Re: when is it ok to leave a contract job?

[Lisa G Wright <writingweb -at- gmail -dot- com>]

While I agree with the others who suggest talking to the employer about
your dissatisfaction with the work and lack of hours, and things could be
poised to change soon, I am going to disagree on one major point: I think
if you're being grossly under-utilized and there's no prospect of
improvement, boredom is a completely legitimate reason for leaving a gig.
You hired on as a writer, and that's not the work you're being asked to do.
While you can make as much use as possible of the resources you have at
hand to fill your idle time, ultimately, you're doing yourself and your
client a disservice if that continues for very long.

You have every right to have a job that fulfills and challenges you. I once
worked a contract where I essentially ended up doing the work that you
describe, and it was MIND-NUMBING. I was worried about doing anything else
on "company time" (unlike the "senior" writer on our two person team, who
was essentially writing a novel while she was supposed to be working)
because I don't think that's ethical (especially as a contractor). The
really sad part is that there were multiple technical writers employed as
formatters and grammar checkers. I concluded that it was not the job for me
and found another gig.

One thing to be cautious of: If you let the employer know that you are
planning to seek a new contract, they could decide to preemptively replace
you for someone who might stick around longer. If you don't have something
lined up already, you could be caught up short.

Good luck, whatever you decide.

Lisa
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