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Lynne's
Article Archive
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Ratty
Hair and Unofficial Monitors
My co-worker smells and has ratty, unkempt hair and stained clothing.
What's
He Doing in There and Asked To Spy
I just started a great job and love my new boss
Last
Minute Man
The
three of us work for the original Last Minute Man. He misses every
deadline imaginable, whether it's an IRS deadline or a plane departure.
Hot
Button Emailer and At Risk For Checks
A
former co-worker exposed our company to large legal damages though
her actions and I'm trying, one by one, to clear up every incident
in which we're exposed to risk.
You
Don't Have to be a Geisha to keep Your Job and THe Insulting Dress
Code
My boss just asked me to arrange for female "escorts"
for a group of male clients visiting our company from Japan.
Peyton
Place and Gina's Rights
Although I’m a female supervisor, I oversee an all male department,
which means I don’t always know how to handle the "touchy feely"
issues that come up.
Helping
Mom
My mom comes from the generation that had a work ethic and as a
result, her bosses keep taking advantage of her.
Vacation
Flights, Sandals, and Nooners
I just asked my employer for vacation time in late September as
my parents plan to visit and my employer said I couldn’t take vacation
then as two other employees also plan their leave in late September
and early October.
Employers
Can Fire For Personality Clash
I just got fired. My boss and I had been on the outs for a long
time and I half expected to get fired, but didn’t believe he’d trump
up false charges for firing me.
Whistleblower
2002
I get the feeling it’s only a matter of time before I’m fired.
Gut
Concerns and Password Protection
We have a sales position open in our firm and several of our clients
want us to hire a dear friend of theirs because they want him to
handle their account.
No
More Mr. Nice Guy, Please
We work for the original nice guy, but his "niceness"
makes work life tough for us.
Self-Centered,
Opportunistic Employee
I supervise an employee who regularly "pushes the envelope"
with self-centered, opportunistic behavior.
The
Dreaded Knock, No Name
One of my co-workers comes into my office daily with complaints
about our boss and several co-workers.
Graduating
from the Insane Asylum
I just graduated from the insane asylum, meaning I finally got the
courage to leave a job working for a boss who didn’t want to be
a boss and with co-workers who didn’t want to work.
Questions
& Answers - June 11, 2002
I work in a job I love with mostly terrific co-workers and a great
boss.
Questions
One of my employees bikes to work. Although she arrives just before
8 a.m., she then spends the next twenty minutes changing into her
"work clothes" and making herself tea brewed from leaves
and only then is she ready for work.
Firing
the Employee Who Can't Stand to Tell the Truth and Summer Blues
Can I fire an employee who lies to me if I can’t quite catch him
at his lies?
Tracking
Her Theft
A key salesperson recently left our company with no notice.
Leave
Five weeks ago, one of our employees asked us for a several-week
leave of absence, saying she needed to "get her head together."
The
Gun in the Purse and the Expense Account Cheat
I work next to a woman I can only describe as strange. She
talks about witches, hexes and spirits.
The
Plot
The co-workers in my last job plotted to get rid of me. I could
never figure out why they didn’t like me but they definitely did
whatever they could to make sure I didn’t succeed.
Turn
Your Disability Into a Non-Issue
Ten years ago, I had tons of confidence. I worked in the logging
industry and was one of the few women the guys respected to carry
her own weight.
Your
Mistake is Step One, Take Step Two
A year and six months ago, I opened my own small business. I’d been
unpaid and working for bosses I couldn’t stand for years.
Whispers
I started working for my company in January. Two weeks after I started,
a co-worker pulled me aside in the parking lot and said, "Watch
your back."
No
One Here Talks About it Anymore
It feels creepy in our company but no one talks about the real issues.
First, one of our top managers died in the Pennsylvania crash on
September 11.
Dumped
the Guy, Want to Keep my Job
I love my job. I fell into it a year ago when I started dating this
man who inherited a small business from his dad.
Two
Days
Two days after I accepted my dream job, I woke up to a nightmare.
Starting
Over and On My Own
I got laid off last week with no warning. I’m a computer guy and
this is the second time in two years I’ve been laid off.
When
You Work Next to a Crocodile
Okay, you’re blameless. There wouldn’t be a problem if not for
the defensive, negative, controlling jerk you work with -- a real
crocodile.
Wally
I’m the only woman in our department and I’m the one who gets
stepped up as acting supervisor when our supervisor takes leave.
Kisses
and Allies
One of the guys at work bought a huge jar of Hershey’s kisses
and travels through the office every morning greeting all the
young pretty employees with candy and, saying in a syrupy tone
"here’s a kiss".
