open thread – February 28, 2025 by Alison Green on February 28, 2025 It’s the Friday open thread! The comment section on this post is open for discussion with other readers on any work-related questions that you want to talk about (that includes school). If you want an answer from me, emailing me is still your best bet*, but this is a chance to take your questions to […] Read the full article →
my mom answered my phone and yelled at my boss, staff grumbling about sales team’s “perks,” and more by Alison Green on February 28, 2025 It’s four answers to four questions. Here we go… 1. My mom answered my phone and told off my boss I was very sick with Covid and my mom had to come take care of me. She already knew issues that I’d been having with my boss; he’s a jerk. I learned later that he […] Read the full article →
is it a red flag if a team has a group text? by Alison Green on February 27, 2025 A reader writes: Do you think it’s a red flag when a team in a smaller company immediately drops you into a group text on your personal phone upon hiring? The context is that I’m very happy in my mid-level position at my very not-toxic Fortune 100 company. I like the work and the people […] Read the full article →
what fired federal workers can expect now by Alison Green on February 27, 2025 With federal workers who have been fired or laid off by the Trump administration now numbering in excess of 200,000, one question is on most of their minds: What now? At Slate today, I wrote about why what’s ahead of these workers is daunting, and how they can approach a private sector job search after […] Read the full article →
let’s discuss shared desk horror stories by Alison Green on February 27, 2025 With more people being called back to offices where they’re expected to share crowded spaces with coworkers — including sharing desks — let’s talk about shared space horror stories! Maybe you share a desk with someone who pinned up deeply personal love notes from their partner all over your shared space … or set the […] Read the full article →
boss told me to bring my sick four-year-old to work, coworkers saw my NSFW phone screen, and more by Alison Green on February 27, 2025 It’s five answers to five questions. Here we go… 1. My boss told me to bring my sick four-year-old to work with me I want to start off by saying I am the absolute backbone of our store and everyone, including my boss, knows it. My boss has the flu right now and my four-year-old […] Read the full article →
how can I stop being frustrated with a coworker who’s making my job harder? by Alison Green on February 26, 2025 A reader writes: I just got feedback from my manager that I need to work on communication with a coworker. I think it’s mainly about tone not content, and I agree with the feedback — I have admittedly been pretty short. I’m irritated and it’s coming across. Where I’m getting stuck, though, is that it’s […] Read the full article →
can you fire someone for being racist? by Alison Green on February 26, 2025 A reader writes: Recently, my company hired someone who was extremely racist. He worked with me on his first day, where he dropped an awful racial slur six times. I was shocked so did a little social media sleuthing and found his horrifying Twitter page full of xenophobic and racist tweets and posts. We fired […] Read the full article →
I work for a nonprofit that gets poor results for the amount of money we spend by Alison Green on February 26, 2025 A reader writes: I have worked in nonprofits for the entirety of my career (~15 years). I’m a highly mission-driven person, so I am generally a lot happier in my work when I feel strongly connected to the nonprofit’s aims. As an example, I’ve worked at both a public library and a private college, and […] Read the full article →
is my boss crossing lines, coworker injecting medication at their desk, and more by Alison Green on February 26, 2025 It’s five answers to five questions. Here we go… 1. My boss is great in some ways but is he crossing lines? I’m trying to figure out if my manager is interested in me as more than a coworker, or if the lines he crosses are just a part of his personality. I’ve been with […] Read the full article →