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Post by jeremysgirl on Mar 22, 2023 18:45:55 GMT
Update: I was in a meeting this morning and it was stated that a very important report hadn't been received. It was another thing she had said she'd do. I searched all over our server to see if it had been done and I couldn't find it. I did it and submitted it. And I sent an email to my boss about these issues going on again.
*******
I'm going to give you just a little bit of background so you know what is going on. I work in a particular division that services the entire company, but there are just two staff. We do the finance/budget aspect. I took this job in May of 2022 so I've been working nearly a year in this role. My coworker had a stroke and two subsequent brain surgeries following. The stroke happened about 10 days before I started. I spent 5 months working in this role without any guidance. My boss was relatively new to our company and of course, my coworker was off for all those months. With the help of my boss and a non-related middle manager, I managed to figure out my role, handle the work, and remember too, that I was thick in grief, as well. It was hard. Very hard. But I find my job rewarding and I enjoyed having something new to focus on while I was grieving. I guess it gave me something to look forward to. With that said, it was difficult handling the workload for two people when I was so inexperienced and going through all this personal stuff too. But like I said, those two guys stepped up and helped me as much as they could.
Fast forward to end of October, my coworker came back. We serve as liaison to internal program offices and there are 15 of them. I serve 8 and she serves 7. 4 of mine have no financial staff so I have to serve in an even greater capacity. 1 of hers she must serve in a greater capacity. I thought given the perimeters of the offices that this split seemed fair. Well, I have been consistently being reached out to by her offices as they can't get a hold of her. We have MS Office so I can see that she's not online the good majority of the day. So I have been plugging along and answering her offices' questions as best I can.
I am also handling all the IT stuff which is difficult because she never worked on that either, but slowly I am piecing things together. The executive office is also asking us for a specific report to be produced once a month and she said she would draft it and I could put in my program offices' numbers. We met two months ago so I could review all the IT stuff with her and she was supposed to update me on that specific report. She didn't do it. After that meeting, I did the report and plugged my offices' numbers and presented it back to her. She still has not completed her portion of it and we are nearly through to April now and the numbers will need an update yet again but I can't present this to the head office incomplete.
Well about 6 weeks ago, my boss had the CEO asking him questions about something relating to one of her offices but she was no where to be found. So, of course, he came to me. And a question she most likely would have been able to answer within 10 minutes, took me 2 hours of research only to come up with an insufficient answer anyway. My boss was not happy. Then the following week, we had a something annually that happens that requires a lot of work and will continue with tracking for the next six months. There are two documents to produce and I agreed to producing the more difficult one which I did. So my boss was in a meeting with the CEO and he wanted to see these documents we had prepared. She was no where to be found again and I went to retrieve mine and hers was missing. It wasn't done. I had to explain that to my boss.
That was the last straw for me. I scheduled a meeting with my boss and presented all of this information (he knew about the last two times because he was directly involved, but he didn't know about all the other stuff). I was as kind as I could possibly be because I do feel bad about her health challenges. She had a hard year. I offered to take on more responsibility. I told him I have no problem helping but I get the feeling from her when I do talk to her that she's feeling like I'm stepping on her toes. I basically feel like I am between a rock and a hard place. My boss said he understood and that it wasn't my responsibility to take on more work, despite the fact that I did tell him that right now, I do have the time and energy to take more on. He said that they would talk with her and see if she needs some kind of assistance. I thought that was nice of him. Like I said, I don't mind doing more work, because I'm tired of us being caught with our pants down. That's not what I want to portray to our head office and I feel like I am being judged for these things too.
About a week and a half later, she called me. She said she needed to apologize to me because she thinks now she came back too early in her recovery and she is having trouble keeping up with things. I told her I understood she had a hard year and that I was willing to help. She shrugged off my offer of help and stated that she would step up to the plate and handle her business. So, that was about 3 weeks ago, maybe. Well, she still hasn't finished that report that we were supposed to submit to the CEO office the second week of March. My data is there, hers is not. And I'm debating whether to just go around her and talk to her program offices on April 1st so I can submit the report on my own. I worked half my morning on emails related to her program offices. 3 issues she would have handled and on one, I couldn't make a decision because I didn't have enough background information (I looked at all the data I had too which took me over an hour) to make the necessary decision so I had to reply that we needed to wait for her. The other two issues, I solved. But really, I haven't seen any indicator that she's worked at all in the past two weeks, except for one particular meeting we both attended last Thursday.
