Would you also think you're getting fired?

That Random Guy

Long story short, I landed my first IT job in the federal space (i.e. civil service) and it's now been just a tad bit over 3 months since I started and I've yet to actually been assigned any kind of responsibility.

I've gone back and forth with my manager, project managers, and even peers asking them to get me introduced to things, shadow them and or get some minuscule opportunity to get to do something other than sitting in on meetings telling everybody I have nothing to do.

Just today I had a meeting with my manager and I asked yet again to be added to anything where I could actually get hands on but I received the same half-baked promise of "in due time you will get more work to do". I've been getting that since my first month. I also continue to receive "you are ok by having a slow adjustment".

My position is general service by I am on a year probation starting off and I'm starting to assume they're playing the long game suddenly by not getting me involved in anything so that they can kick me out after the year finishes.

It took me a long time to get any kind of attention from the federal space and I would like to stay but if they decide to not bring me on after probation, I'm out of a job and my living situation will be very dicey.

My immediate decision now is to start applying to other jobs but I'm really trying to stay in the federal space for the security.

If you were receiving the same treatment, would you also assume they were trying to get rid of you?

I'm still fresh (kind of) to the field but I feel that even in my previous roles I had better onboarding and mentoring. At least in my last jobs I had someone try to walk me through the job and tried to get me setup with stuff to do. These guys are literally giving me diagrams and telling me to study them. I legit told them my expectations and my capabilities from day 1 and this is not what I had in mind.

itdept

Lots of different scenarios might be at play here. Are you busy for 70% of the day? Do you have standard day to day tasks or tickets you work on? Can you ask around for advice? Ask for a career roadmap, etc?
Are there any gaps you see where you can make a mini project or automate something. At least that shows you are engaged and active.

UnixGuy

I wouldnt panic just yet, a lot of places are just super slow, public sector is notorious for this

JDMurray

I've been in this situation when an org is waiting to get a contract signed or the next round of project funding approved. This creates lots of "hurry up and wait" time. Use this time to get familiar with the org and its people and do training in whatever you may think you'll be doing. Don't participate in any paranoid rumor-mongering about layoffs, or pester the people who know what's really going on.

Maxlum

Don't worry, remember Murphy's Law.

You cannot control whether or not you will be fired.

 The important thing is the things you can control, for example, you can use your time to study and improve your skills. Tomorrow there is always a chance of bad news, just try to be as prepared as possible

volfkhat

That Random Guy said:

Long story short, I landed my first IT job in the federal space... blah blah blah

IT job?
Doing What?
What is your Job Title?
What is the job Description?

WHY did you even TAKE the job?
Do you have ANY Experience in the field?
What were you doing at your last job/employer?
Is there any type of security-clearance in-play for this current position?


Details matter amigo...