to. My boss is telling us we should have questioned them as to why they were being sent to those people and possibly even the content their templates contained. Her bosses both have PhDs and are privy to a lot of confidential information. I looked them over and corrected grammar and spelling if it needed to be corrected, but basically my coworkers and I see it as our job as admin assistants to facilitate doing what they say and not question certain things. Is it our job to really be questioning them on who to send emails to if they say to send them to “X” group? She’s been picking apart many, many things we had to handle while she was gone, so I could be overreacting. Does she sound right in this?

If it was abundantly clear that the instructions your boss’s bosses gave you were problematic, and you didn’t say anything solely because you didn’t feel it was your place, even though you had context that they didn’t have, then I could see your manager being concerned that you didn’t speak up. However, even then, she should understand why you didn’t and should simply explain to you when and how it’s appropriate to push back in that kind of situation in the future. And if that’s not the case — if you couldn’t have known that there was a problem with what her bosses were asking you to do — then she’s out of line.

4. My boss is a jerk

We recently won a new contract on a tight budget. They created a position that is two positions in one, every day running of the service and addressing minor issues with staff. I took this position to progress within the company and because I had achieved all I could in my previous job.

The expectations of this new job are unrealistic, but I do my best to try and met them anyway. I stay late at work and work weekends to try and get it all done. Occasionally something will slip through the net and my manager goes nuts. Rather than excepting it’s a part of human error, he addresses it by humiliating me in front of my colleagues. He will joke I’m going to lose my job or make general comments implying I’m incompetent. When this happens, he will berate you over it, and he gets annoyed if you try and explain why it’s happened and gets annoyed if you say nothing. He also has a new level of micromanagement that didn’t occur in my previous position. He will even get annoyed about things that aren’t my fault. He once said I didn’t do a piece of work when it was agreed I would do it in a meeting. I then pointed out I wasn’t even at work that day!

I have tried to talk to him and he just says I shouldn’t have taken the job. It’s not the job that’s making me unhappy, it’s his way of management. How can I address this?

Your boss is a jerk and a bad manager and probably isn’t going to change (especially given his response when you tried to talk to him about it). So you have to decide if you want the job on these terms and can find a way to work with him and still be reasonably content … or if you don’t.

5. I want to go back to the company I left after six months

I am looking to get back in working for a corporation I used to work for, but in a different city. I only worked for this company for 6 months before I quit, as I accepted an offer from another company that I had applied at long before I had a job (not same industry). The new job didn’t work out (the supervisor is the owner’s young son) after a few months and I left that company. My manager at the first company wasn’t too happy that after months of training I walked out and left the company. I gave 2 weeks notice, etc. and left the company on good terms as much as possible. My coworkers weren’t that great (they were unionized and I wasn’t), which is why I accepted the other offer. Now a position that I had with the first company has opened up in another city far away from my current city and would have a different manager (no union BS in that area either). What should I say in my cover letter to regain the new job with the old company?

Don’t attempt this. You left a job after they trained you for six months; they have no reason to hire you back and plenty of incentive not to. You’ll come across as if you don’t understand that doing that means you won’t be welcomed back — which means now you won’t just be the guy who left after six months; you’ll be the guy who left after six months and doesn’t think it’s a big deal.

6. Is this a good sign?

I know that every situation is different, but I had an interview for an HR position and it lasted 2 hours. Is this a good sign? I keep going back and forth on it. At the end of the interview, I was told they would be doing second interviews, and the HR Director took me around and introduced me to the other members of HR. It has been almost a week though and no word. Any thoughts?

I know it’s tempting to believe that a long interview and introductions to other employees is a good sign, but unfortunately it doesn’t really mean anything you can count on. A long interview could just be an unskilled interviewer or someone poor at time management. Being introduced around might be something they do with everyone, or with everyone they remotely like. Or both of these things could be good signs — but that’s no guarantee of an offer.

Did you find out their timeline for next steps? If that passes without any word from them, you can follow up at that point. Or, if you didn’t ask about their timeline, wait another week and check back in.

7. My coworker isn’t working the same hours as everyone else

How do I let my manager, the fire chief, know something without looking like a tattle? Our hours are 7:30 – 5 M-F, with every other Friday off because we all work a 9-80 schedule. The chief’s assistant comes in at 8ish everyday and then sits at her desk to apply her makeup for the next 30 – 45 minutes. The chief is not in the office that early so is unaware. I feel she should not be on the 9/80 schedule if she is not going to work those hours. How do I let the chief know without looking like I am tattling? I am so upset with this that I have gut rot because of my anger in everyone not being treated the same.

If this doesn’t impact your work, it’s not your problem to solve. Unless you have a very close relationship with your boss, I can’t see any way you could bring this up without looking petty.

