Many office staff and secretaries work in public sector organisations, and tension is high in some of these environments with service reviews and job losses in the pipeline.  I heard of one department in a local authority making 40% cuts to staff, so the situation in some sectors is very serious indeed.

Sadly a phrase I have heard frequently, particularly from the mouths of consultants, is 'stripping out the admin' as a way of cutting costs.  This is a rather short term saving strategy because all it means is that managers end up typing up their own letters and dealing with invoices and paperwork instead of doing the job they are paid to do.  And as we know, often the secretaries are the store of knowledge when it comes to procedures related to finance, HR and recruitment, and where the bisuits are kept.

How do you cope in such stressful environments when you don't know whether you will have a job this Christmas?

First thing I would say is don't panic.  Sometimes, as fairly low paid staff, admin and secretarial staff are retained while cuts are made to 'professional' staff who cost more.  Professional tasks are then devolved to cheaper admin staff.  While this may make your workload a bit more challenging it can lead to opportunities in the longer term. Firstly you may find the work you do becomes more interesting, and in time you may be able to get training and qualifications to move in to a professional role if that interests you.  Just because these jobs are being cut now, doesn't mean there won't be a demand for them in a couple of years time.

Hard though it is, try to think of possible opportunities that may arise from these tough times.  Put yourself in the position where you are seen as competent and capable of taking on the extra responsibilities.  Chances are you won't have much of a say in whether you do the work or not if you want to keep your job, so make the best of it and you may find it's not as bad as you think.  At least if you don't like it you can look for a new job in your own time when things have settled down a bit.  I for one have faith that growth will come, although it may be worth considering the private sector in the next year or two!

So, the next scenario is that you think your job is in the firing line and redundancy looms. It is really hard to motivate yourself when you are waiting for bad news.  I sometimes think that it is easier to be told on the day and asked to leave (with a good pay off) than to be dragged through weeks and months of uncertainty, as usually happens in the public sector.  Obviously you would expect me to say, look for any redeployment opportunities that may come up.  Keeping a good attitude may make the difference between being considered and not.

Motivation is hard under these conditons, so it may help to focus on what you need to do to develop your career opportunities.  Is there any training available?  Many training budgets will be frozen or cut, so you may have to look for free opportunities. Many managers will be happy to endorse attendance at free training events to help maintain motivation, because it means people will be easier to manage.

If you can't find courses off site, look for free online courses.  Some training providers will offer free intro's and tasters, and this may be enough to give you some additonal skills and add some interest to your day.  If your workload has dropped due to cuts you may be able to self train using books from the library.  Again, depending on circumstances, you may find your manager is aggreeable to you using your time in this way.  Obviously this depends on individual circumstances.  If your boss is looking for people to cut who don't have enough work, then this may not be a good option for you!

I have found that making future plans can help take some of the stress off.  Focussing on holidays, family events or future plans beyond the date of the redundancy period helps ease the stress.  And speaking of stress, take care of yourself by getting enough sleep, eating well, exercising and sharing your troubles with others can all help to lessen stress to some degree.  Altough a tempting short term fix, drinking, drugs (legal or otherwise) and junk food will actually increase your stress overall, not decrease it.

Christmas is not an easy time to be facing unemployment.  If you have children it might be a time to discuss family finances and get agreement with the extended family to pare down Christmas treats this year.  It teaches them about spending within your means when faced with circumstances beyond your control.  That's not to say you can't have some treats, but this year can perhaps be a bit more traditional (in the Dickens sense) and less commercial than usual.  That's a good thing in a way!

I may not have helped that much in what is a very stressful time, but just making one or two small adjustments may make life a little easier in the coming year.  Good luck and best wishes to those of you who are in the thick of it right now.  I do know what you are going through.