Let's bitch about our stupid, annoying co-workers

I agree with you guys but its still her word against mine and my word is worth nothing at this point

You're on a 30 day probation with a written disciplinary warning because you came into work half an hour late one day? Even ignoring the mitigating factors, that is fucking ridiculous.

ya - i'd have no idea how to handle that! (sorry)

My feeling was always that HR is for the company's protection, not yours. They're never going to reprimand your boss, and even if you can get them to take your side, you're still left with the problem that your boss is out to get you.

I don't about QUITTING, but it might be smart to think about how to make a move?

HR is for protection against overly aggressive and hasty uncorroborated managerial reprimand

the same laws obv don't apply, but ms mac's job is to keep the supervisory/managerial workers from doing damage to the company through behaviour exactly as detailed in sunny's story.

Passive-aggressively print out a copy of the SHRM code of ethics and tack it to his door.

sunny that sucks. Unless you do have an "emotional problem" such that you might fall under the protections of the ADA (and I'm not ADA expert so I can't say one way or another what's covered), I don't think you have any legal issues here. But I completely validate how ridiculous and terrible this is. What the hell.

Oh, I don't suppose you have the agreement to take the call at home and then drive to work in an email or anything do you?

hypothetical: what if the "emotional problems" answer was "yes"?!

woah - xpost

http://www.eeoc.gov/policy/docs/psych.html

d-mac is otm, also your word is only worth nothing if you don't register anything. there's a way you can speak up about your concerns and pov that emphasizes addressing the problem, "solution-focused", firm about what happened but aimed towards making sure it doesn't happen again. if you can accompany your write-up with some documentation of , maybe after another one-on-one with HR, even if it's only "your word" you might be surprised by the results. people who have to work with awfuls like your boss just want to avoid problems with the awful but there is likely no allegiance there and push-back within acceptable boundaries from you, the victim, can end up shortening the leash of awfuls like your boss a little bit

also your word is only worth nothing if you don't register anything

i really wanted to say this but i don't want to be telling you how to deal with this when it's you in the situation and not me.

matt 100% otm obv

My feeling was always that HR is for the company's protection, not yours. They're never going to reprimand your boss, and even if you can get them to take your side, you're still left with the problem that your boss is out to get you.

I don't about QUITTING, but it might be smart to think about how to make a move?

― Orson Wellies (in orbit), Tuesday, October 21, 2014 1:23 PM (36 minutes ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

HR is for protection against overly aggressive and hasty uncorroborated managerial reprimand

the same laws obv don't apply, but ms mac's job is to keep the supervisory/managerial workers from doing damage to the company through behaviour exactly as detailed in sunny's story.

― local eire man (darraghmac), Tuesday, October 21, 2014 1:26 PM (33 minutes ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

See differences between US workplaces and every other 1st world country's workplace. Darragh, if I were still in Australia you would be totally on point but since I'm in the US, IO is absolutely OTM.

and re the 'emotional problem'. I don't run around work bursting into tears ever and I certainly didn't in that meeting. (I wont say Ive never cried at work but its never been work related and if I have felt it coming I usually go outside and take a walk - there is NOONE here that can say they have seen me cry)

I thought I was extremely cordially during that meeting considering the ridiculous circumstances.

Yeah that's the most left-field part! Mid-level managers with no people skills don't even surprise me, but the head of HR asking something like that?? If you DID have a documented mental health issue he could have just exposed the firm to legal action! I mean....

yeah I'm trying to keep that in mind sunny. have they documented policies in place laying out disciplinary procedures you could test against here or anything?

you suck US BTW. tho on the bright side you just got a supermacs

US labor law is dreadful.

My wife had a problem very similar to this at Costco. She was able to quit, however. This is a tough one if you like the job, though, and I'd go with io's advice to act with caution. These people really are playing hilariously small stakes Game of Thrones while causing collateral damage to other employees' lives. Through some cocktail of drugs, alcohol, and self-delusion, they still manage to sleep at night.

SS, tell them the "flexible" punchline. It'd be hilarious if it wasn't us.

You're on a 30 day probation with a written disciplinary warning because you came into work half an hour late one day? Even ignoring the mitigating factors, that is fucking ridiculous.

― emil.y, Tuesday, 21 October 2014 17:54 (2 hours ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

yeah this. wtf

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lq5Qaukjvj4

as far as my word/her word and documentation goes, at least you have been on those calls, so if need be you can probably point to them somehow, ask that the other participants confirm it, etc? and if you were, then you must have been doing it before your normal start time, which would certainly bolster any claim you might make about having been asked to do this by your manager.

i dunno tho, i'm not in the business world but i just read a thing on their use of internal disciplinary procedures like these, and it made it sound like a routine convenience for them to get rid of people on a pretext covering for other reasons. the way you describe it sure sounds either out of the blue or wackadoodle. obviously it's something to be real cautious about but maybe it's also something to consider being very assertive about? because the procedures like this are easy to exploit against people for bad reasons since they cause fear.

ya - that first bit is a really good point. you were actually *working* before your actual start time.

this is horrible, sunny.

oh they know that. They also know that now I'm faux team lead of the project I often work half an hour to an hour after 6 (my official home time) because, besides doing my actual job on a project that has a super tight deadline, I have to construct a detailed project status email that involves multiple reports, full details on the status of every bug found in the software and the status of modules being developed and tested by the US office, the India office and the other India office which amounts to summing up the daily work of close to 35 people. Not really sure why this isn't a management task but whatever.

