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

I don't mind shoot the shit calls except when I'm really busy, like, all that forced levity does is make me think of how much more I have to do if it's not conveniently timed.

I already keep a lot of things about myself a mystery which has served me well over the last 17.5 years.

― We were clothed, except for Caan, who was naked. Don't know why. (Neanderthal), Monday, July 25, 2022 10:26 AM (one hour ago)

yeah, that's pretty much what I was thinking, esp. in the context of a large company or government agency. Maybe I just end up being "the person who takes on a lot of work and is conscientious about it actually getting done well" which also makes me feel this way.

meanwhile, my co-worker apologized for not telling me he was going on a camping vacation, and today, he actually texted me in the morning letting me know he is taking a personal day. I thanked him for that.

that's all it requires, just a liiiittle communication.

I've a bit secretive/cagey still even after all this time with the company because there was a short period of time where I listed my employer on FB, and I made one little post about a pay raise I got, and inexplicably, someone I worked with saw it and reported it to another person I wasn't friends with, and it got all the way back to my manager. I didn't get in trouble, per se, but that taught me to keep both lives separate.

I changed my employment to "Fay Canoes" a while back and every co-worker is blocked from seeing any status I write, so as far as the profile looks to them, I've never posted to FB lol. there's a few ex-co workers who left the company who I unblocked because tehy're trustworthy.

most of my friends don't even know the name of where I work. and it's a terrible company name so I'm happy with that.

my only slipup was when I saw the black metal band Mayhem live and posted a video of it including me drunkenly flailing to them, and I mistakenly set the privacy to "All Friends", and left off the coworkers group from teh list of exclusions, and one of my colleagues (who used to be a metalhead) laughed about how "someone here went to a cool concert last night".

lol @ fay canoes ... it took me a while to get it, embarrassingly enough.

while I genuinely take pride in the org I work for (part-time, I still have a lot of freelance work), non-profit culture (at least here in the US) generally expects you to list your employer on FB (and social media) and do outreach (and often fundraising) for your employer via your social network. ... I've seen a lot of awkwardness around this, esp. when the org gets called out for something. An org I used to work for had a problem of this type, (actually two of them did, but one was a large museum and my position, when I worked there, was on-call so I didn't have the same affiliation) and when that happened, I was so fucking glad I no longer worked there and could just not be involved in the drama.

xp Mayhem slays ftw

ya they do. i was embarrassed for my boss to see how much a fool I typically acted.

in my old job, I didn't train except for small pockets of year, so if a cool show wasn't coming to FL, but was coming to ATL during the week, I'd take a Megabus there, stay overnight, and work from the hotel/a library.

She's started replying to my emails with "Have a blessed day!"

You could start saying “have a heeeaaavenleeeyy daayyyy” back to her in a really pandering tone if you really wanted to get under her skin. Or maybe she’ll get the reference and love it. Who knows.

This week is really testing me, struggling with feeling like I'm a punching bag at work. As I've mentioned before, I work tangentially related to construction projects, an inherently inconvenient process that at times requires annoying disruption, so I'm no stranger to fielding and responding to complaints. An annoying, time consuming part of the job, but it's part of the job.

All that said, holy shit, the entitlement and rudeness level of people is off the charts right now and it's really making it difficult to turn up day after day doing my best. Every morning I log in to a barrage of not just complaints, but complaints that really personally directed at me as if I individually am ruining their professional lives. And I wish that was flowery language I was adding for dramatic effect, but "these delays are ruining our lives and abilities to perform our duties" was a direct quote from one of this morning's gems. The delays in question? The "softer" lounge chairs they requested to replace the seating in the break room have been on backorder from the manufacturer.

I guess this is hardly unique to me, people seem to have gone collectively batshit over the course of the pandemic in all areas of life, but damn if this isn't just making my job a pure misery most days.

I made one little post about a pay raise I got, and inexplicably, someone I worked with saw it and reported it to another person I wasn't friends with, and it got all the way back to my manager. I didn't get in trouble, per se,

That's good because penalizing employees for disclosing their pay is ILLEGAL.

The delays in question? The "softer" lounge chairs they requested to replace the seating in the break room have been on backorder from the manufacturer.

ughhhhhhhhhhhhhh sorry

Thanks, in isolation it's easy enough to laugh at something plainly ridiculous like that, but when it's frequent and coupled with other abuse, it gets more wearying than anything else.

