Ask a Manager

It’s four answers to four questions. Here we go…

1. Responding to an unusually kooky job application

My colleagues and I are having a debate and wanted your opinion. I recently started advertising for a new position that would ultimately report to my manager, but I’m doing the bulk of the hiring. I got a completely bizarre application from a candidate today. (Note: The letter-writer sent the application along. Bizarre is practically an understatement; it’s either a horribly failed attempt to be funny or the work of someone who’s had a break with reality.)

Clearly, someone told this kid that crap like this was a good idea. My instinct is not to say anything and just dump his resume in the No pile, but some of my colleagues disagree. They think it would be funny to schedule a phone interview to see if this guy is as nutty as he seems. I think that might give him the wrong idea that a “resume” like this will get responses. If I provide any response, I think it would be an email letting him know how out of touch this approach is with what hiring managers want to see and that he should stop this nonsense immediately. We’ve agreed to put the question to you to help us decide what to do.

Don’t schedule a phone interview with someone you have no intention of hiring just to assess his nuttiness. Most people share particularly weird resumes with colleagues, but actually taking up the guy’s time for the purpose of mocking him later would be cruel. And yes, you’re right that it would signal to him that this is a reasonable approach when it’s so far from it.

I actually think what he submitted is so beyond the realm of anything remotely acceptable (we’re not talking poor resume format and using an objective; we’re talking eight full pages of a ranting narrative) that I wouldn’t even try to give him helpful feedback. He either knows he’s breaking all known resume rules and thinks he’s being delightfully subversive, or he’s troubled in a way that you as a stranger can’t help with. Either way, a standard rejection is all I’d do here.

2. How can I follow up on my manager’s mention of a possible promotion?

I had my annual review yesterday and it went great–nothing but glowing feedback from my manager for the 6th year in a row. But the possible promotion she’d mentioned in last year’s review seems to have vanished. It wasn’t included in the written evaluation or the review meeting, and I didn’t know a good way to ask about it as the meeting wrapped up. I doubt she just forgot, considering she copied and pasted several chunks of my prior review because they also applied this year. I’d like to broach the topic with my manager, just to say I’m still interested and would like to know what I can do to be a good candidate, but I’m not sure how to phrase it. Is there direct-report-speak for “I guess this year didn’t work out, but maybe next year?”

You should ask! And not in an “I guess this year didn’t work out way either.” Go to her now — as in early next week, because this gets weirder if you wait — and say this: “I really appreciated your feedback in our review meeting. Last year, you’d mentioned that a promotion might be possible soon. Is that something that we could talk about?”

Read an update to this letter here.

3. Employer is pressuring us to donate to a lobbying group

My boss and CEO is the head of a local lobbying group for the industry our company works in. Everyone in our company was asked to donate to the lobbying group in order to help get politicians elected to make life easier for the industry. We were then directly contacted if we did not write a check for the cause by a certain date. I morally oppose writing a check because I do not donate to politicians or political groups; I donate my vote to politicians if I agree with them. Is it legal for my boss to ask us to do this and then pressure us when we did not comply immediately?

It depends on exactly what your boss is doing. Under FEC regulations, an employer cannot coerce you into making a political contribution by threatening a detrimental job action. But it’s tougher when it’s not an open threat but rather more subtle pressure. Employers can indeed encourage employees to participate in the political process (including by donating) and it’s legal for employers to simply encourage employees to vote a particular way … and obviously there’s a fine line between doing that and outright threatening someone’s job.

4. I pushed back against Boss’s Day — and it worked

Just a quick note to tell you what happened at work this week. Our manager emailed our team and said, “Tomorrow is Boss’s Day. Let’s put our heads together to figure out a gift for Mr. Director.” I replied (privately, just to the manager), “I think that some boss’s are uncomfortable with their employees ‘gifting up’ to them. I don’t know if Director is, but I think I will sit out Boss’s Day this year.”. She then sent another email to the group that said, “I’ll pick up a card tomorrow and pass around for the team to sign; let’s just do that this year.”

Wooo hooo! It was so easy!

It’s five answers to five questions. Here we go…

1. Coworker is claiming reimbursements for fake expenses

I recently was hired by a touring theater company. It fit in with my 9-5 job (I have lots of flexibility), so I took it. The pay for being a non-professional show is FANTASTIC, and they reimburse us for gas to and from rehearsals and performances, which is pretty unusual. The cast is four of us, and two of us (including me) have cars. This means that there is quite a bit of carpooling, because the cast is responsible for getting to shows that don’t require overnight stays (for overnight stays there is bus transportation). The other cast member with a car and I split the driving in half.

