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You can find posts from 2023 below, or find earlier years here: 2022 2021 2020 20192018 2017 2016 20152014 2013 2012 20112010 2009 2008 2007 2023 January February March March 2023 coworker keeps saying I’m too muscular, boss suggested I work on a sick day, and more my intern is way too passive should I insist my employees get comfortable with public speaking? new manager keeps pushing hard for me to be his friend my coworker thinks I need to calm down when I don’t, can’t give two weeks notice, and more my company cut our pay after we met our goals and says we shouldn’t be upset when should I tell an interviewer I need disability accommodations? my mentor falsely accused someone of sexism on my behalf without my knowledge friend doesn’t believe in different dress codes for different situations, applying for a job where my landlord works, and more can I bring a blender to work? office kitchen wars are back my younger coworker keeps making ageist comments to me we’re being unknowingly videotaped at meetings, should you always be job-searching, and more weekend open thread – March 18-19, 2023 it’s your Friday good news open thread – March 17-18, 2023 how can a teenager get a job when her family travels full-time, new coworker gave herself a better title, and more how to request time off for a last-minute interview updates: asking for a raise when your company doesn’t do raises, crawling at work, and more let’s discuss egregiously clueless “celebrations” at work interviewer was bothered that I didn’t ask any questions, boss is on personal calls all day long, and more the baked cheese thief, the missing pot pie, and other stories of office kitchen drama does it look bad to send emails late at night? can an intern refuse to do menial office tasks? managers on a rampage about cell phones, new hire said I should have told him about my maternity leave earlier, and more the CEO makes us rank our personal lives at team meetings here’s a huge discount on the Ask a Manager job-searching bible is it reasonable for our office to go so fragrance-free that we have to change every product we use at home? I got drunk at a work event, can I be friends with managers who aren’t MY manager, and more update: my boss and coworkers are constantly at my house how can I hire good people to work in a dysfunctional organization? I’m a public employee and the governor pushes religion at work my company interviewed a man for International Women’s Day, interviewing when I work in an adult business, and more weekend open thread – March 11-12, 2023 it’s your Friday good news open thread – March 10-11, 2023 my company pays my rent and they keep forgetting, talking to your boss about the Adderall shortage, and more my boss expects me to respond immediately no matter what I’m doing updates: falling asleep on the job, the boss at the barbecue, and more I’m moving from retail to an office job — how can I make it go smoothly? our meetings have a “condolence corner,” my office has a portrait of a child abuser, and more should I have told my coworker his outfit made it look like he was going to a job interview? managing a seriously ill employee who’s making mistakes my dad has been applying to jobs pretending to be me coworker plagiarized my paper, should I tell my boss we can all see he’s offline, and more why are employees blindsided when I fire them after warning them that I might? how to answer “tell me about yourself” in a job interview my boss said she doesn’t think mothers can fully commit to their jobs I’m a nepotism baby, paying based on where employees live, and more sorry for the technical difficulties update: my needy boss wants me to “adopt” her should companies offer bonuses instead of raises? my company is pressuring us to donate huge amounts of money to a coworker boss wants us to “disagree” over LGBTQ inclusion, professional styles for men with long hair, and more weekend open thread – March 4-5, 2023 it’s your Friday good news open thread – March 3-4, 2023 my manager and coworker are secretly dating, boss will never give “exceeds expectations” because he has “high standards,” and more update: I supervise a manager who falsified an employee write-up … but I don’t think she should be fired stolen sandwiches, disgusting fridges, dish-washing drama: let’s talk about office kitchen mayhem interviewer scolded me for my outfit, job requires an oath of allegiance, and more update: a DNA test revealed the CEO is my half brother … and he’s freaking out my entry-level employee gave me a bunch of off-base criticism how do I get out of an active-shooter drill at my office? should I tell my coworker about our colleague’s criminal record, I deeply regret joining my company’s leadership program, and more February 2023 my company is cutting my overworked team’s pay as punishment for mistakes update: is my future manager a bigoted jerk? I resent our new hires for setting better work-life boundaries than our company normally has hairy legs at work, my office sent me a random TV, and more here’s an example of a great cover letter … with before and after versions my