And now, I'm even more unsure of what I should do. Because I discussed it with my boss. Offered to help. He said no. She discussed it with me. I offered to help. She declined and said she'd work harder so I'm stuck feeling like she is going to be unhappy to see that I've been serving her program offices again. But they can't wait a week for an answer. The one big email this morning that needed an answer that I researched and still couldn't explain what she was doing was 5 days old. So they've been waiting on an answer from her for 5 business days.
I feel terrible about all of this. Just terrible because clearly she's struggling with her health. But I'm just unsure of what is appropriate or not appropriate for me to do or say at this point. What would you do?
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styxgirl
Pearl Clutcher
Posts: 3,878
Jun 27, 2014 4:51:44 GMT
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Post by styxgirl on Mar 22, 2023 18:55:17 GMT
It sounds like you have tried to solve the issues to the best that your power and position allows.
I am passive aggressive enough that I would create the reports with colored blanks saying “info to come from Susie Co-Worker” and submit it for review to my boss as soon as you can before your deadline.
This will leave it the boss’ hands and they will have to make a decision for you to cover the job or help Susie Co-Worker.
Hugs! I know it’s not an easy situation! You’ve done fantastic covering so far!
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Post by busy on Mar 22, 2023 18:59:38 GMT
Wow, that is A LOT to deal with. I know I was a cheerleader in going for the new role, and I think it's great you went for it and got it, but what a series of events to have to navigate ❤️
This may sound heartless and I don't mean it to be. You have both had very hard years, in very different ways. It is not fair or right for you to take up her slack. She's not physically recovered, and you are not mentally recovered. Just because her issues are more outward doesn't meant yours are any easier to manage. It is completely unreasonable for you to cover for her to the extent that you are. I know your intent is kindness, but you owe yourself kindness too.
Talk to your boss again. Let him know this is not sustainable for you and things need to change. Perhaps she needs to go back on leave for a while. I don't know. That's his job to figure out with her, and it's also his job to get you some backfill support while sorting this all out.
You cannot do the job of two people while you're still in the thick of grief. You know it's not good for your mental health, in the long run. You are going to burn yourself out quickly.
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pinklady
Drama Llama
Posts: 5,563 
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Post by pinklady on Mar 22, 2023 19:03:20 GMT
It's nice that you are trying to intervene and get stuff done but you've just dragged out the problem for much longer than necessary. You need to stop doing her work and stop covering for her. Her programs are hers and yours are yours.
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seaexplore
Prolific Pea
Posts: 8,467
Apr 25, 2015 23:57:30 GMT
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Post by seaexplore on Mar 22, 2023 19:04:40 GMT
It sounds like you have tried to solve the issues to the best of your power and position allows. I am passive aggressive enough that I would create the reports with colored blanks saying “info to come from Susie Co-Worker” and submit it for review to my boss as soon as you can before you’re deadline. This will leave it the boss’ hands and they will have to make a decision for you to cover the job or help Susie Co-Worker. Hugs! I know it’s not an easy situation! You’ve done fantastic covering so far! I agree with noting the other employees responsibility spots. |
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Post by busy on Mar 22, 2023 19:08:56 GMT
It sounds like you have tried to solve the issues to the best of your power and position allows. I am passive aggressive enough that I would create the reports with colored blanks saying “info to come from Susie Co-Worker” and submit it for review to my boss as soon as you can before you’re deadline. This will leave it the boss’ hands and they will have to make a decision for you to cover the job or help Susie Co-Worker. Hugs! I know it’s not an easy situation! You’ve done fantastic covering so far! I would not appreciate someone on my team handling it this way rather than having a conversation with me. You're right, it's passive-aggressive and that's not the way to effectively partner with a manager. I'd prefer an open conversation about the struggles someone on my team is having with someone else. It would negatively influence my opinion of a team member if they resorted to tactics like this, rather than clear communication with me about their concerns. |
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RosieKat
Drama Llama
PeaJect #12
Posts: 5,408
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Post by RosieKat on Mar 22, 2023 19:11:54 GMT
Well, that's quite a frustrating situation to be in, especially for someone like you who is both compassionate and dedicated! You talked with your boss about it and he said you shouldn't have to cover her stuff. Did you by any chance get him to tell you directly how he'd like you to handle it in situations like this? If not, I think it's worth it to say, hey, look, I'm a compassionate and dedicated person, but this is still happening. For example, for the annual Smith report, I had all my stuff done on time, and as far as I could tell, she still hadn't done anything. How you deal with it as a manager is up to you, boss, but I need to know what you want me to do. When this happens again, should I just turn in what I have, should I cover her stuff for her, do you want me to let you know 3 days before everything like this is due? And see what he prefers. There's not a great answer here, and it does sound like she may need to go on short term disability or something.  I know you don't want to add to her trouble, but look at it like this - at the end of the day, the work isn't getting done and it can't get done if she's in charge of it. Let the boss decide how he wants you to handle it, not just what he doesn't want you to have to do (covering for her). |
