# Workplace griping, anyone? **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [November 12, 2010, 6:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/workplace-griping-anyone/560401 "2010-11-12T06:39:59Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 27
**Author:** ![perfectparanoia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/a5b964/32.png) [@perfectparanoia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/perfectparanoia)\ **Post date:** [January 21, 2011, 4:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/workplace-griping-anyone/560401/521 "2011-01-21T16:14:25Z")
> [@Nadir](#): > > I find it amusing that people seem to get offended and annoyed by things like email, forms and discourteous co-workers. I spend 40 hours a week with people that I did not choose to spend 40 hours a week with. They are going to annoy me with little things (same as my spouse does but you can tell him to stop). ---
**Author:** ![Shot\_From\_Guns](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ccd318/32.png) [@Shot\_From\_Guns](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shot_From_Guns)\ **Post date:** [January 21, 2011, 4:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/workplace-griping-anyone/560401/522 "2011-01-21T16:21:13Z")
Or withhold sex until he complies. Can’t do that with coworkers. I mean, I am telling you: if Susy doesn’t get her 10:30 orgasm you might as well just pack up and go home 'cause ain’t shit getting done for the rest of the day. ---
**Author:** ![purplehorseshoe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/purplehorseshoe/32/2996_2.png) [@purplehorseshoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/purplehorseshoe)\ **Post date:** [January 21, 2011, 5:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/workplace-griping-anyone/560401/523 "2011-01-21T17:11:12Z")
I work in a nearly all-female office. We’d all just be passive-aggressively withholding from each other day in and day out, if the stereotypes are to be believed… ---
**Author:** ![Cat\_Whisperer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cat_whisperer/32/4839_2.png) [@Cat\_Whisperer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Whisperer)\ **Post date:** [January 21, 2011, 5:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/workplace-griping-anyone/560401/524 "2011-01-21T17:30:55Z")
> [@purplehorseshoe](#): > > I work in a nearly all-female office.\ You have my sincere, deep sympathy. My dream job is working with a bunch of guys who don’t give a rat’s ass about interpersonal conflicts - we all just tell fart jokes and get our damned work done all day. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Vorlon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/d07c76/32.png) [@The\_Vorlon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Vorlon)\ **Post date:** [January 21, 2011, 6:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/workplace-griping-anyone/560401/525 "2011-01-21T18:26:20Z")
I9 issue resolved: they ‘missfiled’ the forms in their server somewhere. ---
**Author:** ![Moonlitherial](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/4bbf92/32.png) [@Moonlitherial](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Moonlitherial)\ **Post date:** [January 21, 2011, 6:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/workplace-griping-anyone/560401/526 "2011-01-21T18:29:34Z")
I am still sick. I am at home sick. Why haven’t I been off the phone or the computer since 7:30 am and why am I scheduling work for all day tomorrow? Can someone please find my slacker gene - generous reward offered! ---
**Author:** ![Swallowed\_My\_Cellphone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9d8465/32.png) [@Swallowed\_My\_Cellphone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Swallowed_My_Cellphone)\ **Post date:** [January 21, 2011, 7:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/workplace-griping-anyone/560401/527 "2011-01-21T19:03:27Z")
Wheeeeee! I didn’t know this thread was here! Okay, so quick recap from [this thread about my stupid job](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=593066). I essentially coordinate the stuff for publications. Writers are irresponsible idiots who don’t fact check because they don’t cre. VP keeps approving enormously obvious mistakes, like “Barack Obama” being written out as “Barry the Llama.” Okay, so… One writer, named Lying Bitch, was _finally_ “laid off” because a professional association whose bi-annual magazine we did got pissed off at all the bad info in her articles and fired our company. Lying Bitch had put together crappy research, lied about confirming her sources (citing people she never spoke to) and _made up_ some of her other sources. So anyway… Months and months ago, Lying Bitch had started and finished a project - 12 experts had been happy to contribute papers. We were supposed to print it this week. When she was fired, the VP was supposed to take it over for the next phase. But it was “finished” so he just let it sit on his desk, un-inspected, until it was time for it to go to print. After firing Lying Bitch for being a _lying_ bitch, do you think he followed up and verified _anything_ in her project? Nope. So of the collection of 12 papers that we’re supposed to send to the printer next week, we actually only had… 2. Crisis mode! What does the VP do? Nothing. Panic sets in for the guy who has to deal with the client. _He_ goes waaaaay outside his job description and, by selling his soul to the devil, miraculously finds contributors to cover the missing 10 papers. Submits everything Tuesday. The table of contents only had to be approved by the VP, and then the project could be sent to me. I needed it yesterday to meet the deadline. VP hasn’t looked at it yet. ---
