my manager is a hoarder — how do I nope out of our office?

by Alison Green on July 15, 2024

A reader writes:

My manager is a hoarder, and our office space is odious. There is no trash can, because my manager treats the office as one giant trash can. She leaves leftover lunch and discarded wrappers all over, sometimes even on my desk. She uses the office as an extension of her own home: old furniture, broken devices, and moving boxes full of her belongings clutter the space. Important files are constantly mislaid, and valuables such as her driver’s license will suddenly show up while sorting through a pile of junk. When I clean my workspace, she chastises me for potentially getting rid of valuable things amidst the junk, but she won’t give me permission to remove anything if I ask.

We are a small company with no HR. There’s no going over her head, because she owns the company.

While she is a seemingly kind person who always apologizes profusely for the unhygienic and chaotic state of the office, she does nothing to actually change it. How my colleagues who have to work daily in that office manage to navigate that hellscape, I will never know. When I first started, I got us to push back as a group, but all she did was arrange a group mediation session with a “corporate therapist” that led nowhere.

After that, I avoided the issue altogether by coming up with ways to save the company money by working remotely, mainly by digitizing and automating processes that had previously taken place via paperwork and face-to-face meetings. Since then, I’ve rarely ever come into the office, and my manager has been very pleased with my cost-effective “innovations.” Win-win.

However, now that there are only three months left on my contract, my manager doesn’t want me to start a new project (since a project takes at least six months, it would be very impractical if I left halfway in). So she is taking me off of the digital tasks I was doing up to this point and has assigned me to administrative duties … in the office. For various reasons, such as our office receiving lots of mail daily, these tasks cannot be done remotely. So two weeks ago, she announced that I will have to come into the office almost every day for the remainder of my contract. Men plan, God laughs.

If I quit my job early or get fired, I wouldn’t be eligible for unemployment in the country I live in (not the U.S.), and I have dependents to support. Also, my manager currently loves me, and since this is my first job in this field, it would be really important to get a strong recommendation from her, which she has promised me. Her husband is in local politics, and she has friends in high places, so she could get me blackballed. I talked to a lawyer, and theoretically I have various legal rights (hygienic workspace, wrongful termination etc.), but in reality, suing the company to enforce them would cost A LOT more than three months’ wages.

Can you please recommend a script to tell my boss that I refuse to work at the office under these conditions … without getting fired and, ideally, without burning that bridge? Because something tells me my initial impulse of shouting “Not today, Satan!” at the top of my lungs would backfire. Since she reacts with so much shame, it’s hard to even broach the subject. Clearly, she needs professional help, and I empathize with her condition, but I refuse to sacrifice my own well-being to accommodate it.

Oh my goodness.

You’ve got a couple of options.

First, could you just tell her straightforwardly, “I’ve stayed as long as I have because I was allowed to work remotely. That’s really important to me. Since it’s been a driving factor in me staying, could we look at other ways for me to use the remaining time productively while staying remote? For example, I could do X and Y.”

She may be assuming it’s no big deal for you to return to the office, and if you push back — and especially frame it as “this is a near-requirement for me” — she might be more flexible, particularly for an employee she loves.

Or you could try telling her that since you’d understood she was happy with your remote work arrangement, you’ve planned around that and can’t work in the office at this point for logistical reasons — or at least not without more notice. There’s a whole range of reasons why this could be the case for someone — from needing to be present for a dependent (i.e., a school-age child or older adult who doesn’t require constant supervision but does require someone’s general presence), to a health issue that means they can’t compromise on remote work, to all sorts of other things that you might come up with if you think on it. I’m not advising you to lie … but think about what you could plausibly cite.

There’s also the option of total honesty: “I found it really hard to work in the office previously because of  the chaos of the physical space. I know it works fine for some people, but it was really rough on me. Can we talk about other options?”

Since she loves you, it’s very unlikely that she’s going to fire you on the spot or blackball you in your field simply for raising this. Worse case scenario, she’ll tell you there’s no flexibility. But it’s reasonable to try.

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{ 142 comments }

{ 142 comments… read them below }

  1. ChurchOfDietCoke*

    I have a really high tolerance for clutter and smells, but I would be keeping the hell away from an office that has no waste disposal. The potential for vermin is just… wow.

    For the sake of getting through the last three months of this I think I would be ‘inventing’ an older relative who is independent but Just Cannot Be Left Alone, or a broken leg / some other pain or mobility thing that means I can’t possibly travel…

    1. Artemesia*

      yeah lying is not off the table. I think you need to do what you can possibly do to continue the remote work — but if it doesn’t work then hold your nose and get through 3 months in misery to preserve your benefits/resources.

    2. Laser99*

      I concur. This person clearly has no intention of changing her behavior. I have had to lie to every boss I have ever had. No regrets.

    4. Ann Nonymous*

      I think some fake mouse poop scattered on the boss’ desk and around the office might be helpful.

      1. Princess Sparklepony*

        She probably won’t notice it. Or think it’s chocolate chip crumbs… (I just felt bile rise up in my throat.)

  2. CowWhisperer*

    That sounds horrible.

    Could you carve out a workspace without throwing anything out? Like use the old furniture to hold piles of paperwork and create a separate wrapper pile in a corner (or place you can’t see)?

    My ideas are kinda awful – but three months won’t be enough time to change her habits.

    1. Jules the 3rd*

      The clear workspace is what has to be in a low-visibility spot, hidden from the manager.

      If OP tries to clear something, it will make the mgr more anxious, and she will bring in more stuff to fill the open space. OP will have a better chance of a clean space if she can ask for a small office and clean it out, then never let the manager in.

      The food / food containers tho: that has to go. Trash cans for food and containers, maybe even pay someone to walk through and pick them up if needed.

      Shouldn’t have to clean up after an adult, but hoarding / anxiety is very hard to work with.

      1. ferrina*

        I wonder if OP can create a decoy folder to cover up the clear space so it doesn’t look clear, but OP can easily move the folder when OP is around (and can guard their clear space).

        Also- yes, feel free to subtly throw out old food/food containers and never tell your manager.

        1. ecnaseener*

          I’m now picturing a whole decoy trash pile, glued together so you can just whip it out of its hiding spot and plop it on the desk when you hear footsteps.

          2. Princess Sparklepony*

            I’m thinking of a board game fold up board. But a little bigger. With stuff stuck to it. Post it note, papers with coffee rings, a file folder or two with papers almost coming out. But it’s all fake and attached to the board and you can fold it up to put it away to get to your work space.