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Post by jeremysgirl on Mar 22, 2023 19:13:48 GMT
It sounds like you have tried to solve the issues to the best of your power and position allows. I am passive aggressive enough that I would create the reports with colored blanks saying “info to come from Susie Co-Worker” and submit it for review to my boss as soon as you can before you’re deadline. This will leave it the boss’ hands and they will have to make a decision for you to cover the job or help Susie Co-Worker. Hugs! I know it’s not an easy situation! You’ve done fantastic covering so far! I appreciate your feedback and that of pinklady. We have a very interdependent kind of work culture. It feels very...I can't quit figure out the word...but not right to leave her in this predicament. My boss is just a very busy man and even though I told him what was going on 6 weeks ago, I'm unclear on whether he has noticed any change. I don't know I just feel like we are a team or supposed to be. And after how difficult the first few months of this job was for me and how much I appreciated everyone stepping up to help get my feet under me, I don't want to be petty. |
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Post by littlemama on Mar 22, 2023 19:14:28 GMT
Stop doing her work. If one of her people comes to you, refer them to her. If she doesnt answer, they should be going to her boss. Provide your numbers. Dont do hers. Email the doc to her and cooy your boss. Saying Hi Susie, Ive completed my portion of the report due april 1. When you have completed your part, please submit it.
I understand your empathy towards her; however, she is directly impacting your ability to do your job. If she needs to go back on FMLA, she should do that. The answer is not for you to take on the work that she is being paid to do.
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Post by jeremysgirl on Mar 22, 2023 19:17:23 GMT
Wow, that is A LOT to deal with. I know I was a cheerleader in going for the new role, and I think it's great you went for it and got it, but what a series of events to have to navigate ❤️ This may sound heartless and I don't mean it to be. You have both had very hard years, in very different ways. It is not fair or right for you to take up her slack. She's not physically recovered, and you are not mentally recovered. Just because her issues are more outward doesn't meant yours are any easier to manage. It is completely unreasonable for you to cover for her to the extent that you are. I know your intent is kindness, but you owe yourself kindness too. Talk to your boss again. Let him know this is not sustainable for you and things need to change. Perhaps she needs to go back on leave for a while. I don't know. That's his job to figure out with her, and it's also his job to get you some backfill support while sorting this all out. You cannot do the job of two people while you're still in the thick of grief. You know it's not good for your mental health, in the long run. You are going to burn yourself out quickly. Thank you. I do not regret taking this job. I do enjoy what I'm doing. A two person division feels like it should be a team. And especially after the difficult year I have had, I hate the idea of her struggling alone. I will consider talking to my boss again. |
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Post by jeremysgirl on Mar 22, 2023 19:19:22 GMT
Well, that's quite a frustrating situation to be in, especially for someone like you who is both compassionate and dedicated! You talked with your boss about it and he said you shouldn't have to cover her stuff. Did you by any chance get him to tell you directly how he'd like you to handle it in situations like this? If not, I think it's worth it to say, hey, look, I'm a compassionate and dedicated person, but this is still happening. For example, for the annual Smith report, I had all my stuff done on time, and as far as I could tell, she still hadn't done anything. How you deal with it as a manager is up to you, boss, but I need to know what you want me to do. When this happens again, should I just turn in what I have, should I cover her stuff for her, do you want me to let you know 3 days before everything like this is due? And see what he prefers. There's not a great answer here, and it does sound like she may need to go on short term disability or something. I know you don't want to add to her trouble, but look at it like this - at the end of the day, the work isn't getting done and it can't get done if she's in charge of it. Let the boss decide how he wants you to handle it, not just what he doesn't want you to have to do (covering for her). This is a good approach. I will do that with the monthly report at the beginning of next month. I know we aren't going to be able to skirt around submitting next month either as it is the close of a quarter. |
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teddyw
Drama Llama
Posts: 6,868
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Post by teddyw on Mar 22, 2023 19:19:51 GMT
Maybe her brain function has been affected and she is unable to do the work? Not your fault though.
