open thread – June 26-27, 2020 by Alison Green on June 26, 2020 It’s the Friday open thread! The comment section on this post is open for discussion with other readers on anything work-related that you want to talk about. If you want an answer from me, emailing me is still your best bet*, but this is a chance to talk to other readers. * If you submitted […] Read the full article →
a questionable mug, unpaid volunteers at a yoga studio, and more by Alison Green on June 26, 2020 It’s five answers to five questions. Here we go… 1. Is this mug inappropriate for work? I want to bring my favorite mug into the office—it’s a silly mug with a picture of a cat with a pentagram that says, “Puuurrraise Satan,” but my mom (she works in another branch of the same company) cautioned […] Read the full article →
my well-meaning family keeps sending me terrible job leads by Alison Green on June 25, 2020 A reader writes: Because of the COVID-19 crisis, my job has temporarily furloughed me, and I’m not sure when (if?) it will ever come back to its normal capacity. So, I’ve been job hunting (actually, I was doing this even before the coronavirus crisis, but that’s another letter), and told my parents and sister that […] Read the full article →
updates: friends at work, the higher-earning male coworker, and more by Alison Green on June 25, 2020 Here are three updates from past letter-writers. 1. Am I allowed to have friends at work if I work in HR? (first update here) I’ve so been enjoying everyone’s updates and thought I’d send my own in. The last time I wrote to you, I had just started a new junior HR role at a larger […] Read the full article →
ask the readers: how to unionize your workplace by Alison Green on June 25, 2020 A lot of workplaces have a lot of reasons to unionize right now, and organizing could be your only option if your employer is behaving badly and refusing to engage in reasonable dialogue with you and your coworkers. This is not my area of expertise, so let’s hear from readers with experiencing with unionizing. What […] Read the full article →
my boss keeps pretending to punch me in the groin, my reference got a weird phone call, and more by Alison Green on June 25, 2020 It’s five answers to five questions. Here we go… 1. My boss keeps pretending to punch me in the groin My manager keeps pretending to punch me in the groin when I walk past. This happens at least once on every shift. I have asked him to stop doing it more than once, as it […] Read the full article →
employer offered me a job, then made me interview again, then made a new offer, then yanked it — what’s going on? by Alison Green on June 24, 2020 A reader writes: I’m hoping to check some professional norms, because I am a bit baffled by what went down in a recent interview process. I applied for a job, went down for an interview, it seemed like it went reasonably well, and I was asked to come back for a “working interview” on very […] Read the full article →
how to handle an employee’s complaints about a coworker by Alison Green on June 24, 2020 A reader writes: One of my employees has made many complaints against another employee. She claims that our clients have felt written off or discouraged by this person but the clients do not want to come forward. The employee who’s being accused doesn’t seem to be doing these things, but I am not fully sure […] Read the full article →
my coworker knowingly exposed me to COVID-19 by Alison Green on June 24, 2020 A reader writes: I found out yesterday that the person who shares a desk cluster with me, who works five feet from me, tested positive for COVID-19. The thing that really pisses me off about it is that “Stacy” was very clearly showing symptoms and lying to everyone about it for the past two weeks, […] Read the full article →
does working from home look less dedicated, boss wants me to offer a ridiculously low salary, and more by Alison Green on June 24, 2020 It’s five answers to five questions. Here we go… 1. My dad says continuing to work at home makes me look less dedicated My office has been working remotely since March, but a new plan was recently introduced to optionally allow people back in office on a careful schedule. I informed my manager I wasn’t […] Read the full article →