            Good chance to work on your artistic/scene building skills.

          3. NothingIsLittle*

            This sounds ridiculous, but 100% would have worked when I was hoarding. (until I tried to pile something on top)

      2. Spero*

        I agree it has to be low visibility, but maybe even if there isn’t an empty small office she could clear out an area and block it from view with the furniture? Also keep cleaning supplies accessible – if there are potential vermin in the office, she’s going to want to spray off and wipe down everything every morning in case there was traffic on her chair etc overnight

    2. Grumpy Elder Millennial*

      Was wondering something similar. Can you find boxes and just dump anything on your workspace into boxes? And just move anything gross back onto your boss’ desk?

      This all super sucks, though.

  3. Velawciraptor*

    Is there any sort of health and safety board you could anonymously tip off as to the state of the office? Getting a health inspector in to force some of the cleaning that is needed might also be a secondary option.

    1. 2cents*

      I second this. Also if this is an office in a rented building can you reach out to the property manager (anonymously) and clue them in to the state of things. They may at least be able to insist on trash cans and facilitate trash collection on a regular basis.

      2. Banana Pyjamas*

        I’ve never had a commercial lease, but my residential lease has a clause that requires the space to be kept “clean and safe” and “free and clear of debris, garbage, and rubbish.” LW could almost certainly make headway with the landlord or property manager.

        1. Dawn*

          If LW is where I think she is, the commercial landlord basically has no right to require this. It’s even iffy here with residential leases; broadly speaking, the law says that as long as the lessee is responsible for any damages and does not otherwise violate the law, they get to do what they like with a space that they are renting.

          If you were to have any luck with any sort of outside relief, it would be either with a health and safety inspector, or, and this is the big one for commercial leases and this particular situation, the fire marshal.

          I’m willing to bet that her boss is violating all sorts of laws about both not creating a fire hazard and not creating a situation that prevents egress in the event of a fire, and fire marshals (here) frequently take their jobs a lot more seriously than health and safety inspectors.

            1. 1LFTW*

              Yeah, that was my first thought. Fire marshals tend to care quite a lot about things like this.

            2. JSPA*

              Yeah, plenty of countries allow fire marshalls / fire inspectors to do same-day shutdowns for egregious violations, like locked fire doors, blocked egress or blocking of required sprinklers. Same way they can order a venue cleared if it’s over capacity. Your country may differ, ditto their rules on anonymous reporting. But it’s worth looking into.

    2. I'm A Little Teapot*

      Fire inspector might be able to to help as well. And since the office gets mail, presumably the mail carrier is in the office? That’s your plausible deniability.

    3. Alton Brown's Evil Twin*

      Or your insurance company, or the landlord’s insurance company, or the fire department.

    4. A Simple Narwhal*

      Yes who owns the office/building, I’m sure they’d want to know about the horrible state of their property.

      And if the boss owns the place themselves, maybe the fire department/inspector could help? From what I hear they’re pretty no-nonsense, and the potential fire hazard that office must be should pique their interest.

      1. Just checking in*

        Agreed. If they come by and see this, your office would be in serious trouble.

    5. Just checking in*

      Yes, my office had a serious mold issue where management did the minimal work to solve it (putting things in bags and spraying cleaners). A colleague got sick and someone called OSHA. It took a year and a temporary move but it was the only way to get this problem fully solved.

      1. Guacamole Bob*

        I mentioned this downthread, but I have my doubts about whether calling this in to various agencies is going to be able to turn things around quickly enough to really matter in OP’s situation. I’m glad that your office situation got resolved! But I’d guess that the year-long timeline you experienced is not terribly unusual.

        Her colleagues might thank her for kicking off the process on her way out, but in her shoes I wouldn’t pin my hopes on inspections leading to meaningful change in under 90 days.

      2. RedinSC*

        Since LW isn’t in the US, it would have to be that country’s version of OSHA, if they have it, but that can take months/years to resolve, which would be good for the other employees, but sadly wouldn’t help the LW.

    6. MCMonkeyBean*

      In theory I think this seems like a good case for an anonymous tip to some kind of regulating body–but I think the timing might make it kind of obvious that it was OP.

  4. Falling Diphthong*

    I want to underscore that even the total honesty script doesn’t say “You’re a hoarder” or “The decaying food in the office is gross” or anything stronger than acknowledging different styles for organizing the shared space.

    OP, your reasons to finish out the three months and leave with a strong reference are very good reasons to focus hard on the options “Face saving (for her) reason I prefer to remain remote” and “Just try your best, you can get through almost anything for three months.”

    1. Eldritch Office Worker*

      Yes this is key. Make it about a difference of preference, not an accusation, or even frame it slightly self deprecating as “a quirk of mine” or something that doesn’t put her on the defensive. For something you just need to survive a few months, this is the easiest route.

    2. Caramel & Cheddar*

      Yeah, I’m leaning hard on “You can do anything for three months.” Maybe she’ll come around on the remote part, but three months will absolutely fly by in either scenario and it doesn’t seem to be worth jeopardizing the good reference from someone you think has a lot of power in your sector. Do what you can to make your own workspace less of a pig sty / dumping ground (those spikes people put up to prevent nesting birds?) and hope for the best otherwise.

      1. ferrina*

        Yes, unfortunately this was my main thought too. OP might be able to convince their manager to let them work remote (hopefully!). But if manager doubles down, OP might need to decide if that good reference is worth returning to the office for 3 months. In my case, I would trade 3 months for a good reference- knowing there is a set end date can really help.

      2. Smithy*

        This is truly my thought. That it’s unlikely to find an amazing way to raise this issue to lead to either full time remote work or significant changes.

        For three months, if the OP can find a way to only work mornings in the office, or have one or two remote days – it could make the role that 25% easier and make those three months manageable.

  5. Jules the 3rd*

    Can you at least get a couple of large trash cans installed?

    While you should *not* have to clean up after her, getting rid of old food and food containers is a minimum requirement and she should accommodate that.

    The rest…. any chance of being able to designate a space as yours and keep it clear? Ask her for an office, with a door? Because you’ll need privacy to sort sensitive mail, or to focus?

    Hoarders do feel shame about it, but they also need to see their stuff to feel not-anxious about it. A stack in her office, a few bits scattered on the edge of desks, maybe that will soothe her enough that you can function in a corner that she doesn’t think about.

    Good luck, this is not easy.