I’d submit your work by the deadlines. Then they’ll see she’s not working and it’s out of your hands. Maybe keep a running list of everything you’re doing for her accounts to give to your boss.
You’ve been more than helpful.
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Post by katlady on Mar 22, 2023 19:23:05 GMT
I am in agreement with others to not do her job unless your boss requests it. If someone is looking for her, refer them to her boss. Do your part of the work, document it, and then let the boss handle it. I’ve been in situations were a co-worker was absent and someone needed some papers from the co-worker. If I didn’t have an immediate answer, I would walk the person over to my boss’ office and let them know what was going on. It sounds like so much added stress on you. What an awful situation to be in.
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Post by **GypsyGirl** on Mar 22, 2023 19:25:16 GMT
You cannot do the job of two people while you're still in the thick of grief. You know it's not good for your mental health, in the long run. You are going to burn yourself out quickly. I agree with this. You are doing her no favors (or yourself) by continuing to step up and do her job. It's time to talk to your boss again, and don't sugar coat any of it in hopes of protecting her. If she isn't able/willing to do the full job at this point in time, the company needs to step up and make changes. |
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Post by jeremysgirl on Mar 22, 2023 19:29:07 GMT
Maybe her brain function has been affected and she is unable to do the work? Not your fault though. I’d submit your work by the deadlines. Then they’ll see she’s not working and it’s out of your hands. Maybe keep a running list of everything you’re doing for her accounts to give to your boss. You’ve been more than helpful. I kind of think maybe it has been affected. 😪 There have been a couple of times that I have thought that. We were in an IT meeting in January and she asked a really basic level question about tracking expenses. And they just explained to her that the IT expenses were trackable just the same as any other expenses and where she could view all the contract documents. I mean it was so basic. I know she knew how to do that. But that was the first meeting with the both of us where I thought the dots weren't connecting. |
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Post by Zee on Mar 22, 2023 19:30:37 GMT
I think you need to talk to your boss again because it's time he had this conversation with her. I agree, you should not take on her job unless asked by your boss, and he said no.
I assume he's eventually going to have to answer for the missing projects, not you. You've offered to go above and beyond to help but since you're not her supervisor, there's really not much you can do besides let him know that things are still not getting done.
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Post by cmpeter on Mar 22, 2023 19:45:23 GMT
I agree about talking to your boss again.
At the same time, could you setup a block of time with her each time you have a shared report that is due? Walk thru the report and items due and assign who takes each part? Discuss where how to complete it together?
We had a new marketing manager on our team that I had to collaborate with for monthly results reporting. He was new and was just learning how we did things, where to find the data he needed, the format we use for reporting, etc. He had his own director he reported to but she was a crappy manager. So, while he didn’t report to me, I played the manager role for our shared reporting.
If someone emailed me with a question that he should have answered I would reply back cc’ing him with a note letting the other person know that XX would be able to answer the question. Then I would IM XX to see if he needed help with the response.
You don’t want to let things slip and leave your boss or CEO in a bind. But, you need to start pushing people to go to your co-worker when it’s something she should own. Then at the same time, offer her the support you can as long as it doesn’t negatively impact you (since you said you had capacity to help her more).
