wedding invite from employee’s daughter, coworker is being a jerk about our new boss, and more by Alison Green on January 6, 2022 It’s five answers to five questions. Here we go… 1. Wedding invitation from my boyfriend’s employee’s daughter I just need to know if this is as weird as I think it is. Today we got a save-the-date in the mail at home for my boyfriend’s employee’s daughter. My boyfriend has met her once, I’ve never […] Read the full article →
my office says we can keep working from home if we take 5% pay cuts by Alison Green on January 5, 2022 A reader writes: My office has been mostly remote since the middle of March 2020. (Some people still had to go in on a reduced schedule since aspects of their positions can’t be done remotely). This past October, with barely 30 days warning, they told us we were coming back in under a hybrid model […] Read the full article →
I can’t get the info I need from an employee who’s on leave by Alison Green on January 5, 2022 A reader writes: I have an employee, Jane, who’s abruptly taking leave to deal with some health and personal issues. We don’t know when (or if) she’s coming back, so we’re planning on going at least several months without her, and I’m trying to implement stopgap solutions. We’re small and Jane has a lot of […] Read the full article →
my office Secret Santa gave me a gift from a pornstar by Alison Green on January 5, 2022 A reader writes: I’m a mid-level employee on a team of about 20 within a larger organization. I started in 2019, though we’ve all been remote since March 2020. We’ve had pretty little turnover since then, so apart from a few newer folks, I’ve met everyone on the team in person and have good rapport […] Read the full article →
board member shares too much on social media, was I dressed too casually for a Zoom call, and more by Alison Green on January 5, 2022 It’s five answers to five questions. Here we go… 1. Board member is an overly enthusiastic social media sharer We have a board member, Falcon, who is very invested in his Instagram presence. It’s not influencing, he’s just documenting everything that happens in his day — which inevitably means those around him are documented and […] Read the full article →
I’ve accidentally convinced my coworkers that I’m homeless – but I’m not! by Alison Green on January 4, 2022 A reader writes: I started a new job five months ago, and I love it. The only problem is that I have a secret: I can’t drive. I’ve been sitting on a learner’s permit for years because I am absolutely TERRIFIED of driving. Because of this, I ride the bus to work. Most people in […] Read the full article →
is my team too much of a clique? by Alison Green on January 4, 2022 A reader asks: I’m writing this question based on feedback received from an exit interview. A woman in her mid-30’s left my department after a little over a year. When giving her notice, she commented that she was taking a job closer to home (she had an hour commute each way some days) and had […] Read the full article →
can I send a male assistant to get me tampons? by Alison Green on January 4, 2022 A reader writes: I work as a lead “maker” in a very hands-on industry. Usually on jobs I’m hired by a client alongside an assistant of my choosing (who is also paid directly by the client). When I’m at the coalface, so to speak, the job is very engaged and my assistant’s job is to […] Read the full article →
our new strategy has a risqué name, my employees didn’t give me anything after their holiday bonuses, and more by Alison Green on January 4, 2022 With updates month behind us, now it’s back to regular programming! It’s five answers to five questions. Here we go… 1. Our new strategy name is a sex act My sister has a conundrum I would love your take on. The director of her division has recently revealed its priorities for 2022, and one is […] Read the full article →
my favorite posts of 2021 by Alison Green on January 3, 2022 Here are my favorite posts of 2021, in no particular order: 1. My employee told me “I prefer not to” when I tried to give him a new project Because Bartleby the Scrivener lives! 2. Interview with an employee at a majority-autistic company Because this was fascinating. 3. Someone keeps farting in important client meetings […] Read the full article →