    1. RVA Cat*

      Could it help to get clear storage totes so she can see the contents but they’re in air-tight containers?

        1. Jules the 3rd*

          LOLOLOLOL

          But as to the original question: probably not. The clear storage boxes just become another surface to cover. At least with loose piles, there’s a limit on how high they can get before they fall over. (Though the achievable height is surprising to me – a friend stored loose music sheets in stacks over 4′ tall, with a single walking trail from the front door to the bedroom. I have no idea how he ever found any music in there, but he’s surviving as a choral musician in NYC, so something’s working…)

  6. Smithy*

    Being mindful that there’s a desire to remain through the contract and also get a positive reference – just to ask the OP if this is a situation where coming into that office one or two fewer days a week would make this easier vs pushing through?

    I know that personally when I’m in a situation where everything seems overwhelming and bad, sometimes just removing one thing from the bad pile can help me a lot with the other issues. So with these new tasks, could a case be made for only doing half days in the office? Or coming in some days a week and being remote other days?

    Obviously this isn’t a perfect fix, but just to flag that maybe alleviating it a little will make it that bit more bearable to make it through the end.

    1. Admin Lackey*

      +1 this seems like a really good suggestion if the OP can’t avoid the office! Especially with mail, there may be a strong case to make that it doesn’t need to be done absolutely every day and every little thing that makes the situation more bearable will help you get through those three months.

      1. Guacamole Bob*

        I was thinking this. Three months is 60ish working days, depending on holidays and such. That’s both a long time to be in conditions that are bad for your mental (and maybe physical) health, and at the same time not really very long. Are there ways to find reasons to work from home to whittle that down to 40ish days in office? Take some vacation time? Schedule doctor’s appointments and need to take a handful of mornings or afternoons off?

        There’s a construction project near me that’s adding 30+ minutes to each direction of my commute for about 3 months this summer (at the same time that my kids are in camp with terrible hours). It totally sucks… but also, I’m using some political capital to take an extra work from home day here and there, working from a different office occasionally, etc. It both feels like it’s dragging on forever, and at the same time the days are ticking by and I’m getting through it.

      2. Rebecca*

        Or even if she can just stop by and pick up the mail? I do this with my job sometimes; if I want to work from home but need something coming via FedEx (I work in a field that still has a lot of wet signatures and paper documents). I just pick it up and come back home. Assuming the office isn’t an hour away, this is probably the easiest option.

  7. Michelle Smith*

    There is just no plausible reason that disposing of actual, literal trash (food wrappers, etc.) should be against office policy. Is it possible for her to supervise someone while they clean up the actual trash so she feels comfortable that no paperwork is being thrown away, but the things that attract roaches and mice are?

    1. Artemesia*

      Mental illness does not require plausible reasons to do things that make no sense like hoarding old food wrappers.

    2. I'm A Little Teapot*

      Hoarding is a mental illness. Logic and rational thought are not applicable. Thus, it’s really, really hard for people who don’t have mental problems to understand.

      1. Aggretsuko*

        I come from hoarders and nothing works, in my experience. It’s some weird mental block where the hoarder hates it but also cannot for the life of them give up a thing. Logic doesnt seem to apply.

    3. Hosta*

      If she’s truly a hoarder those wrappers have value to her, potentially as much as important documents, etc. The phrase I heard from the hoarder who lived in my building ages ago was “I might need them.” He literally pulled my torn sports bra out of my trash that was in the dumpster because it might be useful.

      Imagine someone having an attachment to every single object they’ve ever owned (including receipts, food wrappers, expired food, etc) similar to the attachment a small child has to their favorite stuffed animal and you can start to understand why people do this. Some hoarders only get attached to specific types of items. But some get attached to everything.

    4. Liz the Snackbrarian*

      I wonder if OP could frame cleaning up the office with supervision as a project since thier manager doesn’t want to give them new projects. Hardly ideal but

      1. Mad Harry Crewe*

        No, that’s really not how hoarding works. To this manager, nothing that’s in the office is trash.

      2. JSPA*

        Someone who refuses to have trash cans is more likely apologizing for the disorder involving (similarly) valued items; not processing the problem as one of trash vs useful items.

        It can also be a problem with using detreitus as a real-world memory-palace. Move the three quarters eaten ham sandwich, and boss no longer remember where she had the idea about the widget campaign (that sent her scrabbling for the widget folder) and therefore no longer remembers where she left her reading glasses and data stick. This is obviously a problem that builds on itself. But if you’re used to a dense landscape of signifiers, as rich as the clues in a good novel, cutting through that landscape is like going to a beloved field and forest path, where you knew every tree and rock, and finding a parking lot.

        I have helped house hoarders. There are ways to set up for (partial) success ahead of time. But when it’s a mental map issue, not (say) a side effect of depression and incapacity that outwardly looks like hoarding, there’s essentially no way to fully undo an existing hoard in a way that’s not mentally violent to the hoarder, and in any way that will “stick.” Moving the physical mass creates horrible warpage in the mental maps.

  8. AnonInCanada*

    I sympathize, OP. My parents had close friends who were this way. You couldn’t step foot in their place without walking over piles upon piles of junk or being overwhelmed by the stench of rotting food/dead vermin.

    I think your only way out of this is to either put up with this, potentially fib to your manager about a health condition/live-in dependent who requires they not be left alone and you stay remote, or sick the local health department on the facility. Then again, your quip about her being someone of high status + her husband being a local politician may not yield the desired results if option 3 were executed. In any and all cases, start dusting off that résumé and find your way out of there as soon as your contract is up. Maybe you may not need her reference. Good luck!

    1. LaurCha*

      I feel like a health condition such as “allergic to dust and mold” would be a good way to stay out of the office.

  9. Olive*

    “Since she loves you, it’s very unlikely that she’s going to fire you on the spot or blackball you in your field simply for raising this.”

    I really want to believe this is true, but I wouldn’t count on it. The LW said she has a lot of shame around this, and I wouldn’t bet my benefits that she has a stronger impulse than covering up her shame.

    1. Sloanicota*

      Well, that is why the advice is not “I can’t work in this pig sty, you’re disgusting” which probably would get the OP booted. I don’t know if this will help OP, but I was better able to deal with a relative’s hoarding when I learned it can be associated with OCD; it helped me to truly accept that they’re not doing this on purpose and truly do feel ashamed, but they have an irresistible compulsion to hoard (note – I’m not a medical professional).