It was illuminating to be told by two different people this week that I am personally responsible for the global supply chain issues affecting the delivery of audio-visual control equipment.

jon, my last job was “tangentially related to construction” as well and I can totally relate to the toxicity. So much of it was caused by knowingly unrealistic deadlines set by clients/management.

jon, my last job was “tangentially related to construction” as well and I can totally relate to the toxicity. So much of it was caused by knowingly unrealistic deadlines set by clients/management.

whoops

Yeah, throw academia into the mix and it gets even worse.

admin to new department head hire: "we are so glad to have you here! we will give you anything you need to get your group/lab/team up and running!"

admin to me: "build out this space for the new hire but the budget we're giving you will only cover roughly 1/12th of what we promised them and you have to deliver that message, good luck, byeeeeeeeee"

Damn it, brimstead, these double posts are ruining our lives and abilities to perform our duties!

Yeah that extra scrolling I had to do was painful and just ruined the rest of the day.

That's good because penalizing employees for disclosing their pay is ILLEGAL.

― Ima Gardener (in orbit), Wednesday, July 27, 2022 11:03 AM bookmarkflaglink

yep (though at the time, I didn't actually realize that, though I suspect my manager did).

the person who ratted on me is an insufferable conservative Rick Scott-voting asshole who would call her son during lunch, yell at him for 20 minutes, and bang her desk disruptively in anger. and who would go to HR any time she got any performance feedback from her manager, to get it rescinded.

sorry you're on the receiving of that shit, jon. like who gaf about the break room chairs being late.

so that new bit of technology I bitched about weeks ago. What great design and innovation, now that I've gotten to learn more about it.

Old process:

Can request access with batch Excel file containing company IDs

Get instant confirmation that access has been processed, or reason it could not be processed (i.e. already had access)

Email goes out to approvers and the individual who gained access

Access effective immediately

Non-approvers who submit requests sends the approval request to a queue, where it sits indefinitely until processed

New process:

Can request access with batch Excel file but it's not working yet and requires much more info

People with an account on the new server just need client access requested, those without must have an account requested AND client access

^If you choose the wrong option for this person, it will let you submit the task, but absolutely nothing will process, and there will be no error message or warning that the submission didn't go through.

Access takes 30+ minutes to go through from time of approval.

If non-approver requests, it is sent to approvers, but if approvers don't approve the access within a half hour, it is automatically denied and must be re-submitted

oh fuck today. so somehow, none of the managers input the 8 hours of time worked last week for 6 new hires. they didn't realize this until like, today, when we've already passed the cutoff for this week's paycheck. so none of them are getting paid this week (which I'm still fairly sure is illegal and plan to whistleblow on) and it's going to be paid to them two weeks late. which, ok, it's a small check, but some of them may have been counting on it.

none of them made a formal statement or apology to the six, and my instructors got peppered with questions about it. when I asked if anybody could reach out to the 6 and send a formal statement/apology/explanation, I got an eyeroll GIF sent back to me.

.....................

this is how we treat new hires now. fantastic.

WONDER WHY EVERYBODY QUITS.

obviously I'm going to do something about it because I'm livid. I told my boss's boss. but now going to debate going to HR about it.

it's just disgusting.

...so I could do this work from home? DM me.

6 hours before the aforementioned national event "we should check tonight's thing"...

it's not working...

xp - my current job is "tangentially related to construction" and unrealistic deadlines is part of the work -- even if you think you are being very realistic about how long it will take, it will often end up being unrealistic in practice ... also, having to be the messenger is thankless and exhausting. ... My co-worker has to do a lot of this.

obviously I'm going to do something about it because I'm livid. I told my boss's boss. but now going to debate going to HR about it.

it's just disgusting.

― We were clothed, except for Caan, who was naked. Don't know why. (Neanderthal), Wednesday, July 27, 2022 2:45 PM (yesterday)

good for you! Technology is pretty amazing, in theory, they could process these workers' pay rn and they could get a direct deposit by tomorrow.

I just learned in the third hour of today’s meeting that “stumbling blocks are the same thing as stepping stones, you just use them differently.”

I'm sorry you had me at "third hour of today's meeting" ... whoa

Also included a helpful PowerPoint: “Workflows is how you get your work done. It’s the sequence of TASKS from start to finish.”

god I hate meetings hate hate hate hate. 3 hour meeting = 3 hours too many

how is "workflows" a singular noun ??? shouldn't that be "are" and not "is"?

yeah, i'm a government social worker and whenever we have meetings i feel like i'm getting to experience 90s office culture preserved in amber, like i exist in a Dilbert strip from 25 years ago. The last meeting we had literally included the phrase "work smarter not harder" and included an inspirational quote from Walt Disney, "The way to get started is to quit talking and begin doing." (My job is like 50% talking.)