**Author:** ![Shot\_From\_Guns](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ccd318/32.png) [@Shot\_From\_Guns](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shot_From_Guns)\ **Post date:** [January 21, 2011, 7:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/workplace-griping-anyone/560401/528 "2011-01-21T19:34:22Z")
Every day that you do not shoot these people, you should receive the Congressional Medal of Honor. Even if you’re not American. ---
**Author:** ![Shot\_From\_Guns](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ccd318/32.png) [@Shot\_From\_Guns](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shot_From_Guns)\ **Post date:** [January 21, 2011, 7:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/workplace-griping-anyone/560401/529 "2011-01-21T19:50:19Z")
Oh my god, **Swallowed** , I just went back and read [those](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=552887) [threads](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=593066). I could not be reminded more of the most disfunctional place I ever worked, which is also the only one I was ever fired from (essentially, for making a bunch of other people look bad, including my boss and his pet). I was a proofer for product copy on the website of a large retailer, and I don’t know what the rest of the company was like, but our particular corner of our particular department was a wretched hive of [del]scum and villainy[/del] ignorance and incompetence. \*Our \*writers complained about the proofers using _red pen_–because, like your writers, it “hurt their feelings.” You know how to not get your feelings hurt, retard? Write it right the first fucking time. ---
**Author:** ![Swallowed\_My\_Cellphone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9d8465/32.png) [@Swallowed\_My\_Cellphone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Swallowed_My_Cellphone)\ **Post date:** [January 21, 2011, 8:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/workplace-griping-anyone/560401/530 "2011-01-21T20:15:23Z")
> [@Shot\_From\_Guns](#): > > \*Our \*writers complained about the proofers using _red pen_–because, like your writers, it “hurt their feelings.” You know how to not get your feelings hurt, retard? Write it right the first fucking time. Or just don’t take it personally. The corrections aren’t made to point a finger at you saying “You SOOOOO stupid!” The proofreader’s job just to make sure the little things that get flubbed are caught. Anyone can make a typo or can be the victim of malevolent spell check (e.g a typo that said “understading”, missing an ‘N’ got spell-checked to “understating” — wrong word altogether. Naughty spell check! Fixed by proofreader.) There is really no point in fighting with us over stuff like that. You just look silly saying “It’s _supposed_ to be that way!” But there really is no excuse for the plagiarism and related bullshit. I have gone on a few interviews. So hopefully something will pan out soon. ETA: And don’t get me started on Stompy again. ---
**Author:** ![LeeshaJoy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/8e8cbc/32.png) [@LeeshaJoy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LeeshaJoy)\ **Post date:** [January 21, 2011, 8:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/workplace-griping-anyone/560401/531 "2011-01-21T20:38:38Z")
As an (occasional) professional writer, I am SO glad to see that at least one of **SWC** ’s terrible coworkers got fired, and wish the rest of them would stop making my profession look bad. ---
**Author:** ![Swallowed\_My\_Cellphone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9d8465/32.png) [@Swallowed\_My\_Cellphone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Swallowed_My_Cellphone)\ **Post date:** [January 21, 2011, 8:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/workplace-griping-anyone/560401/532 "2011-01-21T20:58:27Z")
> [@LeeshaJoy](#): > > As an (occasional) professional writer, I am SO glad to see that at least one of **SWC** ’s terrible coworkers got fired, and wish the rest of them would stop making my profession look bad. Well, another quit. That’s nice for us. This person did not hand in one particular assignment at all and I had to write the damn thing. Another assignment was so bad that after the VP sent it back to her three times, we just threw up our hands and gave up. I re-wrote it and the CEO tried to implement new policies for copy submissions. She left to write copy for an advertising firm. They created the position for her so they could hire her. I think you should go find her and bludgeon her to death with a Thesaurus. Really what we need is for the copy submission guidelines to be enforced. But that’s the VP’s job and he doesn’t actually _read_ the copy he approves. 90% of our problems would be eliminated if he did. ETA: Oh, and Mr. Plagiarism quit to pursue his dream of being a figure skater. (No, really!) ---