I don’t really need the money that comes from this gig. It’s definitely a plus, but I accepted the job because I love performing and traveling. I also know that they are nonprofit, and are not exactly rolling in dough. I’m very surprised that they’re able to pay us as well as they are. I decided early on that I was only going to be requesting reimbursement for trips that were 50+ miles, both with their expenses in mind and my own sanity. Theres a lot of driving, and with two jobs I don’t have the time to calculate all that. I don’t know how the other driver is calculating his miles, because its not really my business.

However, one of the cast members without a car, Fergus, found out and is really upset! He doesn’t understand that reimbursement is not “extra money,” but for wear and tear, gas, and maintenance of the car. It’s not a bonus. This gig is his only income, and he is openly resenting me for taking the opportunity to get extra money from him, even though he doesn’t have a car! The company doesn’t monitor who is actually doing the driving, and I have heard, through the other cast member without a car, that Fergus is planning on trying to get reimbursement for the miles I didn’t request already! I confronted Fergus, and he said that by me not requesting reimbursement, the money was up for grabs. Not only is this super unethical, but frankly, it’s just stupid. Fergus has also been doing funny things with the daily food per diem we are given. We pay up front and turn in receipts. He’ll bring his own food, then I’ve actually seen him scrounge around for other peoples receipts in the garbage or approach strangers and up front ask for theirs! One time whenwe were performing at a casino Fergus spent all his allotted per diem on slot machines, and altered a receipt to get re-imbursed for it!

This is Fergus’ first gig of this nature after graduating college and I don’t want to ruin his reputation, because gigs like this are few and far between. Should I confront him again? How do I let the woman in charge of paychecks know about this? Am I wrong to not request reimbursement? Should I let it go and let Fergus request the money? We don’t have an on site stage manager or director who would be able to help; everyone is only available via email.

Wow. Fergus is basically stealing from your employer. As you note, mileage reimbursements are to cover the driver’s expenses (the gas and wear and tear on a car); it’s not money that’s just hanging around for anyone to grab. And getting receipts from strangers or out of the trash and turning them in as if they’re his own for reimbursement?! That’s even further over the line; it’s deliberate and outright fraud.

Because he’s young, you could do him the favor of giving him one clear warning: “Fergus, you might not realize it, but what you’re doing is fraudulent. It could get you fired. And I could get fired for knowing about it and not saying anything. So you need to stop, or I’m going to have to tell (manager) what’s going on.”

And then if you see that it’s continuing, do tell someone in authority. It doesn’t matter that they’re not on-site; email is perfectly fine for this, or you can ask if you can give them a call about something sensitive if you’re more comfortable than that. But this is theft, and you should speak up.

Read an update to this letter here.

2. Telling a recruiter about a rude interviewer

I’ve been in the late stages of interviewing for two roles at a large international company that I’ll call MegaTech. Today I had my final three interviews of six. All went fine until the last interview. This very senior interviewer, who was supposed to be testing my leadership skills, instead decided to test how well I do arithmetic under pressure (quite well – I’m an experienced analyst!). He had a very strong accent so sometimes I couldn’t understand what he said, and he seemed angry when I asked him to repeat. At one stage he said, What if x goes up,” then later insisted that he’d said “What if x goes down?” He didn’t give me enough time to write everything down as he was saying it but would be upset and condescending if 5 minutes later I couldn’t remember a certain figure. I got a bit flustered at his hostility so was probably less competent than usual, but kept it together. I felt like ending the video conference but continued on.

The second question he asked me went slightly better, but the final answer was a feature that MegaTech has never announced to the world. I would have no way of knowing about it. All the while he was looking at his phone or away from the screen, and I had the distinct feeling he didn’t want to be there. It was the worst interview I’ve ever had.

Since this is someone I’d be working quite closely with in either role, I’m withdrawing from the application process. The location/salary weren’t ideal anyway but working with people who make me cry is where I draw the line. My question is whether or not I should tell the recruiter what happened – she’s very curious but I don’t have any investment in the outcome, as I’m sure they’re not going to censure one of their directors over a bad interview. And did I do the wrong thing by withdrawing? MegaTech is supposed to have a fantastic culture but one bad apple would be enough to make it hard to go to work every day.

Nope, you didn’t do anything wrong by withdrawing; part of the point of interviewing is for you to assess whether this is a job and coworkers you’d want. If this is someone you’d be working closely with, it’s reasonable to decide you’d rather not.

I don’t think you have anything to lose by telling the recruiter, as long as you do it politely and professionally, and it’ll probably be satisfying. On the other hand, you don’t have an obligation to help them improve their hiring process, and if you’d rather not, you’re perfectly entitled to say something like, “I didn’t think I’d click well with one of the people I’d be working closely with” or even nothing at all. (If it’s a recruiter you plan to work with in the future, though, giving some feedback is a good idea so that you don’t come across as uncommunicative.)

