It was time to choose me over the job!

I left BOA a year and a half ago for several reasons. Work burn out post Covid was the primary one. People were leaving in mass numbers and work was being piled on me. It got so bad I started to struggle with depression. This was the start of them pushing employees back into the office. I had never worked full time from home prior to Covid. They allowed my previous team 72 hours a month, so basically 9 days. My new team pre Covid was five days in the office.
Working from home full time during Covid did something to a lot of people. It proved to them that they can get the job done, make the bank plenty of money, and have work life balance. They were happy and children were happier seeing their parents more. As a single mom I managed kids and work much better working from home. I also worked way more hours but I was happier for it.
I had just gotten promoted so I couldn’t post internally. I was drowning in work and the people they were hiring to replace the people that left my team were not qualified for the job nor did they have the experience. So on top of the workload I had to train the new people.

I knew going back into the office wasn’t an option for me and so I started posting like crazy. I must have posted for over 90 jobs and got rejected from most but finally one said yes. It was fully remote with a huge pay increase. I was speechless. Much smaller company so not a whole lot of vacation time as the bank but the happiness and contentment I feel is priceless. I have a lot of flexibility to balance work and life.
I use to come on here a lot to vent my frustrations, I don’t so much anymore. After reading so many posts all I can say is thank you God for getting me out of this place when I did.

My strategy was simple, I kept applying for jobs no matter how much rejection letters I got. I stayed the course despite the disappointments and exhaustion. In the end someone said yes. It took 8 months but it was worth the wait.,There is life after that bank. There are still plenty of work from home jobs but it depends on the kind of job. I chose a career path that is pretty much full time remote at every company except large corporations. If you can’t get out now, use their resources and go back to school for a career that is fully remote. At least you’ll know there will be an end to working there at some point.

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Life must be tough for some employees at BOA when you read some of the comments lately on this site. Retired from one career and started at BOA, I did observed some slackers at BOA and some good employees in the workplace. However, I did not stay long to see the whole BOA culture as I came down with an illness that has no cause and no cure. Yep, I had no choice but to go back into retirement. However, my spouse still works at BOA for over 20 years.

My spouse's salary is a little bit higher than someone who walks into BOA starting at minimum wage. Therefore, merit increase is expected each year for my spouse in order to compare a tenure employee with 20 plus years experience versus someone with none.

When reading the comments on this site, I have to wonder the age group and background for each contributor. For me, I had over 20 years experience in IT and I wanted no responsibilities in that role at BOA. Apparently, I found out that some IT folks at BOA did not have the responsibilities either but had the titles. For example, my spouse had an issue with the laptop. After getting details of the problem, I knew exactly what caused the issue and how to proceed on the correction. I was asked to help but I responded that it was not my job. After explaining that IT is responsible, they should fix the problem and be made accountable for future reference. Several days later with several people involved, it was fixed. The problem is exactly what I suspected. It was like how many BOA IT folks are required to replace a ceiling light bulb. You get the picture.

My only advice for the unsatisfied employees who posted comments, is to pause and evaluate your situation based on your life stage. If you are close to retirement, you may have to set trigger points to call it quits. As for the younger generations, you are on your own. I can't figure you guys out and I have children with the same dynamic mindset. Based on public opinions, your future will be bleak unless you take control of your life and without the help of government handouts. Best of luck and remember that the pasture is not always green on the other side.

BM doesn’t care about the little people under him, all he cares about is holding the executive level accountable in bringing in those numbers. Their ruthless approach trickles down to the managers that got their positions because they knew someone or they’re a DE&I hire. It’s a sweatshop mentality. I don’t understand why shareholders still have him there but as long as they meet those numbers his reign will not be over until it’s his decision. BOA is no longer a place to stay for decades. It’s a great place for new college graduates to get some experience or people wanting to get into the bank for the first time but get the experience and move on. What good are the benefits-time off if you’re miserable. If it’s affecting your mental health. If I had to calculate the additional two weeks I got for vacation at BOA compared to the salary I make now, it isn’t comparable by any means. Their pay isn’t comparable with most external companies. For my position at BOA the salary range was 51k to 70k. 70k for someone who has been there for 20 plus years. Externally, it is 110k to 160k. It is probably too late for some to leave I get it. For those who haven’t been there very long, investing more time in a company that treats you like a number is not a practical decision. Ultimately you have to do what’s best for yourself, family and career.

My time there wasn’t all awful because I used their tuition reimbursement and went back to school for my BA. I paid nothing out of pocket. If you didn’t know, BOA partners with a lot of the online universities for a huge discount. So basically what you’re paying is the total of the yearly reimbursement. So you’re not paying anything.

After graduating I found a job at the bank in my field, spent three years getting experience. By the time all the Covid craziness started to happen I had enough experience to post out.

Thanks for sharing your experience. I wish BM looks at these postings before the ship sinks.

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It was time to choose me over the job!

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