**Author:** ![LeeshaJoy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/8e8cbc/32.png) [@LeeshaJoy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LeeshaJoy)\ **Post date:** [January 21, 2011, 9:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/workplace-griping-anyone/560401/533 "2011-01-21T21:07:09Z")
> [@Swallowed\_My\_Cellphone](#): > > I think you should go find her and bludgeon her to death with a Thesaurus. Can I use my Norton Anthology instead? It’s heavier. ---
**Author:** ![Shot\_From\_Guns](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ccd318/32.png) [@Shot\_From\_Guns](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shot_From_Guns)\ **Post date:** [January 21, 2011, 9:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/workplace-griping-anyone/560401/534 "2011-01-21T21:30:06Z")
Which Norton Anthology? I think I own approximately a hojillion of them (I’m convinced I personally put the Norton kids through college). ---
**Author:** ![Carol\_the\_Impaler](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/6a8cbe/32.png) [@Carol\_the\_Impaler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Carol_the_Impaler)\ **Post date:** [January 21, 2011, 9:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/workplace-griping-anyone/560401/535 "2011-01-21T21:38:23Z")
> [@Swallowed\_My\_Cellphone](#): > > ETA: Oh, and Mr. Plagiarism quit to pursue his dream of being a figure skater. (No, really!) Wherein all his routines look suspiciously like Brian Boitano’s. ---
**Author:** ![Swallowed\_My\_Cellphone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9d8465/32.png) [@Swallowed\_My\_Cellphone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Swallowed_My_Cellphone)\ **Post date:** [January 21, 2011, 9:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/workplace-griping-anyone/560401/536 "2011-01-21T21:45:56Z")
> [@Shot\_From\_Guns](#): > > Which Norton Anthology? I think I own approximately a hojillion of them (I’m convinced I personally put the Norton kids through college). All of them. It can be like a cluster bomb. ---
**Author:** ![Shot\_From\_Guns](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ccd318/32.png) [@Shot\_From\_Guns](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shot_From_Guns)\ **Post date:** [January 21, 2011, 10:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/workplace-griping-anyone/560401/537 "2011-01-21T22:01:49Z")
But but but the poor _books_! * * * I submitted this database access request two and a half weeks ago. I assumed it was approved, since I provided an eminently valid business reason and received no response. Today, I actually needed to use the DB and… Oh, hey, I can’t get in! So I email you guys, the database owners, and what’s your response? “A request for approval was submitted to Person XYZ with no response.” Here’s a fucking thought: If Person XYZ is the one approving the fucking requests, \*\*MAYBE _SHE SHOULD BE THE FUCKING DATABASE OWNER_. I need Author with Delete access: that should be a fucking no-brainer approval. If I ask for some level of Editor or DBAdmin, \*then \*you fucking kick it up the chain. Do you know how I know this? _BECAUSE I FUCKING OWN OTHER PROJECT DATABASES._ Christ. ---
**Author:** ![Lady\_of\_the\_Lake](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e19adc/32.png) [@Lady\_of\_the\_Lake](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lady_of_the_Lake)\ **Post date:** [January 21, 2011, 10:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/workplace-griping-anyone/560401/538 "2011-01-21T22:28:45Z")
> [@WolfpackJeep](#): > > To everyone outside my department: my lunch hour is from 12 PM to 1 PM. If I happen to be at my desk at 12:58, and I’m kicked back in my chair reading _Scientific American_, it’s best that you assume I’m still enjoying my lunch break. Unless something is going to explode, fall apart, or melt down in the next two minutes, you can fucking wait. I’m picturing you as Scruffy (the janitor) from Futurama here, though in his case the magazine was ‘Zero-G Jugs’! 😃 Though, I’d be grateful if only people would stop accosting me as I’m actively heading into the bathroom. The door is open, my foot is inside the door, please don’t grab my arm for a chat. It’s as if they think ‘She is trying to pee. Why, this is the perfect time for that meeting!’ ---
**Author:** ![wonky](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wonky/32/393_2.png) [@wonky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wonky)\ **Post date:** [January 21, 2011, 10:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/workplace-griping-anyone/560401/539 "2011-01-21T22:32:12Z")
> [@Lady\_of\_the\_Lake](#): > > Though, I’d be grateful if only people would stop accosting me as I’m actively heading into the bathroom. The door is open, my foot is inside the door, please don’t grab my arm for a chat. > > It’s as if they think ‘She is trying to pee. Why, this is the perfect time for that meeting!’ If they knew your username, they’d never do that! 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Lady\_of\_the\_Lake](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e19adc/32.png) [@Lady\_of\_the\_Lake](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lady_of_the_Lake)\ **Post date:** [January 21, 2011, 10:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/workplace-griping-anyone/560401/540 "2011-01-21T22:41:12Z")
> [@jsgoddess](#): > > If they knew your username, they’d never do that! 😃 Ha! 🙂 [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/workplace-griping-anyone/560401.md?page=26) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/workplace-griping-anyone/560401.md?page=28)