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Post by busy on Mar 22, 2023 19:54:09 GMT
We have a very interdependent kind of work culture. It feels very...I can't quit figure out the word...but not right to leave her in this predicament. Of course it doesn't, because you're a kind and empathetic person. And if you were in a different situation yourself, maybe keeping on keeping on helping her while she recovers would be ok. But you're not. You have to take care of yourself too, not just her. 💖 |
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MDscrapaholic
Drama Llama
Posts: 6,386
Location: Down by the bay....
Jun 25, 2014 20:49:07 GMT
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Post by MDscrapaholic on Mar 22, 2023 19:59:25 GMT
I'm sorry you're in this position. It sucks.
I feel you've gone above and beyond as a compassionate coworker, and that it's time for something to give. Surely she recognizes that she's not pulling her weight. I would give my boss a head's up again, and let him handle it. It's one thing to help for a month or so, till she gets back on her feet, but this has been a while! You can only do so much before something has to give. You don't want to jeopardize YOUR job because she's not doing her work. She declined your help, nothing you can do. Your boss knows you offered to help. Step back and let him handle it. That's what he gets paid the big bucks for.
((hugs)) It's not easy, but you've gone above and beyond.
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Post by jeremysgirl on Mar 22, 2023 20:01:03 GMT
I agree about talking to your boss again. At the same time, could you setup a block of time with her each time you have a shared report that is due? Walk thru the report and items due and assign who takes each part? Discuss where how to complete it together? We had a new marketing manager on our team that I had to collaborate with for monthly results reporting. He was new and was just learning how we did things, where to find the data he needed, the format we use for reporting, etc. He had his own director he reported to but she was a crappy manager. So, while he didn’t report to me, I played the manager role for our shared reporting. If someone emailed me with a question that he should have answered I would reply back cc’ing him with a note letting the other person know that XX would be able to answer the question. Then I would IM XX to see if he needed help with the response. You don’t want to let things slip and leave your boss or CEO in a bind. But, you need to start pushing people to go to your co-worker when it’s something she should own. Then at the same time, offer her the support you can as long as it doesn’t negatively impact you (since you said you had capacity to help her more). Yes ok I like the idea of pushing people a bit to go to her. I think a lot of the issue too is that they got very used to coming to me when she was off and I was trying to handle everyone kwim? But I can offer behind the scenes help. |
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Post by jeremysgirl on Mar 22, 2023 20:02:56 GMT
We have a very interdependent kind of work culture. It feels very...I can't quit figure out the word...but not right to leave her in this predicament. Of course it doesn't, because you're a kind and empathetic person. And if you were in a different situation yourself, maybe keeping on keeping on helping her while she recovers would be ok. But you're not. You have to take care of yourself too, not just her. 💖 Thank you. We are coming up on the anniversary in just several weeks of Esther's passing and I have the week off and am going on vacation. I had such trouble with her birthday I thought this would be best. |
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Post by Bridget in MD on Mar 22, 2023 20:08:28 GMT
Stop doing her work. If one of her people comes to you, refer them to her. If she doesnt answer, they should be going to her boss. Provide your numbers. Dont do hers. Email the doc to her and cooy your boss. Saying Hi Susie, Ive completed my portion of the report due april 1. When you have completed your part, please submit it.I understand your empathy towards her; however, she is directly impacting your ability to do your job. If she needs to go back on FMLA, she should do that. The answer is not for you to take on the work that she is being paid to do. This is what I would probably do. You tried to speak to both your boss and her to come up with solutions. They made a deicision, but now it's time for them to see how their decisions impacted the work. Its not fair to you, but hopefully they will see very quickly that this can't go on. If one or both come to you for assistance, I would comply, but ask if this is somehting we could look at in the future so it does not continue to happen. |
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Post by Darcy Collins on Mar 22, 2023 20:13:13 GMT
I don't know if you actually need to talk to your boss, but you absolutely need to stop doing her work NOW! You're not doing her any favors. The organization needs to know that she's not doing her part, the more you cover for her the more higherups can ignore the issue. Just stop and let whatever happens happens - you've made it clear you're happy to help - I'm guessing your boss said no as he needs justification for what everyone knows is coming.