3. Employee is being very cagey with his flu shot form

This year our company is offering free flu shots to our employees, as most companies are. The vendor who will be administering the flu shots has asked that the employees fill out the consent forms in advance to the flu clinic. There is an employee who refuses to give me the consent form, indicating that “I prefer to give my completed form to the nurse as I always have done.”

This employee is the only one who is behaving this way. What do you think this is all about?

Privacy, I’d imagine. If the form is nothing but his name and signature and doesn’t contain any medical info, I’m not sure why he’s taking a stand (although it may be a reaction to the increasing privacy infringements that many companies are inflicting upon employees). But if that’s his preference, I’d just let him do it that way, assuming it doesn’t cause any real issue for you or the vendor.

4. Asking about why a job is available

I am in an interview process that is going really well. I was online and saw the name of the previous employee in the role I am interviewing for still listed on the company website. I decided to look the person up on LinkedIn to see what the responsibilities were in their words. I noticed the person was only in the job for a year and then left. How can I ask about why the role is vacant? I would hate to work somewhere where the reputation is high turnover.

You can definitely ask your interviewer, “Can you tell me why this job is open?” You can also ask, “How long have the last few people in the job stayed?”

5. Reminding a new job I’ll be out for maternity leave four weeks after starting

A long time ago, I applied for a job famous for a long process. In the meantime, I got pregnant. It wasn’t obvious in the first interview, but I did tell them when they offered me the job, and it wasn’t a problem.

However, it took another few months for the official offer. The organization is really huge, and now I am talking to someone from a completely different department. At the time of the interview, I was in my first trimester. Now I’m in the third, and the starting date they offered me is barely four weeks before my due date. I was hoping to start sooner and work longer before giving birth.

I am willing to start at the date they suggested, but I am not sure how to remind them of the fact that I’d be working less than a month before my leave. I feel great, the pregnancy is going perfectly and there is no reason to expect that to change, but it is a little close. (I get the usual leave and medical; that part is standard with them so it’s not a problem.) After the interview, all communication has been through email and my acceptance of the starting date will be an email as well.

Just be straightforward: “I’d be glad to start on (date), but I want to make sure you remember that I’m pregnant and due on (date). We talked about this at the time of the offer, but it’s been a while so I want to make sure it didn’t slip off your radar! Because that would have me only working for four weeks before I’m due, I’d love to start earlier if that possible. Any chance of making that work?”

It’s five answers to five questions. Here we go…

1. My former manager is trash-talking my new manager

Until three months ago, I had major problems with my manager, who in my opinion bullied me. After taking the issue to her manager and to HR, I was assigned the same manager as she has, which was communicated as a reorganization. This has also meant that she has had product responsibility removed, although she is still managing a smaller team. Two more coworkers have been removed from her and now report to a different person. She did not like these changes and no longer speaks to me or makes eye contact.

Since then, she has started undermining her (and now my) manager behind his back, but very openly in an open plan office. She would gossip about his apparent lack of competence, etc. to one of her direct reports, another peer, and people from other teams. I do not engage in this and see our manager as a strong leader. With her unprofessional behavior, she is creating a divide in the office between her followers, mainly recent graduates who listen and engage in the gossip, and those who do not. Just today they were discussing his “motives.” Due to the bad experience I had with her, I can see where this will go and worry that she may take her gossip to a higher level, tell lies, and somehow convince senior management about the apparent lack of skills of my manager. It happened to me and it took me a long time to realize this has been going on. Luckily my complaints were taken seriously and changes were made.

How should I behave? I do not want to witness this kind of unprofessional behavior from someone who manages a team and is one of the most senior people in our office, and I wonder whether there is anything I can do to make her or someone else aware of this behavior and get it to stop. I am not friends with everyone in this office but strongly believe it should be possible to work together in a safe environment.

I’d give your mutual manager a discreet heads-up: “Hey, I feel awkward raising this, but I feel like this has the potential to be harmful to you and you’d want to know. I regularly hear Lucinda complaining about you and your work to Jane, Fergus, and other teams, and my sense is that she’s trying to stir up animosity toward you. I think you’re a great manager and her assessment is way off-base, and I’ve heard it enough from her now that I felt like I need to mention it to you before it goes further.”

2. We can all figure out each other’s salaries

I work at a consulting firm where our billing rates can be seen by all staff. For the majority of staff, the billing rates are tied to our salaries using a multiplier. Basically this means that by doing a simple calculation, you can see, within a few thousand dollars, what everyone’s salaries are.

