It seems that in today society almost every position offered has a phrase at the end of the description that reads ‘other duties as required’ or ‘other duties as needed’ with no clarification of what the other duties would consist of in the job position that is not listed as a skill or requirement in the description. Is this phrase beneficial for the mental health stability of the employee?
This phrase is confusing! Is it a possible opportunity for management to challenge an employee ‘respect’ or ‘loyalty’ to the position or maybe financial way to save in the budget by using available staff to complete tasks? Is this phrase providing the employee the opportunity of growth in the company by management giving the employee the chance to learn a new task to assist with being promoted into a different position? When did this phrase become appropriate to add to a position description? If a potential employee does not agree with the phrase being placed in the description of the position applying for, will it automatically reduce opportunity of acquiring the position.
The potential for symptoms developing from the phrase of ‘other duties as needed’ on a position description will double when management who do not have empathy training only apathy for self and company profits use the phrase to get task complete through ‘bullying, gaslighting, and manipulation’. It would be interesting to find out the history of the development of the phrase ‘other duties as needed’ on descriptions for open positions.
Ex. “Yes, you were hired as an IT Associate, however it is important to call customers to get some sales to make sure you receive a paycheck at the end of the week. This is an ‘other duties as required’. in your job description”
Voices of Burnout (VOB) 