my coworker screams awful things at her kids during video calls by Alison Green on September 22, 2020 A reader writes: I have been with my organization for a few years, but I recently switched to a new department about four months ago. Every morning we have a Zoom call to discuss upcoming tasks and current status on projects and sometimes our supervisor will assign tasks. The meeting can only be 30 minutes […] Read the full article →
how to set boundaries with a very chatty coworker by Alison Green on September 16, 2020 A reader writes: I work with a dedicated and conscientious person. We have the same title and role and interact a lot for our jobs. I like her but she is extremely chatty. She is clueless as to how it impacts me and our joint workload and it’s starting to wear on me. A typical […] Read the full article →
when should I tell my friend I applied for a job she wants? by Alison Green on September 15, 2020 A reader writes: I made a very unlikely friend at work about four years ago — a coworker who got a job instead of me. She and I have similar responsibilities but in different parts of the organization. We bonded over the work we have in common and have gotten very close. Over the years, […] Read the full article →
our office nurse thinks Covid is a hoax by Alison Green on September 15, 2020 A reader writes: I work in an education-related nonprofit. There are plenty of dysfunctional things that happen at our place of business, but I cannot figure out how to approach this. We have a nurse who comes in once a week to maintain immunization records and make sure we have good processes for medication administration […] Read the full article →
my coworker keeps hijacking our meetings by Alison Green on September 9, 2020 A reader writes: I am a department head at a small financial firm. Recently I began hosting weekly meetings for our 25-person business team, which comprises other department heads and their teams. For the first couple of weeks, things were going smoothly, but recently one department head has been hijacking every meeting. He shows up […] Read the full article →
my coworker keeps pressuring me to get pregnant by Alison Green on September 8, 2020 A reader writes: I started a new job this year. Jobs in my field are notoriously difficult to come by even during non-coronavirus times, but I’ve found myself sure that I’ve made a mistake in taking this position because of two coworkers, who I’ll call Anna and Lauren. Both Anna and Lauren are pregnant and […] Read the full article →
my boss says it’s “not her place” to say anything to my smelly, messy coworker by Alison Green on September 2, 2020 A reader writes: My coworker, let’s call her Pippa, leaves a layer of dirt everywhere she goes. Her hygiene is terrible and as the person who sits closest to her, I have to bear the brunt of it. I feel it best to give a bulleted list of some of her hygiene issues: * She […] Read the full article →
my mentor gives me terrible advice and berates me when I don’t follow it by Alison Green on August 31, 2020 A reader writes: I just graduated from college and am now in a full-time position in my field. I was assigned a mentor, John, who I worked with while I interned at this same company last summer. Last summer, he frequently made me feel overwhelmed by saying that I needed to complete all the projects […] Read the full article →
should I tell my boss about my slacker coworker? by Alison Green on August 25, 2020 A reader writes: My coworker, Gary, started at my company five months ago in my same role. We sit 10 feet across from each other and can see each other’s every move without even trying, and I’m definitely not trying. Since his first week, he has had punctuality issues, and I’m not talking being five […] Read the full article →
my older male coworker is obsessed with my weight and baby plans by Alison Green on August 5, 2020 A reader writes: I am a 30something newlywed woman and have been at my current job for just over a year and a half. Prior to accepting my job, my health took a devastating blow and I learned that I had a very rare genetic disorder and had two baseball size tumors in my digestive […] Read the full article →