Has anyone ever attempted to get you to do something that is not your job? Sometimes people may ask for help after you’ve recently quit, and there’s no problem in obliging them.
But what if they’re still pestering you years down the road? Calling you at random times for help with something or even asking you to come into work?
A Reddit user detailed a similar situation when they received a work-related call 8 years after they had quit, and the caller just couldn’t grasp the concept.
More info: Reddit
Getting calls from an old job is always jarring as it transports your memory to a long-forgotten workplace
Image credits: Pixabay (not the actual image)
The poster had worked as an administrator in a residential care facility and was a contact person for many agencies
Image credits: u/AcrolloPeed
They had quit 8 years ago when they suddenly received a call demanding updated contact info, as they were still an emergency number in some system
Image credits: u/AcrolloPeed
The caller was told that they hadn't worked for the company for too long and was asking for their information to be deleted, but they just wouldn't listen
Image credits: u/AcrolloPeed
The only thing that worked was the ex-administrator threatening to report the caller's behavior as harassment and blocking their number
The poster, who we will refer to in short as OP, had been working as an administrator until sometime in 2012. In their job, they would be the contact person for several different agencies, and they'd get calls about referrals, information about clients, etc.
The story begins when they received a work-related call in 2020, about 8 years after they had quit. The caller was an agent, possibly an intern, who wanted to update their company’s emergency contact information. OP kept repeating that they weren't working there and had nothing to do with the place, but the caller just couldn’t listen.
A bit of back and forth later, the poster was done putting up with the caller. They told them that if they didn’t drop it, they’d report them to the old company for harassment, dropped the call, and blocked their number right after, as per the comments.
If you suspect that your soon-to-be old job won’t leave you alone even after you quit, the best thing you can do is prepare detailed documentation for the things that people won’t know without you, Inc. says. This could include anything from workflow to passwords, the status of various tasks - anything that could be important and not immediately obvious.
Image credits: R O (not the actual image)
Inc. further specifies that it’s considered “good form” to answer a couple of questions after leaving work - but not doing any actual work. The questions should be small things that wouldn’t eat up your time but could help out majorly on the other end.
You’re not under any obligation to do this, but it’s nice to do and helps to maintain a relationship with your old boss and coworkers.
The best thing to do if you expect this to happen is to prepare some provisional agreement where you would be compensated for your work, say, after a total of an hour of unpaid assistance.
OP did the right thing by simply not engaging with the person and blocking their number, but what if you just don’t have the heart to tell your old company to kick rocks? This question was asked over at workplace Stack Exchange, and people had lots to say about it.
The guy asking the question details the situation. He was leaving a startup, but he offered to stay part-time to help ease the transition. His offer was denied, but that hasn’t stopped the company from emailing him at least once a week asking for help. All of it had added up to about 30 hours.
He had left documentation for his work, but the emails wouldn’t stop, and he was wondering how he could decline their requests for help without burning bridges.
The community’s answers were varied. Some said that you could answer short questions quickly but not help with any tasks that took longer than a minute or so. That would not burn the bridge and also wouldn’t tax the poster with too much work.
Image credits: National Cancer institute (not the actual image)
The most pervasive overall and the most resounding answer was: “This is actually quite easy - just stop helping!” If your old workplace won’t stop asking you for help, and you actually offered to compromise, for example, stay as a part time worker, and they declined your offer - there’s nothing more you should do for them.
Your declination should be polite and professional, no matter whether you’re providing your rate or stating that you will not be helping any more.
In the comments, OP speculated that this call may have happened as the social work environment is “fly-by-night, underfunded, understaffed, shoestring-budget,” explaining why they were still in the system 8 years later. They also mentioned that the caller couldn’t get that they had quit since, in their experience, residential staff needed this mindset of “someone has to do this job, and I guess it must be me, or else it’ll be my fault.”
The community joked about how crazy the situation was and how clueless the caller was for not realizing what was being said to him. Others also had similar stories, with one person being called into work after quitting 5 years ago. Do you have a similar story? Share it with us in the comments below!
Commenters shared their stories of being called in to work for help years after quitting and being amused at the caller for being so witless
Image credits: Karolina Grabowska (not the actual image)