The reality is that everyone is not always treated the same at work. Work isn’t really about fairness; it’s about your organization meeting their goals, and the details of how they do that may not always look fair or even reasonable to you. If that’s going to give you gut rot (which sounds terrible), your gut is likely to be in danger anywhere you work. It’s going to be far better for your quality of life to let this go.

It’s terse answer Thursday — seven short answers to seven short questions. Here we go…

1. Company is acting like I’m already gone now that I’ve given notice

I received a job offer in a different state but similar industry on Halloween and accepted. I gave my notice Nov. 1 and am leaving Nov. 16. I am the third person (there are only 7 of us) to leave my department in less than one month. I’m noticing that even though I have two full weeks left, many of my projects have been taken away and I’m being left off emails that I need to know about.

My senior manager put in his two weeks notice at the beginning of October and we noticed he had given us all of his projects and wasn’t answering some questions or just saying to ask someone else when we had questions. At first, I thought it was incredibly unprofessional but now that I’m in his same position, I understand that this must be what my company does. Even though I’m leaving, I have a great amount of loyalty and respect to my coworkers and would like to help them by finishing my projects instead of adding to their stress. What can I do? I feel very sad that the company is pushing me out like this especially when I care so much. I could have just given them one day notice if they were going to do this.

It’s not unusual for a company to begin moving someone’s projects to other people once they give notice; in fact, it makes sense to do that while you’re still there so that you’re available for questions in the beginning (rather than waiting until you’re already gone). People also sometimes jump the gun and start moving on to whatever will be their new normal before it’s officially time to do so, which could explain why you’re being left off of emails that you still need to know about. Or, alternately, there might be no good explanation for this stuff and your company just sucks at handling resignations; that’s not uncommon either.

Either way, though, don’t take it personally. It’s clearly not personal. Just work out your notice period and leave things in as good of shape as possible for your replacement; it’s up to your company how much they want to utilize you during your remaining time.

2. Employer shared info on everyone’s payroll deductions

My employer emailed the entire company with updated information about our health insurance plan. Included in that email was a spreadsheet containing payroll deduction amounts, depending on how much coverage we had subscribed to. That would have been fine if they had just said “x dollars comes out per month for people who get single coverage versus x dollars for those on the family plan.”

However, my employer listed by name exactly how much money each person had coming out of his or her paycheck every month. I felt very uncomfortable about it because everyone could see what everyone else is spending on the plan, as well as what kind of coverage they had selected. I think they meant well…but I have to ask…is sharing information about other employees’ payroll deductions or health care plan choices illegal?

I can’t think of any law that would violate. (Someone is going to suggest HIPAA, but HIPAA only covers information released by medical professionals.) But you could certainly point out to whoever sent the email that they inadvertently violated people’s privacy.

3. What does this email mean?

I got the following rejection email for a position I applied for that university I am interning at:

“The Sciences Librarian search committee has carefully gone over the many applications for the position. At this time, you have not been selected for a phone interview. I would encourage you to continue to look for openings at UMW Libraries because we truly value the work that you have done for us and we have also enjoyed working with you.”

Should I read anything into this? Mind you, they do NOT send out e-mails to rejected candidates usually. I knew that I wasn’t a perfect fit for it, as I did not have a sciences undergraduate degree. I was told that there may be something coming down the pike three weeks ago, but have not seen this particular (and better) job posted. Should I ask about it? I don’t want to look desperate, but would love to work where at this place.

Take it at face value: They’ve enjoyed working with you and would be glad to consider you if you apply in the future. And it’s fine to ask them about the job you heard about.

4. Declining an interview because I don’t have transportation

I’ve contacted over 30 organizations trying to find some place to intern, and I finally found someplace that said they’d love to talk to me about doing an internship.

I can’t drive, so I have to take public transportation. The walk to the nearest bus stop is 25 minutes, and then the rest of the commute via bus, subway and a little more walking is about an hour. My mom had said before that she’d drive me to the bus stop for any place I wanted to intern to help decrease commuting times, so it would be about an hour commute if she dropped me off at the bus stop. But the place that agreed to chat with me is apparently in a bad neighborhood with high crime rates, so my mom won’t drive me to the bus stop because she thinks “risking” my life isn’t worth getting experience that I need, so now I won’t be able to do the internship. (Spending two hours to commute to/from an unpaid position seems tolerable to me, but three hours isn’t.) I don’t know what to say to the organization about declining to come in and talk to them. Telling them the truth is just going to make me sound incredibly unprofessional and infantile. Do you have any suggestions? I’m really upset and can’t think of anything.

