[NV] Director suddenly expanded all our duties after I asked about fair pay. Is this normal?
Hi everyone. I’m looking for outside perspectives because I’m honestly not sure whether what’s happening at my job is normal or as unfair as it feels.
I work as a Library Aide at a public library. Our Personnel Policy lists 3 separate Library Aide positions: Circulation, Reference, and Children’s. Each one has its own job description, duties, and training. When we were hired, each of us was hired for one specific department, and for years we’ve only been trained and scheduled within that one area.
Recently, I’ve taken on a lot of extra responsibilities in my department, things that go beyond the original job description. I brought this up to the Director and asked about compensation, since the policy says pay is based on the level of responsibility required of the position.
Her response was… strange. She told me that all Library Aides “work for the Library as a whole” and therefore can be assigned to all three departments. But the policy doesn’t say that anywhere. The job descriptions are written as separate roles, and we’ve only ever been trained in one.
Then she said that the only reason I might be getting a new title and raise is because my supervisor “made a good case for me,” not because she personally recognized my work. She completely minimized my feelings, especially since I’ve been taking on these extra duties for months.
Here’s the part that really bothered me, right after I brought up compensation, the Director suddenly announced that all Library Aides will now be trained to work in all three departments. This has never been the expectation before. This felt like a way to make it seem like I’m not doing anything extra, like “everyone does everything now,” so why would I deserve more pay?
I’m trying to figure out if:
-This kind of sudden expansion of duties is normal
-It’s reasonable to expect a pay adjustment when responsibilities increase
-The timing of the change seems retaliatory or if I’m overthinking it
-Other people have dealt with managers minimizing their work like this
I’m not trying to stir drama I just really want to understand if this is a common workplace issue or if something is off here.
Would love to hear your thoughts.