    2. Baela Targaryen*

      Yup — people who are feeling extreme shame can do awful things to other people in order to protect their own ego.

    3. Ask a Manager* Post author

      There’s really no cause to think that. This is an employee the owner loves, and the LW and a group of her coworkers already raised this a while back and “all she did was arrange a group mediation session with a ‘corporate therapist’ that led nowhere.”

      1. Baela Targaryen*

        I don’t agree with this at all — when shame comes into the picture people can do really horrible things to others, and I don’t think it’s wise to downplay that possibility to OP. This is a documented, common phenomenon amongst hoarders (and addicts/spouses of addicts, another group that has a lot of experience with shame).

        1. nnn*

          This feels alarmist to me. The L.W. isn’t going to tell the boss they’re grossed out by the hoarding, they’re going to say “it’s hard for me to work in the space.” To someone who already reacted without punishing people who took a much more direct approach.

        2. Brain the Brian*

          I have to agree. I had a friend in college whose mother (a hoarder) refused to let her come home for Christmas one year after she asked about keeping her own room free of the clutter. Hoarding is a mental illness that causes a lot of unreasonable behavior in otherwise kind, reasonable people.

      2. ThatOtherClare*

        Unfortunately, the opposite of love is not hate, it’s indifference. It sounds cliché, but the ones we love are genuinely are the ones who can wound us most deeply. Love and hate can coexist, sadly.

        I think you may be looking at this from too logical and rational a standpoint. In a person who clearly is already thinking along non-standard pathways, there is a higher-than-average risk that love could flip to hate when hurt feelings get involved. I understand how the letter writer’s personal risk assessment may have fallen on the side of ‘not worth risking it’.

  10. Sloanicota*

    If I understand correctly, you’ve got three months left before you’re out of a job one way or another anyway. I assume you’re already job-searching and could find something, and give notice, any day? (I don’t quite understand how employment contracts work in other countries). If that’s the case, do you have any PTO of any kind left? I would probably use some of it now while you job search as hard as you can, and then perhaps spread it out as much as possible to get you through the remaining 2.5 months – perhaps you can avoid working a full week during that time. Is there any equivalent of paid FMLA that you could reasonably be eligible for?

    1. BellaStella*

      I was coming to ask this. Job search and use your PTO or sick leave. 12 weeks is short if you have a couple of weeks off. Good luck OP I am so so sorry.

    2. bamcheeks*

      Yes, LW, I’m on a fixed-term contract in the UK, and here it’s very rare that there is an obligation OR an expectation that you’ll stay to the very end of the contract if that means risking being out of work. Three months before the end of a contract is a very normal time to start job-searching, and leaving in the last 2-3 months is extremely common, especially if you’ve completed all the substantive project work you were originally engaged for.

      I wasn’t quite clear on why that wasn’t part of your letter anyway, LW, but if you are feeling like you’ve “got” to see it out, I would like to gently encourage you to let go of that assumption!

      1. Orv*

        Without knowing where LW is, it’s hard to say if this is practical. There are some countries where you can’t be hired to a new position until your old job formally releases you.

    3. Brain the Brian*

      And any way you slice it, you’ll only have a few months in the office anyway. It won’t be pleasant, but you may just have to deal with it for a bit, LW. Your contract is ending soon regardless

  11. Jam on Toast*

    Three options, depending on your resources and how your manager responds/doesn’t respond to softer requests. Public health, Fire Marshall and/or Health and Safety agencies are external options that could force action. If the office is indeed a dumpster, and there is proof of vermin or exits and paths of travel are impeded, then I would look at calling in whichever city/ state/provincial agency has the most relevant power and forcing your manager to address the issue. Most allow for anonymous complaints, and while they’re usually focused on restaurants, or in the case of Health and Safety, construction sites, they also handle more general workplace safety, as well.

    The other option is insurance. It sounds like the waste in the office presents both a fire hazard and a workplace danger. Insurance companies don’t want these risks because that increases the likelihood of a payout. When I’ve had business insurance in the past, the insurance companies regularly conducted inspections to insure general safety measures were in place. Getting the insurance company involved is a more nuclear option, since it would be clear it was done by an employee, but your health and safety matter.

    1. Artemesia*

      If this happens, the boss will know it was her and it will burn through that good reference. This is a find a plausible excuse to continue remote work or suck it up and deal for 3 mos situation.

    2. pally*

      These were things I wondered about myself.

      Another avenue is the owner of the building. If this hoarding harms the building in some way, like attracting vermin, they might want to put a stop to this.

    3. Not on board*

      Presumably there are other employees who also hate the clutter/trash/health hazards. Is it possible to do an anonymous complaint to the relevant authorities in your country that could have come from anyone? Also, I think this situation does warrant lying about why you can’t come in to the office. Time to start job hunting as well.

    4. Guacamole Bob*

      I may be overly cynical, but the chances that you could get someone to show up an inspect an office and get meaningful change in a short enough time period to matter on a 3-month contract period strike me as low. Sure, you could set some things in motion, but especially if OP’s boss is a true hoarder it will take quite a while to get anything actually resolved.

      1. Guacamole Bob*

        Like, maybe you call on day 1, someone comes out the following week, a citation gets issued, re-inspection is scheduled for 30 days out, boss goes into a shame tailspin of knowing she needs to get rid of stuff but the mental illness is strong and she manages to toss a few old food containers but not really make a dent in the mess… now you’re halfway through that remaining contract period and there’s no meaningful change except the boss is under a ton of strain from knowing she needs to fix it but being unable to.

        I don’t have any knowledge of how these inspection processes work, but unless it’s so bad that the response is “this building is condemned as uninhabitable and the business must cease operations immediately” it’s hard to see a real positive shift within a couple of months.

        1. Abogado Avocado*

          It really depends.

          I worked for an organization located in a historic building and the fire marshal regularly came by to inspect, which helped us deal with our hoarder office manager (apparently, they’re more common than I thought). Thanks to the fire marshal, whenever the office manager’s hoarding spiraled out of control, he’d issue a directive that we had to clean it up or pay large fines (which our small org could not afford).

          We ended up giving the office manager an office with a door. (Before that, she was sitting in open space, which I think probably gave her the sense that she “owned”, and could fill, all that space.) Having her own office confined her hoarding and it allowed us to close the door to her office while the rest of the office stayed organized. The fire marshal also seemed happier with that solution, too.