I should probably point out that my manager has worked here for all of 10 weeks. Bleh. Im going to shut up now.

Oh yeah. That is definitely why this happened then. Your manager is new and trying to produce some hard evidence of 'managing' for the higher ups to see. This is so similar to my wife's problem that it's almost funny. (But it's not funny. I'm sorry you have to deal with it.)

Both of them are fucking assholes (can you see I've moved from shock to hurt now ANGER). As soon as we are back from Australia in January I am O-U-T

otm

speaking as someone in a managerial position at a tech company, this situation you are in is practically inconceivable. You absolutely should not be treated this way. Putting you on probation for being late once a month ago because you were tending to work matters is completely absurd.

The best thing I can suggest is build a "mitigation plan" that ostensibly addresses whatever problems you are supposed to be fixing, but that documents in detail the exact timeline (including dates/times) of every relevant thing that happened leading up to this so that HR has a documented record of exactly what happened from your POV. You could even frame this in a Problem/Complication/Solution format where the Problem is you need to be at work on time, the Complication is that your manager specifically said you could lead the early morning call from home before coming in to the office (include date/time of this conversation), and the solution being something like no more meetings lead from home if it means you won't be in the office at the specified time. This will show that you are taking concrete action to fix the situation while making it painfully clear that it all stems from specific guidance from your manager.

^^ brilliant idea, but can't help feeling that getting out after your Aus visit is an even better one. On the other hand, how ridiculous and sad to have to leave a team you really like so those fuckers can play some kind of vindictive 6-year-olds' version of 'management'. If you're prepared to leave, and there's any way of letting the CEO know about this without torpedoing your reference, you probably should.

What did your boss actually say when you reminded her of what she'd told you to do? 'No I didn't'? The mind boggles.

do both ideas. and looking fwd to sunshiney beers in December

ljubljana, she didn't respond to it at all. just started talking over me with some kind of drawly, herda hadda jibberish.

sic, YES

sunny that's awful! I'm sorry.

Currently enjoying the sysadmin having a loud monologue about how he and x have minds "like a steel trap" and when they get together "ideas just accelerate" and he tries "to be mindful that people like <several coworkers' names here including two in my office who can quite clearly hear the conversation> just can't keep up"

you giant, giant asshat

I feel bad for butting in now, so ss I really hope things work out for you

Jesus

I've just got to deal with a jaded loudmouth who declares he's jackin it, jackin it in, jackin it up, if it wasn't for his back he'd have jacked it yesterday

how to let him know about masturbation slang while remaining above the ensuing fray is the q

aps please do butt in! my sitch is just so ridiculous at this point there is really nothing else to say EXCEPT for this:

I had a small victory this morning. My manager had her boss pull all of my entry and exit card swipes and email them to her in prep for my HR take down last week. Yesterday, I was looking for a document I had sent to our printer, which is shared by multiple departments, and what do I find but a sheet of my card swipes printed by my manager. The sheet was dated 10/01 so it had been sitting there for anyone to see for 22 days. The HR guy was out yesterday so this morning (after making a copy for myself) I took the sheet into him, pointed out that it was sensitive and personal information that had been left by the printer for 22 days and that I considered it a serious breach of privacy. He agreed that it was a serious HIPAA (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act - I work in Healthcare IT) breach and sent out a scathing email to all staff. He didn't mention my manager by name but I did to one person on my team which pretty much means the entire company will know by lunch time. Vindictive? Sure. I'm having a real hard time feeling bad about it though.

also, APS, I read A LOT of true crime books and all murderers seem to have two things in common: they like torturing/killing animals and they are obsessed with being the smartest person in the room. I'm not saying this annoying dude is a murderer (I hope that's obvious) but that kind of behavior definitely creeps the hell out of me.

Using office gossip to your benefit is so fun. I did that a couple of times when I worked for the state.

She's only been working there 10 weeks and she had it in for you 22 DAYS AGO?? That's MAD!

well the bastards have finally done it

after firing the director who altered my job to make it interesting, but far beyond the scope of my job title, they've created a new research manager position that actually describes my job, lists my qualifications as "the qualifications," and are baiting me to apply

all these politics have left such a bad taste in my mouth that i'm not sure if i want to go out for it even if they seem to be handing it to me on a platter

If you take what's offered, you can always drop it later if you don't care for the results. Sounds like sticking to your current job will be a retrograde move in any event.

Hoos, will you get a pay raise?

(after making a copy for myself)

this is imo the absolute pinnacle of having regular access to a printer/copier in which people forget their documents

Hoos, will you get a pay raise?

― smoochy-woochy touchy-wouchy, (sunny successor), Thursday, October 23, 2014 10:54 PM (Yesterday) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

yeah, it'd be a considerable bump. higher than i expected it'd be had they transitioned me into it when they first started promising it last year.

hey hoos do you know of this company cat a list but with no spaces?

i do! i sent them an aspirational resume a couple of years ago, i always pay attention when they're hiring.

i dunno did i mention this person, and like this isn't on 77 so i mean let's not go crazy here (tho all other internet videos seem to have disappeared)

but

i work with a person in this video.

try to guess which one.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l6uczQjMaq8

can't really handle any of those

1:23