I'm always livid when I realise people that useless get to exist and be paid well for it. Gah.

I was in a 40-50 person department that was dissolved in 2010. none of us were laid off, but we were sent to other departments. the highest ranked performers were sent to implementations, the rest were sent to our content team.

we're meeting with them today, and they're sharing with us an SOP for a process. Step #1 of the SOP has *17* directions inside it. 17 different things to do. it never occurred to them that maybe these need to be broken into separate steps in the SOP rather than all lumped into Step 1.

it's hilariously bad. scared to see how many directions Step 2 has.

people really have that much difficulty telling other people how to do things? ... or is it the people that would be following the process? Are they that ... clueless? ... Or is this for like, random internet person who could make every stupid mistake imaginable and then other stupid mistakes you haven't yet imagined?

meanwhile -- one of the business newsletters that I actually looked at today had this quote

I simultaneously admire and am nonplussed by the lone wolf accountants and bookkeepers. To choose to go it alone, knowing what you know about the job of an accountant, is a bold choice. But why choose it? Trust issues? Don't play nice with others? Unusual eating habits? There are all kinds of solitary pursuits: writer, artist, serial killer. So why choose to be an accountant solo? Actually, I know why. Accountants can make a living. A very good living, even.

this thread today is really making me appreciate that choice.

and yes, all three: trust issues, don't play nice with others, and unusual eating habits thank you.

Someone’s already written a book on harnessing the secrets of serial killers to improve your productivity and management skills, right?

meanwhile my next few months are about to be hell, because special temporary assignment that I was supposed to work on from 8/2 - 8/17 was supposed to be the only thing I was working on, and then the doofus in charge of assigning work out decided to throw a full load on top of that assignment.

last summer during our busy season, I mostly had 3-4 new hire classes to supervise at a time, which is actually pretty hefty, but I could manage. I hit 10 next week, 13 the week after, before I finally come back down to 7.

10 is my previous record, and these were all seasonal people pre-pandemic who were in office who require less attention, and half of those were close to completion all ready. for new hire classes, I have to book 5 guest speakers on 3 different days.

instead of taking work off my plate, they just said "tell us what you need next week and we'll help". yes, because delegating is so easy when you're in the weeds.

Someone’s already written a book on harnessing the secrets of serial killers to improve your productivity and management skills, right?

― JoeStork

i think it was called _the art of the deal_

lol

xp - good job!

https://owlcation.com/social-sciences/The-Benefits-of-Psychopathy-for-Business-and-Capitalism

"References

Babiak, P. , Hare, R. (2007). Snakes in suits: when psychopaths go to work. Published New York, Regan Books.

Dutton, K.. (2012). The wisdom of psychopaths: lessons in life from Saints, spies and serial killers. Published London, William Heinemann. "

once again, had to remind my leaders today that I have 14 classes I'm overseeing next week and specifically tell them the 5 that I cannot observe and that they need to help me with.

so I looked at all of my other teammates. Nobody else has more than *7*. some have *1*.

it's based on location but come the fuck on. the guy who assigned me all these only has 5 himself.

however, I'm nothing if not created, so I am cheating to get what I need.

I'm supposed to observe every instructor for 30-60 minutes within teh first week of training so I can give feedback. Well, do the math - that's 30+ people, 15-30 hours. no way I can do that and do my other stuff during core business hours.

so I"m having instructors use the Record feature on MS Teams to record sessions so I can review them any time I feel like it. I'm not supposed to do that but I told them it's either that or it doesn't happen at all.

"Leaders have a lot of eyes on this, so we need to be careful".

I don't care what executive has their hemorrhoids in a twist, they're the ones who made the bad decision to hire 750 people at the same fucking time, knowing we'd only have barely-ready, green instructors available due to the sheer size.

that was the one-liner that used to make me laugh in my old role. oh u think I care that an Executive is mad? that's basically foreplay to me.

I'm ashamed that there was a time in my career here where I was just as callous and unfeeling as these fucks despite 1/100000th of their salary

it finally happened, I basically had to quit monitoring 2-3 of my classes due to the sheer insane volume until help was provided to me (but help couldn't start until today), and sure enough, there was a behavior issue amongst two of my trainers, and now I'm having to address it and speak to why it happened.

told my boss's boss "well, this is what happens when we're so overworked that we don't have time to adequately monitor classes" and requested rather frustratedly that she tell leadership taht basically you're killing us right now.

because I truly don't care how well things go. I only feel bad if my inability to do my job due to this shit causes someone to quit because I wasn't there to see someone doing something that made a learner uncomfortable or gives up and quits to how badly the training is going. but that ain't my fault.