          In the end, however, I agree with others that this is behavior rooted in a disorder that carries a lot of undeserved shame for the sufferers, and it’s probably well beyond the LW’s ability to get her boss treated. I wish both well.

          1. sparkle emoji*

            I think this could be helpful to LW but I’d also guess the office manager vs owner distinction is relevant. Say an equivalent authority comes and places a similar fine on LW’s. The owner is in control of the business and could decide paying the fine is worth it to protect the hoard and themself from shame. Governmental involvement may help but I don’t think it can be LW’s only tool. The suggestions up thread about finding ways to work hybrid will help in the short term if boss agrees.

      2. Global Cat Herder*

        In the US, the fire marshal generally shows up within 48 hours, because FIRES KILL PEOPLE. We had an office hoarder, who the company gave “accommodations” to because it’s a mental illness – they gave her MORE CUBES to fill up with stuff since she literally couldn’t climb over the stuff in her cubicle to get to her desk any more. Fire marshal cited them for EACH pile of papers touching the florescent light bulbs, things with frayed electrical cords, broken light bulbs, cord strung across the aisle, ripped carpet tripping hazard, etc.

        The company had less than a week to get rid of everything, and the fire marshal came back every week for a few months to make sure they stayed compliant. (They apparently deal with a lot of hoarders, they know it’s a mental illness and people backslide.)

    5. Petty Betty*

      Working in local gov’t, I can say this:

      If this woman’s name is recognizable as being “recognizable local public figure’s relative/spouse”, it may be harder to get a gov’t agency to come out and do an inspection because they might assume (wrongly) that an anonymous call is a prank call meant to harass her husband (perhaps the caller is a supporter of a political opponent, or just doesn’t like one of his decisions). For all we know, other employees have tried this already and this very scenario has played out before, which is why nothing has happened.

      In order to make a complaint that an agency will investigate, LW will need to take pictures (maybe even videos) and fully document as many of the issues as possible, which does mean going into the office for an updated view of the situation.

      I don’t think any amount of complaining is going to change the boss. However, it’s possible that her “mess” can be contained to DOOM boxes and stored in a room, and some kind of organization can be brought back to the office, if office staff are allowed to do it.

  12. CityMouse*

    Any way to find a new contract early? Given her role I’m not terribly optimistic about addressing it directly. Finding a pretense to keep teleworking is a good idea too.

  13. Pay no attention to the man behind the curtain*

    “However, now that there are only three months left on my contract, my manager doesn’t want me to start a new project (since a project takes at least six months, it would be very impractical if I left halfway in). So she is taking me off of the digital tasks I was doing up to this point and has assigned me to administrative duties … in the office.”

    Is there ANY chance in your country that this would be constructive dismissal due to her changing your job duties? If this change constitutes a change to the contract, would she be the one voiding the contract? When you need to go into the office, can you wear a mask and stay for as little time as possible…just enough to sort and deliver the mail?

    1. Not Tom, Just Petty*

      This. Maybe you can discuss how she doesn’t need you anymore. And you can play on her sympathy, that you should start looking for a new gig and you’d like to focus on that. She might feel empowered to help you by not changing your job description to create work to fill three months (but you REALLY APPRECIATE her doing that for you) but keeping you on remotely to “create transition documents the position to the next person.”
      I’m basing this idea to create work on the real situation. It seems boss wants to do right by OP and the contract and keep her on staff and paid through the end. Boss’ solution is the immediate admin work that needs to be done. OP can have a conversation about work she would like to do, convince boss it is important (OP’s track record of good work will support this) and finish out the time doing this.

      1. GythaOgden*

        It’s dangerous to someone else’s job and reputation to play internet lawyer and egg them on to try resigning and claiming constructive dismissal when they don’t have any other case except someone trying to play semantics.

        In the UK (my jurisdiction) CD is determined by a tribunal — an employment court — not just a benefits officer. It would be a lengthy process, and of the three cases that have happened to people of my acquaintance only one brought a successful case. UK law would also require you to have consulted your employer first on the situation at hand and only a handful of reasons would count.

        In any event, giving OPs this kind of advice when we only know their perspective and not that of the other parties is really reckless. It’s not right to play with people’s careers by stating they have a case based on a third hand appraisal of one side of the story. OP might well consult a lawyer to see whether she has a case but it will be a much more drawn out process than even tipping off the health and safety experts here.

    2. GythaOgden*

      Probably not in the UK (we don’t know where she is, obviously, but she’s not in the US and she could be in the UK so let’s assume for this post that she is). This is the wording of our government guidance on the subject:

      from https://www.gov.uk/dismissal/unfair-and-constructive-dismissal (second section)

      >Constructive dismissal

      >Constructive dismissal is when you’re forced to leave your job against your will because of your employer’s conduct.

      >The reasons you leave your job must be serious, for example, they:

      >* do not pay you or suddenly demote you for no reason

      [my note — context is important here, the contract is coming to an end and OP’s boss may be able to argue that she’s not actually demoting OP, simply planning for the inevitable end of the contract at hand]

      >* force you to accept unreasonable changes to how you work – for example, tell you to work night shifts when your contract is only for day work

      [I’m betting asking people to come into the office because their duties require it isn’t unreasonable; there are lots of administrative positions within my org that need to be on-site]

      >* let other employees harass or bully you

      [not happening here]

      >Your employer’s breach of contract may be one serious incident or a series of incidents that are serious when taken together.

      >You should try and sort any issues out by speaking to your employer to solve the dispute.

      So in any event there would have to be a discussion about the new terms and conditions before the OP actively walked out.

      In any event, CD is decided by a tribunal on the direct facts of the matter after the event of OP leaving her job, and OP shouldn’t factor that in as a reason to quit without consulting a lawyer, particularly not on the back of an internet comment. We on the internet love to play armchair lawyer with the /semantics) of a given law, but judges tend to look at the spirit of it and at the facts in evidence (and that means submissions from the employer’s perspective).

      This is why we shouldn’t try and interpret the facts of a legal case from a one-sided, probably emotionally involved letter to an advice blog. If in doubt, consult a lawyer, but CD is not ‘my boss asked me to do something I don’t want to do so I can walk out with impunity and claim unemployment immediately’. (UK unemployment is very strict; you can’t claim for a number of weeks after either quitting or being sacked. It’s not tied to your employer contesting or not contesting; it’s based on the fact that it’s pretty hard to get sacked here in the UK and even employees who quit voluntarily have to work at least month’s notice afterwards, so fewer of us would push that button unless it was a really dire situation indeed.) It’s ‘my boss behaved unreasonably in the eyes of an impartial observer and litigation will take months and I will have to prove to a judge that she acted unreasonably towards me’. I’d also add that the boss is winding down a fixed term contract rather than directly punishing her for reporting the office to HSE or whatever and so it would be hard to prove she’s doing this as retaliation, and to be brutally honest, probably /isn’t/.