employee can’t handle even mildly negative feedback my new coworker is putting fake mistakes in my work so she can tell our boss I’m bad at my job insensitive “Diversity Day,” how to fire someone who refuses to talk to us, and more weekend open thread – February 25-26, 2023 it’s your Friday good news open thread – February 24-25, 2023 assistant became abusive when she wasn’t invited to a meeting, my coworkers don’t check on people who are out sick, and more my former boss won’t leave me alone update: how can I turn down training requests from my clients? how do you handle being pregnant at work? assigning women extra work to “help” them, calling out when you’re in the ER, and more as a manager, should I not wear a “childless” shirt in my off-hours? should I be so emotionally drained by managing? I supervise a manager who falsified an employee write-up … but I don’t think she should be fired getting out of shared intern housing, why are so many executives condescending, and more interviewer fake-rejected me to see if I would “fight for the job” should I tell the truth in my exit interview? my boyfriend’s manager told me I could date someone better new CEO keeps talking about diet and exercise, coworker asks me to cover for him when he’s not really off, and more can I compare attending college to working a full-time job in my cover letter? the people who are secretly working multiple full-time jobs from home my needy boss wants me to “adopt” her future manager is a bigoted jerk, boss hasn’t paid me back, and more weekend open thread – February 18-19, 2023 it’s your Friday good news open thread – February 17-18, 2023 how do I quit my volunteer job, explaining a wardrobe emergency, and more how do I tell interviewers why I’m leaving my job without badmouthing my employer? updates: the “low ego” job posting, getting reimbursed for parking, and more is your field accurately portrayed in movies and on TV? micromanaging goodbye emails, overhead lighting wars, and more this is about my mom my employees tell me what they’re doing, rather than asking permission I was told to stop knitting in a training class … but I knit so I can focus should I tell my employees I might get fired, coworker is a kiss-ass, and more the $15,000 coffee fund, the cheapskate executives, and other stories of office coffee wars when I offered someone a job, her dad got on the phone with questions I had to stay in a horrible hotel on a team-building trip I got yelled at after texting a hiring manager’s personal cell, interviewer asked me for something positive about Covid, and more update: I got in trouble for using a mouse jiggler … despite my excellent work my team doesn’t want managers to hang out with them if you work for a church, can they require you to give 10% of your salary back to them? people are stealing the bathroom items I bought for shared use, how much mental health support should managers provide, and more weekend open thread – February 11-12, 2023 it’s your Friday good news open thread – February 10-11, 2023 my employees don’t want to talk in meetings, old boss is using me as a business lead, and more what’s up with this rude and entitled networker? my employee missed work after a night of drinking office coffee wars: share your stories coworker misinterprets all my facial expressions, team is complaining about a coworker’s award, and more I gave two weeks notice but got told to leave immediately my employee has absolutely no attention to detail HR won’t do anything about a coworker who’s angry about my weight loss interviewer asked how I prepared for the interview, boss wants me to be “emotional and raw,” and more why does my coworker hate me? how to answer “why are you interested in this position?” how should I respond when employees complain about financial stress? how do I reply to my coworker’s apology without saying her constant mistakes are OK, coworker calls me “mama,” and more a behind-the-scenes look at how Ask a Manager runs a very good update: how to tell a former employee he can’t visit us weekly my boss’s horrible kids are trying to destroy us because he disinherited them I can’t afford to buy breakfast for my team, should you always ask about a gap on someone’s resume, and more weekend open thread – February 4-5, 2023 it’s your Friday good news open thread – February 3-4, 2023 I don’t want to eat lunch with my boss, can I file a complaint about my spouse’s manager, and more why do hiring managers ghost me after promising they won’t? Ask a Manager in the media I’m unprofessional and not detail-oriented — but I still need to earn a living I feel stuck working for my father, boss disclosed my pregnancy, and more a higher-up is pushing an unwanted volunteer on us how can I get my employees to be more comfortable figuring things out on their own? my company won’t promote people who work from home my mentor has a shady side business, drinks that look like beer but aren’t, and more January 2023 should I stop using my office’s flex hours since my coworkers have earlier schedules? ask your behind-the-scenes questions about Ask a Manager our boss tells lies to make us feel bad for taking time