Just say that you weren’t able to arrange transportation so need to decline their offer to meet, but that you’d love to follow up with them in the future if your transportation situation changes. You don’t need to mention your mom.

5. Employers think it’s too much trouble for me to come to an interview

I currently work at a healthcare clinic (have been here for 2 years), and unfortunately the lack of business led my boss to make a decision to close this business forever. We are like family, and they are aware I am actively seeking a job and will not even require me to give 2 weeks notice (although I will regardless). When potential employers contact me for interviews, can I tell them I am currently working in a place that is about to close? Because that is the reason I tell them when they ask me why I am looking to leave my job, but I believe some places feel it is trouble for me to show up at a interview due to my schedule or they don’t want to be rude to my current employer by having me come in, even though I always make it on time and my coworkers and boss have no problem whatsoever with me being excused for the day or for an hour or two to do an interview. I just feel that being a little too honest is not getting me anywhere. I feel that way because I have yet to land a job, and when I lie and say I am NOT working, I seem to get the interview date much quicker then saying that I am working right now.

The majority of people who interview for jobs are already employed. It’s very, very odd that you’re encountering employers who think it will be too much trouble for your current employer for you to interview, which makes me think that there’s something about the way you’re explaining this that’s triggering that response. When asked why you’re leaving your current job, you should simply say that the company is closing its doors soon. If an interviewer expresses concern about your ability to get away for an interview (which, again, would be very strange), you should simply say, “Not at all, my employer knows I’m interviewing and encouraged me to take any time I need.”

6. Team work and cover letters

I’m a recent engineering graduate and have 2 short questions about how to best tailor my cover letter: First, although its a long shot, I’m applying to some companies that don’t always post specific job openings, but have “open” postings or email addresses. The problem is that with no specific job skills/requirements (or vague ones), it can be hard to try and give concrete examples in a cover letter of why you would be suitable to work there. Is it just a matter of trying to summarise your best attributes on your cover letter?

Second, a lot of engineering companies want to know you can work well in a team. I have lots of experience doing this from my student life, but what’s the best way to discuss/phrase this in a cover letter?

For your first question: There must be some reason you’re applying and think you’d do well at the job, right? That’s what you talk about in your cover letter. (And if there’s not, reconsider why you’re applying.)

About showing that you can work as a team: It’s not something I’d put a ton of focus on in a cover letter because it’s rarely among the primary qualifications an employer is looking for, but I’d come prepared for examples to talk about in your interview. And if you have team-based accomplishments, you can include those on your resume.

7. Discussing salary expectations

I am a legal/administrative assistant. Lately one of the questions I am receiving when called for an interview is what my expected salary range is. My last position paid $16.78 per hour, but most employers today don’t want to pay more than $10-$12 per hour to start. I’m afraid if I tell them my last salary it will scare the pajeebers out of them, yet considering the complexity of the job, I don’t want to work for $10 or $12 per hour, espectially true if I have to drive more than 8-10 miles to work. Any advice that would help me escape from between the rock and a hard place would be appreciated.

Well, if you’re not willing to work for $10-12 per hour and that’s what they’re paying, then these aren’t jobs you’re going to pursue anyway, so better to find that out before investing tons of time, right? But it sounds like there’s a discrepancy between the market rate for your work in your area and what you’d like to earn … but it’s pretty difficult to find a job that will pay you more than market rate, so you might need to take a clear-eyed look at what you’re expecting and what the marketing is paying.

It’s wee answer Wednesday — seven short answers to seven short questions. Here we go…

1. I offered to let another applicant be interviewed before me

Today I had my second interview with a company and they were running behind. As I waited for my 2:30 appointment, the lady scheduled for 3:00 arrived. We spoke briefly and she told me that she was on her lunch break and worried because the interviews were running late. When they came out to get me, I offered to let her go first since I didn’t have any other obligations. Did I hurt my chances not going first?

Nope, interview order really doesn’t matter.

2. Highlighting news coverage of my work when applying for a job

I had a (small, local) news article written about my work at my last position that I feel is a great representation of what I can do. I link to it on my LinkedIn profile, but would it be appropriate to put it in my resume, cover letter, or body of an email to an employer?

Sure. Any of the three.

3. Can you stay at a job for too long?

I’m a 40-year-old woman, which I think is still consider fairly young. I have a graduate degree and am looking for a new job, really because I’m bored with my current position. I’ve worked for the same employer for 13 years, which I think is a good thing. I hear that “job hopping” every couple of years is a bad thing, but I’m starting to think that staying put for 10+ years might not be seen as good thing either because I haven’t received any interviews that I’m 100% qualified for. Can you give me the perspective from a hiriing manager on candidates who have been with the same employer for 10+ years? Is there a way for me to market myself as a future long-term employee to a prospective employer?