      OP could probably consult a lawyer about it but even this letter doesn’t suggest she has a strong case of direct bias against her. She’s better off going to the health and safety body than quitting and claiming CD.

  14. Cubicles & Chimeras*

    I’d try Alison’s suggestions but, if you want an easy out after working in office for a few weeks, could you get your doctor to write you a note for allergy accommodation? Molds are a pretty common trigger for allergies and asthma, and hoarder places are a cornucopia of molds. You could lie to your boss and say something like older buildings often have molds whatever that trigger your allergies and you’ve found your particularly susceptible to the building your office is in and not mention it’s because of the rotting hoard.

    1. Solaris*

      this is one of the best suggestions, OP! since unfortunately it’s hard to change her behavior

    2. 1LFTW*

      Dust mites are also a common allergen/asthma trigger, and there’s no way a hoarding situation is somehow free of dust.

      1. Grizabella the Glamour Cat*

        I’m very much in favor of pleading allergies. As someone who is allergic to both dust and mold, I can attest that it is not uncommon to be allergic to both, often in combination with other allergens like pollen, animal dander, perfumes/scents, and more. This is especially true in the case of respiratory allergies.

        I’m at least 99% certain that I wouldn’t be able to work in a situation such as that described in the letter without developing severe allergic symptoms. Even if the LW does not sonally have such an allergy, it is no exaggeration that working in certain kinds of environments would be unbearable and unhealthy for a lot of people. As one such person, I give the LW my full permission to pretend to be a member of my tribe if it Wil help them to avoid or at least minimize the amount of time that that they are forced to spend in that hellhole!

        1. Grizabella the Glamour Cat*

          “Even if the LW does not *personally* have such an allergy…”

          “…if it *will* help them…”

          My kingdom for an edit button!

  15. MyStars*

    You could cite your need for remote work on health issues, because it’s true. Hoarding situations, with or without old food and wrappings, lead to toxic levels of dust and mold, which worsen when you start stirring them up. A second or parallel option might be to involve the landlord,who will want to know how the asset is being handled.

  16. Carrots*

    While the environment is gross, it’s probably not going to kill you, as it hasn’t killed the others on your team. I would wear a mask (citing Covid concerns and an immunocompromised loved one), bring rubber gloves, and clean up my own workspace in a way that hid the effects from her. Then take a quick shower upon getting home every night. It’s hard to imagine it being any worse than walking the streets of New York on trash day…

    1. Chickadee*

      I was going to suggest a mask as well; I wear them for covid safety, but they really cut down on nasty smells.

  17. Sola Lingua Bona Lingua Mortua Est*

    However, now that there are only three months left on my contract, my manager doesn’t want me to start a new project (since a project takes at least six months, it would be very impractical if I left halfway in).

    I think my path of least resistance would be propose an extension that gets me back onto “a project” and remote again.

    1. Banana Pyjamas*

      That’s brilliant. A 90 day extension would be enough to do one more project and stay remote.

    2. Laura W.*

      This was my idea too. Since you mention not getting unemployment, I imagine you don’t have your next contract lined up. She gets 6 months of your excellent work and you get to work from home.

    3. theletter*

      If an extension isn’t an option, could you ask to focus on tasks that more firmly related to the job and field, rather than mail+admin? Weird contract timing shouldn’t result in getting assigned random unrelated tasks just to run out the clock.

  18. Happily Retired*

    Work in-person for one week, and develop an allergy to the office. No kidding.

    Bring in a box of tissues, and by the first afternoon, start using them frequently. Add in a cough and lots of throat-clearing. Maybe even quietly rub your eyes a bit to redden them.

    Day 2, tell her that something there has triggered your allergies, and that you took an allergy pill for it. Keep the symptoms going, and add in sleepiness, which you blame on the allergy pill.

    By the end of day 3, tell her *nearly in tears* that you’re sorry, there’s something in that building – not in that office – that your body is reacting to, and that you don’t know how you can do this another three months. Unless! maybe you can grab the mail, etc., take it home and work on it there. Add a cough and sneeze.

    I know this seems absurd to have to do, and it is, but it saves face for her – it’s just this bizarre thing about you, and you just can’t. Good luck, whatever you decide.

    1. ferrina*

      Weirdly enough, this feels like a reasonable solution to me.

      As other commentors have pointed out, hoarders often have deep shame, and people with deep shame often have deeply irrational reactions. OP, to keep your reference intact, be careful not to trigger the shame. Blaming allergies allows the manager to save face (no shame trigger) and the OP to not physically be there.

      1. Dahlia*

        It honestly feels like the whitest of lies that will cause the least harm.

        Also a lot of people have allergies already. If I was OP I could legitimately just not take my allergy pills for a couple days and probably turn into a sneezing mess.

        1. GythaOgden*

          This may well backfire. Faking an allergy by bringing in tissues and allergy pills sounds a bit like demonstrating that they can work in the environment with simple remedies and thus not need the accommodation at all. It would also have to be an interactive process in the US with the employer within their rights to ask for documentation, and in the UK occupational health (who take up to a month to get back to people) might end up deciding that tissues and allergy meds are keeping the employee bolstered against the allergens sufficiently, since the OP is not displaying any other significant symptoms (since there are none that are actually manifesting). And at that point the white lie is wasting other people’s time and effort examining and diagnosing the OP when Occy Health could be working with someone who has genuine issues.

          Secondly, some jobs simply cannot be done remotely at all and thus the employer can reasonably say that OP is needed in the office. Our on-site property administration teams generally need to be on site to be responsive to the needs of the site in question. There’s no specific right to WFH; even the countries implementing such rights to request it are leaving it to the employers’ discretion because of the wide range of jobs out there that cannot be factored in to legislation directly.

          So OP really has two choices — put up with it or go to the health and safety body. Lying like this is a dead end.

    2. Petty Betty*

      I like this. I don’t always advocate for subterfuge, but when dealing with a hoarder with this kind of pull, I think this might be the best way to go about it.

