 |
The hard work is yet to come!Well done! You found a job, filled out the application forms, got through the interviews and got that job! You are superb! Now is the time when you think that you can relax…WRONG! It’s only just started. |
Now that you have got a job you need to make sure that you are ready to prove everything you said in your application and interview. It should be an exciting time for you, but it will be hard work. Here are some tips to help you with those first few weeks of work and to set you up for success!
You will probably feel lots of things on your first day. Excited, scared, curious and most probably tired! It takes a lot out of you when you start your first job, not just the hours you work, but just the strain of learning new things, meeting new people and trying to make a good impression.
When you were offered the job, the person who spoke to you should have given you instructions on who to report on your first day etc. It will probably be your manager or your boss. With most jobs you will be shown around the building / work place and introduced to other staff. Don’t worry about remembering everybody’s name after meeting them once, it will come with time. It’s as much for their benefit as yours as they need to know who you are and what you will be doing in the company. You may also be given an induction. This is like an introduction to the company. These vary, you might have an hour with you boss who will go through important paperwork with you, show you around and get you started. Some induction’s can be for the whole of your first day, followed by several meetings over the next couple of weeks. You could be given policies to read, be given health and safety information, some brief training on using office / work equipment and you will probably agree your hours of work, annual leave and other personnel issues.
Don’t worry if you feel like a ‘spare part’. Nobody expects you to be ‘employee of the month’ on your first day. All you have to do is listen, be polite and friendly and make notes of anything you need to remember!
Unfortunately, you are the new person and that means that people will be interested in you. So even though it might seem that everyone is looking at you, it’s probably that they are just waiting to be introduced to you.
One of the most difficult things about starting work is getting used to working with people. It’s not like school or college, you can’t chose your friends and only spend time with them. Although you can’t be forced to like everyone, when you start working you have to live with the fact that even if you hate some of your work colleagues, you still have to work with them and be professional. Don’t get involved in any staff ‘moaning’, just keep your head down, be pleasant to everyone and get on with your work.
As an employee you have certain rights that your employer must support. It is important that you are aware of these rights so that you are treated properly and fairly.
Within 13 weeks of the start of employment, an employer must provide the employee with written terms and conditions of their employment. These must include the names of the employer and employee, date that your employment started, your job title, working hours and holiday and holiday pay arrangements. It should also include details of the notice you must give (how long you have to work once you have handed in your resignation) and disciplinary and grievance procedures (warnings from your employer and how you make a complaint). It should include sickness and injury procedures, pension arrangements and what type of contract it is, if temporary, it should state when it ends.
It is very important that you are aware of your rights if you are put through a disciplinary procedure. The best way to avoid going through this procedure is to make sure that you read and understand your employers disciplinary rules. If you work for a large company you will probably find that your personnel department will have a copy available for you to look at. They usually involve rules such as smoking, alcohol, absences, time keeping, work standards, private phone calls and misconduct and gross misconduct which means seriously bad behaviour which could result in immediate dismissal (sacking). This could include violence or fighting at work, dishonesty, indecent behaviour (yep! you guessed it ) and committing a criminal act. As far \as the company is concerned this could include theft, drunkenness, wilful damage of company property, wilfully endangering people at work and giving someone company information without permission from your employer.
It is important that you know you rights, but this doesn’t mean prancing into work one morning and screaming around the building. Your rights are there to protect you and you will usually find that most good employers will be fully aware of them. You need to point them out, if you feel they are not being considered, but you can do this in a calm and mature way. Don’t wind everyone up in your first week my ‘demanding’ things aggressively. Find out the facts before you jump in, once you are sure of them, you can take further action through the proper channels. For example, if you need a ‘wrist rest’ for your computer, don’t write a letter to the Board of Directors demanding it, when you should gone to your manager first to put in a request.
If you have just started work and you are unhappy about something and want advice, why not have a look at these websites :
So keep calm on your first day, listen to everyone and if you don’t understand anything just ask! Most things come with a bit of experience, which you usually get over time. If you want some advice about what to expect at work why not have a chat with your family, friends or Careers / Connexions Adviser.
Jennie Glitherow
Connexions Lincolnshire & Rutland
At school or college? Look out for Jennie's future articles which we'll have
here for the first Monday of each month, and which we'll link to the best sites
we can find on the Web. Why not bookmark us now?
To get back to this page to use the links on it - enter http://www.careers-gateway.co.uk/mainpage.htm
and click on Magazine then 1st Job - Find it, Get it, Keep
It.
 |
|
 |