Twice a week we publish problems that will feature in a forthcoming Dear Jeremy advice column in the Saturday Guardian so that readers can offer their own advice and suggestions. We then print the best of your comments alongside Jeremy’s own insights.
I’m seeking advice for my husband. He is 48, and a manager of a multi-disciplinary community health and social care team. He has a background in social work and has always enjoyed working in a team, resolving problems, project managing and, above all, being able to do some good in his work.
However, increasingly he is finding that none of these are possible due to lack of resources and control, recruitment freezes, and overloaded staff with the usual story of long-term stress-related absences.
He is incredibly committed to his team in particular and very conscientious; he wouldn’t allow himself to go off sick for longer than two or three days, but he is getting so burnt out I worry for his health and wellbeing and have been looking around for another job for him.
He is struggling to think at all; let alone about “big stuff”. But he feels that it wouldn’t make much difference changing jobs. (I wonder if this is a job for young people!)
My question is this: surely he has transferable skills, so what other areas could he apply to? Is there a “private sector” where he could have a breather? He is really hard-working physically and would love to work outdoors in a dream world, if we didn’t have a huge mortgage.
Do you need advice on a work issue? For Jeremy’s and readers’ help, send a brief email to dear.jeremy@theguardian.com. Please note that he is unable to answer questions of a legal nature or to reply personally.