  19. Hosta*

    OP, could you potentially say that you had issues with allergies or migraines or something similar when working from the office and working from home resolves them?

    What if you agree to go in for a few hours once a week to deal with the mail?

    Others suggested tipping off a health inspector and that’s a reasonable strategy but only if you can be confident it will be anonymous. If her husband is in local politics there’s a chance it won’t be.

  21. Filicophyta*

    There are many good ideas above. Could you also suggest having ‘zones’? Get some coloured masking tape and mark out an agreed spot that will always be a clear surface, even if it’s only an A3 size area. Agree with her on another spot where all food that is not being eaten right at this moment will be kept, and that food is only there. Based on your other info, it’s unlikely to help, but it’s worth a try.

    1. Ashley*

      The zones may or may not work, but I would at least try to say I need my desk area to be clean and neat so I can function to get me work done and agree anything that goes on your desk you get to manage (ie potentially toss out). I know you said you don’t have trash cans, but is there a dumpster somewhere nearby? For three months it bought be worth the cost of a bag of trash bags just to keep my desk clean daily.
      From there it is a triage coping mechanism strategy. Leave the office to eat lunch, and maybe even use the restroom. Masking can help with the smells. And honestly just a day / hour countdown. If you see evidence of animals this takes it all to another level, but if you are in the summer season you are a little less likely to have active indoor mice etc and what you see could be old remains.
      I will say I tend to have more success with people who are hoarders or who have hoarding tendencies to ask about small stacks at a time. For example I would ask about a single pile. That afternoon maybe ask about something else, or wait until the next day to ask. But if you sense them being overwhelmed you have to shut down the requests for awhile. Sometimes the categories work – hey I this chair is broken and I can’t fix it, can I take it out to the trash? Oh I found another broken chair that seems unsafe, so I am going to take that too. It is a tightrope walk though for sure.

  22. Edward Williams*

    Just in case it comes to legal action (e.g., you’re summarily fired) — take photographs of the mess.

  23. H.Regalis*

    Lie through your teeth if you have to. Whatever you have to say to her to get her to let you work remotely for the rest of your contract, say that.

    Hoarding is really, really hard to combat. Most hoarders never get better. They don’t think they have a problem, which is why it’s so hard to get them help. Even if you were someone close to her, the potential for her having a negative reaction is very high; but you’re not close to her and she’s in a position of power over you. Don’t bring it up. There is nothing you can say or do that’s going to make her stop hoarding or even realize that her hoarding is a problem. You can’t fix this, so just do what you can to protect yourself.

    1. H.Regalis*

      I would also strongly recommend not calling the building inspector/fire inspector/public health, because it’s not going to solve your problem. They might show up and give her a ticket, but she is not going to clean up the office, probably ever, but definitely not in the three months you have left on your contract; and if she finds out you were who turned her in, she’s going to be very angry with you.

  24. Jinni*

    LW I’m so sorry that you’re going through this. My mother (and many other NYers I knew) hoarded. It’s not solvable by you, and often quite intractable. The shame of the hoarder is legion (in my experience).

    My best advice mirrors the – any other excuse – model.

    Or, if you think you can get away with it, you can do what I did. I used to toss things when no one was looking and was rarely missed. (With my ex, he’d go on business trips and stuff would disappear).

    I hope that you at least have AC. As I sit through a heatwave here in Europe, A/C is a godsend for limiting smells when things are rotting, but has limited availability.

  26. uncivil servant*

    Are you on the hook for anything if you find another job before the end of your contract? Especially as it sounds like the owner might be okay with it given that she doesn’t want you on a new project?

    I’m working with a new grad who’s on a one-year term, and she thought that it would look bad to leave before the end of her term because, you know, it’s a contract. I assured her that in our case, it is 100% normal for people to leave a bit early and managers expect it, and in some ways, you get more respect when you show you’re in demand.

    Just want to make sure that you’re not in a similar situation and trying to fulfil obligations that are not at all legally binding.

    1. Caramel & Cheddar*

      Yes, this. Even if the job was perfect and the office was clean and you had zero complaints, your contract is still ending in three months. You don’t have to wait for it to end, go on unemployment, and *then* start searching! Obviously not all managers are like this, but most know that staff who are on contracts are probably going to start looking for other work towards the end of the contract period.

      1. Orv*

        That’s going to depend on what country the OP lives in. There are some countries where no one can hire you until your previous job has released you.

        1. uncivil servant*

          True, which is why I asked if she was on the hook for anything, but the owner is looking for work for her! Is it not possible even in the UK, for example, to come to an agreement that the owner gets to save on salary till the next project, and a new grad gets to move to a great new opportunity that just happened to open up?

          (Also accept that there might not be tons of new opportunities, and this is why the OP values this job so much. I’m just thinking of this woman I work with who casually said she wouldn’t apply for jobs at universities since they’d want her to start in September and she’d be employed till Sept. 15, when she is completely a free agent to move within or out of this organization at any point.)

          2. MsSolo (UK)*

            UK you’re usually fine to leave mid contract, though you may be obliged to give more notice (notice length is usually in the contract), and depending on where you were in the contract you may burn some capital. Three months to go would be normal for job searching, because by the time you’ve found something and given notice you’d basically be at the end of the contract anyway.

    2. What_the_What*

      I wondered if the OP was also waiting to see if the contract were to be renewed. I’m a contractor for DoD, and every year we got thru the nail biting “is the option year going to be exercised” and at the end of the full contract “will I get picked back up or out on the streets.” So, maybe she’s hoping she’ll get to start a new contract/new remote project when this contract is up?

      1. Retired Vulcan Raises 1 Grey Eyebrow*

        Very risky if so – the owner may insist on her being in office again

        1. Anonymel*

          Well, from reading the original post, it seems the LW CAN work projects remotely. The reason for being asked to come back in was the project was over and they had her doing busy work/admin stuff that couldn’t be done remotely. So, if they pick her up for another contract, it’s likely she could work from home again.

  28. Call in the bureaucracy*

    I second the suggestions to anonymously get the health department/fire marshal/insurance company or similar involved. Other than that, I’d wear a mask, and try to cut it down to two days in office or something. No good options, good luck.

    1. Jaydee*

      The problem with that is there are two ways it’s likely to go. One is that they come out, do an inspection, write up a list of violations, give the boss 30 days or something to fix them, she doesn’t (or addresses like 10% of the violations, and probably fairly minor violations that don’t require cleaning), and then they fine her or something, she asks for an extension or a hearing, the process drags on, and nothing is materially better during the LW’s last three months. In the meantime the boss is a nervous wreck from the stress of dealing with the authorities, so LW has to deal with the mess of the office plus a boss in crisis.