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pinklady
Drama Llama
Posts: 5,563
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Post by pinklady on Mar 22, 2023 20:16:43 GMT
It sounds like you have tried to solve the issues to the best of your power and position allows. I am passive aggressive enough that I would create the reports with colored blanks saying “info to come from Susie Co-Worker” and submit it for review to my boss as soon as you can before you’re deadline. This will leave it the boss’ hands and they will have to make a decision for you to cover the job or help Susie Co-Worker. Hugs! I know it’s not an easy situation! You’ve done fantastic covering so far! I would not appreciate someone on my team handling it this way rather than having a conversation with me. You're right, it's passive-aggressive and that's not the way to effectively partner with a manager. I'd prefer an open conversation about the struggles someone on my team is having with someone else. It would negatively influence my opinion of a team member if they resorted to tactics like this, rather than clear communication with me about their concerns. I'm going to frame this from the perspective that you, Busy, are the manager so I hope it makes sense.  The conversation with you (the manager) did happen. You told Jeremysgirl it was not her responsibility to take on more work. If you (the manager) are too busy or are not keeping a watch on a problem that was brought to your attention, why does that fall on Jeremysgirl to talk to you again? Why would you think negatively about someone who brought a problem to you and you did nothing to fix the problem? That's just wrong on your part. The harsh reality is that it sounds like the co-worker is unable to perform their job since the stroke. Covering for her is just delaying the inevitable which is getting someone who can do the job. Business is business and at some point, personal feelings need to be put aside. |
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Post by jeremysgirl on Mar 22, 2023 20:19:01 GMT
I don't know if you actually need to talk to your boss, but you absolutely need to stop doing her work NOW! You're not doing her any favors. The organization needs to know that she's not doing her part, the more you cover for her the more higherups can ignore the issue. Just stop and let whatever happens happens - you've made it clear you're happy to help - I'm guessing your boss said no as he needs justification for what everyone knows is coming. Now this raises a very interesting POV that I hadn't considered. I am part of a union. It is not an at-will employment kind of situation. Maybe he is collecting documentation necessary to be able to let her go. I did not consider this. At all. But now that you say that.... His own secretary reached out to me twice in the past two weeks, she was one of the things I handled this morning and she requested specific information my coworker should have been the one to provide (her program office). She emailed both of us and I was the one who responded both times. Surely his own secretary should have known who was the appropriate person to go to for this information. I registered that this morning with a scowl that she of all people would be coming to me. But now that you say this I'm looking at it in a much different light. |
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Post by jeremysgirl on Mar 22, 2023 20:23:00 GMT
I would not appreciate someone on my team handling it this way rather than having a conversation with me. You're right, it's passive-aggressive and that's not the way to effectively partner with a manager. I'd prefer an open conversation about the struggles someone on my team is having with someone else. It would negatively influence my opinion of a team member if they resorted to tactics like this, rather than clear communication with me about their concerns. I'm going to frame this from the perspective that you, Busy, are the manager so I hope it makes sense. The conversation with you (the manager) did happen. You told Jeremysgirl it was not her responsibility to take on more work. If you (the manager) are too busy or are not keeping a watch on a problem that was brought to your attention, why does that fall on Jeremysgirl to talk to you again? Why would you think negatively about someone who brought a problem to you and you did nothing to fix the problem? That's just wrong on your part. The harsh reality is that it sounds like the co-worker is unable to perform their job since the stroke. Covering for her is just delaying the inevitable which is getting someone who can do the job. Business is business and at some point, personal feelings need to be put aside. Thank you for sharing from this perspective. I have a tendency to feel too much empathy at times. I know I do. I know enough about mental illness and have enough involvement with my local NAMI chapter to know that there are a lot of people who were once successful and can no longer work in their former capacity due to worsening mental health. This is a huge, huge fear of mine. And I admit I'm projecting a bit onto her. It may be time for her to exit. |
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Post by busy on Mar 22, 2023 20:31:46 GMT