Co-Worker
from Hell
We’ve all worked alongside the co-worker from hell – the
office star so anxious to score she steals others’ victories.
Taping
My Boss
My boss plans to fire me because of a personality conflict and
it’s just a matter of time.
Telling
the Truth & the Negative Control Freak
My co-worker hates her job and our boss. I like my co-worker but
her complaints have started to get on my nerves.
Soap
Opera at the Office
Ever since we hired "John" we’ve had live soap opera
in our company.
Meeting
Rewinders
Our company relies on team meetings to conduct business. We have
an honor system related to meeting attendance and on-time arrival.
Lunch
with the Gang
Can my supervisor force me to eat lunch with my co-workers? I work
with five other women and am polite to them but don’t really
consider them friends.
Questions
& Answers Nov 25
Someone who cheats on a time sheet embezzles funds in the form of
payroll dollars.
Firing
a Bomb
We have a family friendly policy and this waiter tussled
with two eight and ten year olds, shoving one kid into a chair and
wrenching the other’s arm.
Questions
& Answers - Nov 6, 2001
We just hired an employee who smokes. She shows every sign
of being an exceptional employee.
Is
Just Checking Sex Harassment?
I wanted to ask her out but didn’t want to make a fool
of myself by asking out a married woman.
Anthrax
Jay Leno Wanna Be
I employ a practical joker that teases the office staff.
This morning, though, things got a little out of hand.
Career
Trapeze
You expect to feel bad when fired from a job at which you feel
successful and secure.
Moving
On
Am I the only one
who can’t quite get back to work after the September 11th
events?
Employee
Reaction to Terrorism
I
supervise two Washington-state based employees who traveled up to
Anchorage in early September and now need to fly back to Seattle.
Right
Here Right Now
Our whole office
stopped work the morning of September 11th when we
learned planes had crashed into the World Trade Center and
Pentagon.
Shorts
September 2001
I just landed a
new job and was thrilled because I finally got health insurance.
So I took care of some things I’ve needed for a long time, like
braces and birth control pills and a prescription to help me lose
weight.
Swamped
but Wasteful
The senior
secretary in our office complains she’s "swamped" and
has so much work
to do that she can’t do a good job.
Work
Hard but Fail
The caller on the phone wanted to hire me but lacked the
money. "Maybe you could just suggest a book," he said.
"I’m broke but I need to know what not to do next time I
start a business.
Collecting
What's Owed You
My
little business is about to go under because people hire me to do
work and then don’t pay what they owe.
Balancing
Act
Every
morning I try balancing the different parts of my life. The son
with the broken collarbone and the daughter with two daily soccer
practices come first and next I squeeze in as much of my job as
can be tackled in eight fast hours.
Draw
a line between work and family
My husband, brother and I run a small business that we
purchased from my parents two years ago.
Con
Artist or Great Applicant?
Is
there a way I can tell when I'm interviewing someone whose best
job skill is handling the job interview?
What
am I doing wrong?
When my employer downsized in March, I wound up on the
street looking for work. I’ve since interviewed for nearly forty
jobs and not received one offer.
If
I can't fix this I have to leave this job
I work at a job I love in a field I love. If I quit my job with my
current employer I can’t work in my field any longer without
moving to another state.
He
Hums Off Key
I work next
to an extremely hostile individual who hums "If I had a
brain" whenever I'm at my desk.
Cop
in the Front Office
The
receptionist just told me a cop is waiting in the front office to
see one of our senior employees who is in a very important meeting
with our largest client.
Hit
and Run Supervisors on Collision Course
Are you a hit and run
supervisor without intending to be? How many times have you left
the scene of an workplace accident?
Cut
to the Chase
It’s
time for you to stop insisting that everyone else change so you
can stay the same.
The
Dirty Deed
One of the best methods for getting a manager to reconsider an
attempt to save money by using employees as part-time janitors is
to put together a fact sheet outlining the "cost" of the
savings.
Liar,
Liar
If
your boss cheats and lies to customers, you don’t want to work
long term for him. Not only is this routine a direct indicator
that your business is in serious financial trouble, but your boss
probably cheats you too in small ways.
My
Cheating Boss
Employees
who stay with larger organizations that routinely defraud, such as
insurance companies that rig their claims processes or car
dealerships that roll back mileage, risk years of litigation and
even jail.
Well-liked
Employee Leaving
Rise
above your personal feelings. Give your employee a positive
sendoff. Employers damage themselves with their current employees
when they insult a departing employee.
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