October 2023

my boss says I should always be available on my days off

A reader writes: I’m a managing attorney working in-house in a large corporation. I manage an attorney and two paralegals currently, and expect my team to grow in the next two years. We have a policy that there always needs to be coverage when someone is on PTO. Generally, that’s not a problem. Recently though, […]

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my employer says we can’t stop patrons from filming us

A reader writes: I work at a library in a two-party consent state for recording people. Recently people have been coming in and harassing the staff and filming their reactions. Some of these videos have ended up on social media websites, giving our library a minor amount of fame (much to the staff’s dismay). In […]

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company says they’ll sue if you lie on your resume, boss doesn’t care about liquor laws, and more

It’s five answers to five questions. Here we go… 1. Company says they’ll sue if you lie on your resume Here’s an unusual line that I found in a job description: “Any candidate who misrepresents their identity and/or skills may be subject to civil damages, penalties, and criminal prosecution.” Have you ever heard of a […]

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update: can I ask my employee not to put papers on my desk?

Remember the letter-writer whose employee kept putting papers on her desk, even after she had asked them to stop? Here’s the update. Your response was validating and helpful! The very next day after my question went live, I was returning from getting coffee when I saw my direct report, Lauren, leaving my office after placing […]

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I manage a horrible micromanager

A reader writes: I am having great difficulty with one of the managers who I manage, “Fern.” Fern leads a team of 16 people. Her tactics have led to poor morale and wasting time. Nearly every time a team member makes a mistake, she assumes it’s indicative of a larger problem and re-training/new processes ensue. […]

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