I’m angry at my coworkers — can I refuse their apology? by Alison Green on January 8, 2025 A reader writes: I was out for a few days recently for personal reasons and came back to discover that two of my colleagues have done something incredibly thoughtless that has completely screwed up a major work product for me and then lied about it to my supervisor, saying I was involved in the decision. […] Read the full article →
I think my disastrous ex-employee is co-opting queer identity by Alison Green on January 8, 2025 A reader writes: I work in a country with strong job protection, have a boss who is reluctant to do performance improvement, and I just transitioned out of managing a team. One of my reports was a recent-ish hire I’ll call Pam, who is mid-career but entry-level. Pam volunteers for an optional LBGTQ+ employee resource […] Read the full article →
should I call out a vulture who takes way more than his share of food at meetings? by Alison Green on January 7, 2025 A reader writes: I work at a small college, and part of my job involves working with new faculty. I have one new faculty member who is well on his way to becoming known as a vulture on campus. My events for new faculty often involve food in addition to programming, and this faculty member […] Read the full article →
my vegan coworker is upset about getting non-vegan gifts three years in a row by Alison Green on January 7, 2025 A reader writes: I work in a small office of six people, and since we’ve all been here for 3+ years at least, we’re pretty close. We hold a gift exchange where basically everyone buys a gift for everyone else. I understand that’s probably a bit much, but it works for us. In 2022, my […] Read the full article →
coworkers are angry that we got rid of their smelly, fly-ridden compost bucket by Alison Green on January 6, 2025 A reader writes: We have about 25 employees, and prior to Covid, we had a somewhat-contentious compost bucket under the sink in our staff kitchen. It was always gross, full of flies and rotting food, and rarely emptied by the people who used it. Recently, a colleague decided to reinstate the compost bucket and messaged […] Read the full article →
my coworker’s constant interruptions make us all dread team calls by Alison Green on November 20, 2024 A reader writes: Our team of seven has been working from home since the beginning of Covid. To keep up-to-date on projects, we have two weekly calls with the entire team, and one mid-week call to update the rest of the company on projects. Our manager runs the two team calls each week, while I […] Read the full article →
I saw colleagues’ private messages mocking my weight by Alison Green on November 19, 2024 A reader writes: I recently hosted a Zoom call for my work team. At the end of the call, I was sent the transcript for the meeting’s group chat, as it contained important notes. I was also accidentally sent the transcript for a private chat between my coworkers “Lisa” and “Natalie.” I thought we were […] Read the full article →
I’m frustrated that my coworkers with kids work less than me, but I don’t want to cut back by Alison Green on November 19, 2024 A reader writes: I’m 25 and working in a passion career. I love it! I’m not burned out, and I don’t want to work less. My manager gives us all flexibility and grace. And yet … it still bothers me when my parenting peers work a fraction of my hours for the same (or more) […] Read the full article →
my Gen X coworker is trying to “grandma” the Zoomers and it’s getting weird by Alison Green on November 6, 2024 A reader writes: I am writing about a new coworker who has no concept of boundaries. “Hannah” is in her mid-40’s and is pretty advanced in her career (in a technical position that starts at $100K a year). She sees herself as a “grandma figure” to the Gen Z coworkers in our small office. I’ve […] Read the full article →
my drunk coworkers are gossiping about me not drinking by Alison Green on October 30, 2024 A reader writes: I find myself in a truly bizarre situation. I attended a work conference overnight this weekend with almost all of my colleagues. We’re attorneys at a pretty large “small” law firm. At the end of the conference day, we all had dinner together. My close colleague, Jenna, and I arrived to dinner […] Read the full article →