Mini Rant

I am so frustrated today. It's probably silly really, but it is driving me crazy.

I work in an office with 6 sales managers, myself (the marketing person) and 3 admins. I don't have an admin per se, I just ask for help when I need it. We are also in the same office space as 13 other people with 3 more admins. The admins are supposed to help each other out when the phones ring. The sales admins all have all sales phone lines. Each person has two lines. The managers are supposed to answer their own phones if they are there. If our conference department lines are ringing and one of their admins can't pick up, one of the sales admins does. Still with me?

I started here as an admin and took my job very seriously so that I might move up. Even though I am no longer an admin, I somehow have still stayed on the "phone answering circuit". I am a very loyal employee and feel that regardless of what is "my job" I will answer the phone because that is a client on the other end and at the end of the day, that's who pays my salary. We have a rule at our company that the phone should not ring more than three times before it is picked up. I look at the phone as soon as it rings almost every single time so that I can see 1) is it my line ringing, 2) if it's not, is it one of the two public lines ringing, and 3) is the line ringing that of someone that is on their other line? I tried to take all the phone lines off my phone at one point and just have my lines ring (that is how all the other managers lines are), but when the admins are short staffed, I need to help with the phones. (again because I seem to be the only person that will)

So we have two of our admins that will not look at the phone period until it rings 3 times. Even if it is their own line! Agh. It drives me crazy when the phone is ringing and I know that there are two people sitting there not paying attention. The managers do this also and will be talking to each other and not answer their phones or be sitting at their desk and not answer their phones. Why should I have to pick up your phone? You don't pick up any one else's, so why should I pick up yours.

So my dilemma is do I go directly to my boss and complain or do I go directly to the culprits and complain? I am sick of picking up the slack here.