While job-hopping is far worse, there’s also a point in many fields where staying too long at a job can raise questions about how you’ll adapt to new environments. I can’t pinpoint exactly when that is — it’s somewhere more than 8 years but well before 20. It’s not necessarily a deal-breaker (depending on how you present yourself in general) and it doesn’t mean you must leave a job before that point, especially if you love it — but you should be aware that it could be a potential concern for future employers, and balance it against other factors.

However, as for marketing yourself as a future long-term employee at a new job, you don’t really need to do anything special to do that — the fact that you have such a long-term recent stay conveys that all on its own.

4. Removing a short-term job from my resume

I graduated college in June 2011, and for 3 months right before I graduated I took a job on campus just to make some money. It is completely unrelated to the type of jobs I am applying for. Do you think it is OK to remove it from my resume/Linkedin or should I leave it to explain the gap in unemployment? I have had some really great opportunities since then so I am not relying on it to help me. What are the general rules for short term jobs like that?

You can remove it since it was only for three months and unrelated to your field. The rules on short-term jobs are here.

And you don’t need to worry about a gap because you were in school at the time; it’s normal to have gaps during school, when your main job normally is your classes.

5. Writing interview thank-you notes when you already have an offer

Yesterday I had a great interview for a nursing position at a hospital. I went through four interviews — one with the nurse manager, one with the nursing staff, another with the director of the hospital, and the last with the VP of nursing. I was in the middle of writing my follow-up notes this morning when I received a call from HR with a job offer for that position (yay!).

I’m now a bit uncertain on how to finish my letters — prior to the call, I’d expanded on how I’d be a good fit for the job and finished with something along the lines of “I look forward to hearing from you.” Now, though, it seems a bit obnoxious to write about how I would be a good candidate, since I’ve already been accepted. My sister (who hires for her department) added that it would also be presumptuous to mention anything about receiving the offer from HR. So now my letters (and my brain) are stuck at one or two sentences of “thank you.” Do you have any suggestions on how one could finish off such a letter?

Your sister is wrong — why would it be presumptuous to mention an offer you already have? If you’ve accepted the offer, I’d just say that you appreciated meeting with them and are looking forward to working with them. If you haven’t accepted it yet, wait to write until you do. If you end up turning it down, you can write and thank them for their time and explain that you ultimately decided X because of Y but hope to stay in touch, or whatever.

6. Can I get this job offer back?

I was offered a job in Saudi Arabia two months ago in a reputable company. Initially I had accepted the offer but I was told by the interviewer that I cannot take my family along. After I had received the offer letter and during the finalization process, due to my relatives’ pressure, I had requested the HR manager to consider my request to bring my family with me to Saudi Arabia. This has upset the HR manage and he has rejected me. Later on, I realized my mistake and had apologized to the HR manager and also assured him that I do not require family status and asked him to consider me for the job. But the HR manager bluntly refused to give me one last opportunity to serve in his organization. Now I desperately need this job as it will give me an overseas experience and have monetary benefits too. I tried to convince the HR manager, but he is not heeding my request. I repent very much for my mistake. Can I get this job offer back?

Unfortunately, there’s probably not much else you can do at this point. You tried to change the HR manager’s mind, but he isn’t budging. It doesn’t sound like there’s much you can do other than moving on. I’m sorry!

7. Can my employer make me distribute leaflets off our premises?

Can my employer force me to go off the premises and ”leaflet drop” in a shopping center? I’m a visual merchandiser and today I got asked to hand out leaflets in a shopping center. I asked if I had a choice and my boss said it was non-negotiable and I was to do it! I explained that I felt uncomfortable in doing so and I was prepared to do other jobs in any part of the store and relieve another member of staff who felt comfortable ”leaflet dropping.” I was trying to compromise but no — I didn’t have a choice in the matter. My boss did not seen concerned about how I felt and did not consider any of the compromises I came up with.

When taking the job, I was never told I’d be asked to leave the premises to leaflet drop, and I think there are a lot of health and safety issues in doing so: I would be on my own, what if I had an accident, and who would be liable if anything were to happen and i wasn’t in the correct building?

Yes, your employer can assign you any task they want, as long as they’re not asking you to do anything illegal and as long as you don’t have a binding contract to the contrary.

Workers comp covers you if you have an accident while you’re working, even if you’re not in your regular office. But is that really your concern? I wouldn’t focus on that since it sounds like a red herring; it seems like the real issue is that you just don’t want to do it. That’s the part that you need to work out with your manager — but ultimately if she doesn’t bend, you’ll have it to decide if you’re willing to quit over it or risk getting fired if you refuse.