More weird than wonderful tasks of the contemporary PA

Forget anniversary cards for the wife and picking up the dry cleaning, todayís bosses have stooped to new lows. Pitman Training, the UKís leading provider of office and IT skills training, surveyed over 300 PAs across the UK to find out just how far their bosses are prepared to go with requests that are beyond the call of duty.

Amongst these were lazy ones: ìHe called me in the UK from his first floor hotel room in Hong Kong and asked me to call the hotel to order him room serviceî, sordid ones: ìHe suggested I work for him whilst he was nakedî, embarrassing ones: ìI was expected to research colonic irrigationî and downright ridiculous ones: ìMy boss said I should try to be smaller, to prevent her from feeling intimidatedî.

Michael Graham, managing director, Pitman Training said: ìTypically a PAís relationship with their boss is somewhat close, but the PAs we spoke to quite rightly believe that such demands are way beyond their job description. Finding time to book your own holiday is difficult enough, never mind booking one for your boss, his wife and his mistress, as one PA claimed she had done.î

Between breakfast meetings and conference calls, it seems todayís managers also find little time for sentiment. One PA had assisted with organising her bossís mother in lawís funeral, whilst another had accompanied her bossís father on a trip to the seaside.

Pitman Training trains thousands of PAs every year and being a PA is regarded as a respectable career, offering numerous opportunities to progress up the ranks.

Michael Graham continued: ìThe job is demanding and PAs are often required to work long hours to ensure their deadlines are met. There is no need to delegate personal responsibilities to PAs or any other member of staff with the thought of occupying their time. Staff should consider making formal grievances if their bosses are this unreasonableî.

89% of respondents also said theyíd appreciate their bosses showing a little appreciation from time to time. Of these, 85% wanted a bonus, 41% favoured time off in return for unreasonable requests, only 12% were satisfied with a thank you, surprisingly only 1% hankered after a pay rise and just 1% felt it sufficient to feel respected and valued.

In the modern world of work, it seems gratitude of a material nature rather than the good old fashioned thank you will more likely deter a PA from complaining about having ìto make a cup of tea five times because the boss didnít like itî or about ìputting posters on lampposts in an effort to find the bossís lost catî.

On the upside, bosses should fear their comeuppance if they push the boundaries too far, as one PA discovered to her delight when she was asked to lie when her bossí husband arrived unexpectedly at the office. Her boss was miles away in Windsor with her ëboyfriendí but a fire broke out at Windsor castle and the mischievous manager was spotted on TV!