      The other option is that things are so bad the authorities demand the property be vacated immediately. Maybe boss will take steps to deal with this and keep the business operating (such as finding temporary space or a way for employees to work remotely), or maybe the boss will close the business (either temporarily or permanently) and LW will be out of work and out of an income. Now, it’s possible that will make LW eligible for unemployment, so maybe that’s not the worst outcome.

      But the scenario where boss realizes something needs to change, undertakes a massive cleaning of the office, and things are reasonably habitable within a couple of weeks? That is extremely unlikely.

  29. What_the_What*

    I can’t even imagine the bugs and rodents in that office. But it sounds like there isn’t work for you that exists out of office, if you need to be handling mail, and such. I think if I were you, I’d have a frank, kind talk with your boss and say, “I love working here and the team, but it impacts my health to work in these conditions. The dust, the dirt, the smells leave me with daily headaches, nausea, etc…” Are you sure I can’t at least get started on a project from home, and hope that my contract gets picked up and I can stay on and finish it?”

  30. Banana Pyjamas*

    I think that the suggestion above to request a short extension and one more remote project is the best. It prevents you from going into the office, and you don’t even have to navigate the problem. It definitely won’t trigger shame for the owner.

    In addition to landlords, insurance, fire marshals, and safety inspectors, you could consider zoning/building department. Many places have zoning ordinances against nuisance trash. Zoning offices are usually pretty quick to respond so they can collect their fines.

  31. Long Time Fan, First Time Caller*

    This is only as a last resort, but if you have to go in to the Hoarder Office, perhaps you can pick up the materials you need for the day, take them to a nearby, clean and calm coffee shop, public library, diner, or restaurant, and do the work there, before returning to the office to drop the materials back off at the end of the day? This is an “in emergency break glass” suggestion, but perhaps an idea… Sorry you are going through this!

  32. Jay*

    I have some small experience with hording (very small, friend of a relative), but I know enough to understand that this is a mental illness, and a serious one at that.
    And as such, they will almost certainly react very badly to anything that threatens their pit of filth.
    They will prioritize protecting the filth over the wellbeing of themselves and their employees.
    So trying to push back on this won’t get you anywhere.
    That vermin infested hell hole is her child and anyone who wants to not get some sort of filth transmitted disease is trying to murder her child.
    Your best bet is to find a friendly doctor who will write you a note explaining that you have a severe dust allergy or something. Some kind of condition that makes it dangerous for you to wallow in refuse for a couple of months. Something that tells her, “Oh, no, it’s not your rat infested, festering den of rot and nightmares, it’s me. The garbage hole is fine! I’m just too fragile to handle this unholy mire of all things foul and horrible, at least until my contract is up and I have to leave anyway. Gosh darn my luck!”
    And then try to vet future employers in order to weed out cultists of Nurgle.

  33. Hyaline*

    Honestly…if I’m reading correctly, this is a problem with a very limited timeframe. Either your contract ends and your employment here is done, or your contract is renewed/you’re offered a new one and I can only assume you’d say “Oh, thank you, but I’m pursuing other opportunities! All best!” I would suck it up for twelve week, burn as much PTO as possible, and just get through it. You’re not solving this problem and anything you do to curb its effects on you could make things worse, so it seems like the best way forward is just get through it. If you were stuck here for the foreseeable future and job prospects weren’t great, I’d probably advocate for trying to DO SOMETHING! ANYTHING! but since it’s three months–it’s a rough three months and then you have some great (read: disgusting) stories.

    Maybe there’s opportunity for a set remote/in person schedule–like if you offered “Hey, finishing tasks ABC doesn’t have to happen in office, so perhaps I could work Tuesdays from home?” if that would help your sanity while you finish out the contract.

    1. Retired Vulcan Raises 1 Grey Eyebrow*

      Yep, sounds disgusting, but I’d stick it out when it’s just 3 months, rather than risk a bad reference, especially if she & her OH have a lot of influence in the field/lcally.

  34. whome*

    If it were me, I’d take some really good photos of the office so I’d have them in my back pocket just in case of retaliation. Her political husband might not feel like having that kind of story, complete with disgusting photos, in the press.

  35. Throwaway Account*

    OP, I think you are going to have to experience a mysterious illness that has you out on medical leave or that requires you to remain in a prone position. I’m not kidding, you are dizzy and cannot drive or remain upright for more than a few minutes at a time. Once the contract is over, you suddenly get better.

  36. Jess*

    Alison you are spot on 100% of the time, but in this case, having worked with people who hoard as an actual job, “Since she loves you, it’s very unlikely that she’s going to fire you on the spot or blackball you in your field simply for raising this” is unfortunately naïve. Op, everything else that Alison and the commentariat suggest you can do to offset the issue is the move.

    But- don’t be honest. For your own sake.

    Hoarders know they have a problem with how people perceive their lives. Everyone in their lives tells them their behavior is not the norm. You are not going to change that, but in the blink of an eye you can be the one they make an example of to warn everyone else what will happen if they push back. Hoarding is an illness. It is not a simple as tidying up or being organized. A diamond ring and a receipt for milk hold the same value to a hoarding mind. You will be treated as if you are a literal thief. Don’t do it.

  37. Takki*

    I would think if you’ve exhausted the normal routes, report the working conditions to OSHA. It won’t fix everything, but it should get things moving in the right direction.

  38. Rachel*

    This may not be the answer you want, but I once read where a mother got some black rice and put it in her very messy child’s room, and told them it was mouse poop. Maybe some strategically distributed black rice would lead to a major clean-up in the office.

    1. Jessica Ellen*

      If you’ve ever seen Hoarders, or any similar program, you’ll know that even real mouse poop, and worse, does not change the behaviour of a hoarder.
      But scattering rice around will give actual rodents even more reason to be interested in this space. I don’t think this is wise, OP.

  39. Avi!*

    It’s outside of the LW’s hands, but it sounds like the ideal long-term solution for the underlying problem would’ve been for the *manager* to work remotely, where her issues wouldn’t be impacting her staff. They’re well past the point where that would help the LW’s situation, though.

  40. KA*

    The LW should suggest they have some issues getting into the office and offer the option of extending their contract by 3 months so they can do a full project cycle REMOTE then immediately be done.

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