I feel so awkward having people know my salary. Obviously those who advocate for themselves and asking for raises are going to have higher salaries and therefore higher billing rates. This leads to questions and snide comments from others (our office tends to be catty) about why some people get paid more and “don’t deserve it.” When someone rises in billing rate quickly, they’re seen as spoiled and entitled. When someone has a low billing rate, they’re seen as unintelligent, lazy, or not progressing. And everyone knows!

How can I handle this part of my job? I feel very exposed having everyone know my salary.

The issue isn’t the pay transparency; it’s your coworkers’ immature reactions to it.

Lots of organizations make salary public (pretty much all government agencies, for example) and it works out just fine and without this kind of pettiness and backbiting. In fact, a lot of people would like to see more employers moving to transparent pay because it makes it much easier to spot patterns of discrimination based on things like gender or race. It also allows you to see how your company values different positions and performance, which is a good thing … and can give you lots of insight when you’re thinking about asking for a raise, applying for a promotion, or job searching somewhere else.

Your company’s management is dropping the ball here by not addressing this more openly and clearly and putting a stop to the crappy remarks.

3. Making a complaint about another store in the franchise that I work for

I am employed part time by a franchise with coffee shops all over my country (Ireland). I am currently employed in a store in my home town, but there is also a store near my college, which is in another city. I have been to the coffee shop next to my college three times in the last two months, and each time that I have been there I have been appalled by the apathetic customer service, the level of uncleanliness and the general low standard of the coffees and other beverages being made and served. While other members of the public may be okay with the service that they are receiving from these employees, I am aware that they are not operating both to the standards that the company expects, or to the standards of the national health authorities of the country.

Were I an ordinary customer, I would lodge a complaint with the company, but given that I am an employee, I am unsure of how to proceed. Would it be inappropriate to complain? Could it negatively affect my own position?

I really love this company, I feel that they value their employees and they treat them well, and were I not studying a completely different area in college, I would be satisfied to continue working for them my whole life. To see other employees completely disregarding the standards of the company and delivering such poor service has really annoyed me, and I would like to lodge a complaint. Would you agree? How should I proceed?

This is actually something I’d mention to your manager — as in, “I keep noticing X and Y when I visit store Z. I know we’d never do that here, and I wondered if it’s worth mentioning to anyone?” If your manager agrees, ideally she’d then pass the message along to whoever’s appropriate to tell (since she has more standing to do it through official channels than you do).

4. Invited for a second meeting but haven’t heard anything about scheduling it

I was recently recruited (poached) for an interview through LinkedIn, and after the first interview with three partners, I am really excited about the opportunity of joining the company. I sent personal thank-you emails to all who attended the lunch meeting. The director of operations responded a couple days later, saying they enjoyed meeting me and wanted to invite me for a follow-up meeting for either lunch or after hours at a local restaurant. Considering the tone of our first interview and their overly generous comments about how well a fit I would be in the company, I felt very confident this was probably going to be when they gave me an offer. I politely responded suggesting a couple times this week and have not heard back. It has only technically been a couple days without response but I’m very curious about what is going on. Should I send an email checking in on the meeting time/date? Not sure what my best plan of action is and am a little stumped considering this is not a job I actively sought out but am now highly interested in.

I wouldn’t assume that the request for a second meeting was to make you an offer; it could be that, but it also could simply be a second interview.

The delay could be because they’re working out questions about the position or people’s conflicting schedules, or zeroing in on another candidate, or dealing with totally unrelated things that are a higher priority. They might get back to you to schedule, or they might do the rude but common thing of just never getting back to you because they’ve decided to move forward with other candidates.

It would be fine to check back (I’d wait a week after the last contact though), but also keep in mind that if they’re interested, they’ll reach out eventually.

5. Employees have to make up vacation time by working on the weekends

Employee (traveling salesperson) has four weeks paid vacation. Employer said he has to make up all four weeks by working weekends or he will be fired. Many weekend remodeling plans and family events are now cancelled due to this. He said only sick days and holidays will not have to be made up and the first person to complain is out the door. Can he do this?

We’re in New Hampshire but the employer is in Michigan (owned by an international German company).

This is governed by the laws of the state where you’re working, so New Hampshire laws apply. Like other states, New Hampshire doesn’t require employers to provide vacation time — but if employers promise vacation time (such as through written policies like employee handbooks or in offer letters), in most cases they’re legally bound to provide it. I’m not a lawyer and you’d need to consult with one to tell you for sure, but I’d think that what this employer is doing flies in the face of that.

Regardless, though, this employer sucks in a big way and its employees should be competing to be the first out the door, rather than taking that as a threat.