off coworker with severe dandruff, colleague is borrowing my email voice, and more my coworker has a crush on our boss and is mad that I asked her to stop talking about him job applicant keeps asking for another chance a DNA test revealed the CEO is my half brother … and he’s freaking out boss said Pride shirts violate the dress code, how much notice should I get for work travel, and more weekend open thread – Jan. 28-29, 2023 it’s your Friday good news open thread – January 27-28, 2023 I’m fully remote but my boss wants me to come in once a week, how much personal printing is OK at work, and more how do I give notice to my boss if they’re on vacation? updates: the lying director, the apology muffins, and more what workplace norms surprised you when you were starting out? sharing a hotel room with a coworker when I snore, should I lie about how many cats I have, and more my last company was horrible — how do I save other people from it? do managers really want honest feedback? my boss collected money for flowers for me … and then kept it for herself VP says people working from home haven’t developed as much, is “it’s so good to see you” suggestive, and more how honest can I be with recruiters that money is the only reason I want to leave my current job? I’m sick of having to do my incompetent colleague’s work I resent my employee for being richer and more qualified than me trainer wants us to “get emotional” with each other, tamale theft, and more my boss thinks I need a better reason to take vacation days why are there so many abusive bosses? interview with a veterinary social worker my ex-boss threatened to contact my husband, his coworkers, and my father-in-law if I don’t return $48 of office supplies how to answer when a job candidate asks, “how did I do?” getting people to use the right pronouns, finding trans-friendly workplaces, and trans-inclusive hiring I’m being used as free doggy daycare, interviewer refused to give me his last name, and more the poodle in a stroller, the music file, and other email signatures gone wild advice for new managers I dated someone who was using me to get back at his ex-wife … who turned out to be my boss my employee asked a colleague to help her fake a deal, I’m constantly interrupted when I need to focus, and more can bad employees and bad managers change? our employee is taking nude photos in our office and posting them to Facebook company says only moms can work at home, was I rude for turning down a carpool, and more weekend open thread – Jan. 14-15, 2023 it’s your Friday good news open thread – January 13-14, 2023 overreaching wellness meetings, rambling coworker monopolizing trainings, and more do I really need to send a thank-you note after being rejected for a job? how much social media use at work is too much? what’s the weirdest/most inappropriate email signature you’ve seen? is it rude to leave a coworker waiting for the elevator, I recommended a friend and it went terribly, and more should we give extra sick days to employees who can’t work from home? my toxic former employee is poisoning my staff my employee blows up my phone with memes and videos — even in the middle of the night — and refuses to stop VP is pressuring everyone into choreographed dances, boss eats while on the phone, and more I got in trouble for using a mouse jiggler … despite my excellent work 10 impressive questions to ask in a job interview my employee doesn’t think we’re doing enough about bears at work I caught my employee in a compromising position in the parking lot, employer only gives raises for promotions months later, and more do I still need to wear a suit to a job interview? here’s some free help preparing for job interviews was I wrong to be put off by interviewing on Bring Your Kids to Work Day? my team planned a wine-tasting while I’m pregnant, no one is paying attention to my training, and more weekend open thread – Jan. 6-8, 2023 it’s your Friday good news open thread – January 6-7, 2023 coworker sent me his racy photography page, do I need to give my coworkers gifts, and more can I get my coworker to stop using awful corporate jargon? my employee doesn’t want to come to work when it snows are more companies bringing people back to the office? my boss hates my “question authority” sticker, my temp’s eyes glaze over whenever I talk, and more my boss said my posture is too casual for the office I don’t have enough work for my employees can I hold a job applicant’s proselytizing email signature against them? I caught my boss listening at my door, using a fake name for job hunting, and more my coworker and I attend the same sex club this is incredible my boss and coworkers are constantly at my house denying a new mom’s request for remote work, punny edits to work docs, and more updates: coworker signed me up for a racist organization as a joke, and more updates: the privacy-violating team lead, the intern annoying his coworkers, and more update: should I tell a recruiter about the unprofessional CEO I interviewed with? should I organize an all-men beach weekend for my coworkers, asking for time to process things before responding, and more