I would not appreciate someone on my team handling it this way rather than having a conversation with me. You're right, it's passive-aggressive and that's not the way to effectively partner with a manager. I'd prefer an open conversation about the struggles someone on my team is having with someone else. It would negatively influence my opinion of a team member if they resorted to tactics like this, rather than clear communication with me about their concerns. I'm going to frame this from the perspective that you, Busy, are the manager so I hope it makes sense. The conversation with you (the manager) did happen. You told Jeremysgirl it was not her responsibility to take on more work. If you (the manager) are too busy or are not keeping a watch on a problem that was brought to your attention, why does that fall on Jeremysgirl to talk to you again? Why would you think negatively about someone who brought a problem to you and you did nothing to fix the problem? That's just wrong on your part. The harsh reality is that it sounds like the co-worker is unable to perform their job since the stroke. Covering for her is just delaying the inevitable which is getting someone who can do the job. Business is business and at some point, personal feelings need to be put aside. You’re right. I was focusing on other things in the OP than the discussion with her manager and kind of missed the extent of it. It doesn’t need to be had again. I was reading that “Susie’s work here” strategy as a step one, not post-manager-discussion. If we’d had a discussion, I hadn’t done shit about the situation despite saying I would, I absolutely wouldn’t negatively judge the OP. I’d be embarrassed and apologetic that I’d let her down, and would immediately take action. |
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Post by jeremysgirl on Mar 22, 2023 20:37:57 GMT
I'm going to frame this from the perspective that you, Busy, are the manager so I hope it makes sense. The conversation with you (the manager) did happen. You told Jeremysgirl it was not her responsibility to take on more work. If you (the manager) are too busy or are not keeping a watch on a problem that was brought to your attention, why does that fall on Jeremysgirl to talk to you again? Why would you think negatively about someone who brought a problem to you and you did nothing to fix the problem? That's just wrong on your part. The harsh reality is that it sounds like the co-worker is unable to perform their job since the stroke. Covering for her is just delaying the inevitable which is getting someone who can do the job. Business is business and at some point, personal feelings need to be put aside. You’re right. I was focusing on other things in the OP than the discussion with her manager and kind of missed the extent of it. It doesn’t need to be had again. I was reading that “Susie’s work here” strategy as a step one, not post-manager-discussion. If we’d had a discussion, I hadn’t done shit about the situation despite saying I would, I absolutely wouldn’t negatively judge the OP. I’d be embarrassed and apologetic that I’d let her down, and would immediately take action. This kind of makes me hesitate too. Because I honestly believe that my boss is a good guy. I believe he takes his job very seriously and doesn't take any of his employees for granted. He goes above and beyond to recognize that the work I'm doing is outstanding. I walk away from every interaction with him feeling like I am appreciated and respected. |
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Post by chaosisapony on Mar 22, 2023 20:40:56 GMT
I don't know if you actually need to talk to your boss, but you absolutely need to stop doing her work NOW! You're not doing her any favors. The organization needs to know that she's not doing her part, the more you cover for her the more higherups can ignore the issue. Just stop and let whatever happens happens - you've made it clear you're happy to help - I'm guessing your boss said no as he needs justification for what everyone knows is coming. Now this raises a very interesting POV that I hadn't considered. I am part of a union. It is not an at-will employment kind of situation. Maybe he is collecting documentation necessary to be able to let her go. I did not consider this. At all. This actually makes a lot of sense. We just went through this in my office. We are also union and had a co-worker who had a difficult year and just couldn't keep up and every accomodation given to her didn't help her performance. Basically she came to work and ate all day. There are three of us with the same duties and I would accomplish about 25 tasks a day, coworker B would accomplish a similar number, while she accomplished about 3 tasks per day. I helped and picked up the slack where I could but management basically had to tell me and the other coworker to stop because they had to be able to document her lack of work. It took almost 18 months of documentation and weekly meetings with her to get her fired. |
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peaname
Pearl Clutcher
Posts: 3,389
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Post by peaname on Mar 22, 2023 20:41:47 GMT
You are such a kind person but when you violate your boss’s orders to protect someone it’s going to end up harming your career. You can’t save everyone, you need to put yourself first and draw firm boundaries.
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I know you don't want to add to her trouble, but look at it like this - at the end of the day, the work isn't getting done and it can't get done if she's in charge of it. Let the boss decide how he wants you to handle it, not just what he doesn't want you to have to do (covering for her).
