# 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:** 301
**Author:** ![WolfpackJeep](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wolfpackjeep/32/2921_2.png) [@WolfpackJeep](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WolfpackJeep)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2013, 12:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/workplace-griping-anyone/560401/6002 "2013-08-27T12:52:46Z")
> [@Kelevra](#): > > Who needs herbicides when you can have diesel exhaust! And direct sunlight, too! Our dock has next to no overhang. ---
**Author:** ![Rebo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rebo/32/13005_2.png) [@Rebo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rebo)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2013, 1:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/workplace-griping-anyone/560401/6003 "2013-08-27T13:05:03Z")
My company was spraying mosquito poison from a truck with a big sprayer - at 6:30 am when everyone was arriving and had to walk around in a big cloud of DEET or whatever… Timing, people… ---
**Author:** ![rockle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/73ab20/32.png) [@rockle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rockle)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2013, 1:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/workplace-griping-anyone/560401/6004 "2013-08-27T13:13:48Z")
> [@Rebo](#): > > My company was spraying mosquito poison from a truck with a big sprayer - at 6:30 am when everyone was arriving and had to walk around in a big cloud of DEET or whatever… > > Timing, people… Ugh. I thought they were supposed to do that at night anyway? ---
**Author:** ![Lightray](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lightray/32/391_2.png) [@Lightray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lightray)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2013, 2:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/workplace-griping-anyone/560401/6005 "2013-08-27T14:33:50Z")
> [@rockle](#): > > Those stingie-thingies are worse than they ever were, now that they’ve sprayed them with Raid and made them extra-powerful and immune to basically everything except nuclear weapons. I work at a chemical plant that used to be a chemical plant back in WWII. We had a spiny weed spring up last week in front of the engineering building, grew a foot tall overnight. Another couple days it would’ve been a tree. The bugs here are big enough to scare off those Floridabugs, and I think they’re eying my coworker’s VW beetle as competition. Everything else is industrial buildings sitting amidst gravel-strewn emptiness. Mad Max would feel right at home. Come to think, we _did_ have Kevin Sorbo running about in the plant next door, all tarted up in post-apoc gear… ---
**Author:** ![Morgyn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/morgyn/32/3041_2.png) [@Morgyn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Morgyn)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2013, 2:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/workplace-griping-anyone/560401/6006 "2013-08-27T14:38:10Z")
> [@rockle](#): > > Those stingie-thingies are worse than they ever were, now that they’ve sprayed them with Raid and made them extra-powerful and immune to basically everything except nuclear weapons. They might be immune to that, too. [Cockroaches are certainly able to survive pretty high doses, although if they’re high enough, the roaches die like everything else.](http://dsc.discovery.com/tv-shows/mythbusters/mythbusters-database/cockroaches-survive-nuclear-explosion.htm) ---
**Author:** ![Flutterby](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/6f9a4e/32.png) [@Flutterby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Flutterby)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2013, 3:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/workplace-griping-anyone/560401/6007 "2013-08-27T15:48:34Z")
I’ve worked for this company for a few years now in various capacities. It’s handy sometimes because I can assist or understand things that others just don’t seem to clue in on. It also brings its own aggravations, like wanting to smack some sense into people doing jobs I used to do, even though they’ve been doing them just as long as I did at this point they still need a good smack with a clue by four now and again. And now an issue that I dealt with _and fixed_ (or assisted in fixing) two and a half years ago is now back again. So now I get to try and shove it back on the person doing my old job, except she’ll probably just play dumb until it either comes to a head and we have to deal with it up here (when it’s not our job but affects our job) or I have to lead her in a subtle dance of making her do her job and spelling it out in a series of emails that define more and more exactly what the fuck her job is (CCing old boss all the time to outline yet more of her incompetence in the hopes he’ll finally get someone competent). I’m tempted to bypass the whole thing and just do it myself to save the headache but then my boss would give me shit for doing her job and the funny part is that it’s probably just a matter of emailing certain people and going ‘WTF are you doing? Stop that!’ ---
**Author:** ![rockle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/73ab20/32.png) [@rockle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rockle)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2013, 5:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/workplace-griping-anyone/560401/6008 "2013-08-27T17:16:53Z")
> [@Morgyn](#): > > They might be immune to that, too. [Cockroaches are certainly able to survive pretty high doses, although if they’re high enough, the roaches die like everything else.](http://dsc.discovery.com/tv-shows/mythbusters/mythbusters-database/cockroaches-survive-nuclear-explosion.htm) Sadly, I’m pretty sure that even nukes couldn’t kill the Stupids up in this joint. If we could figure out how to market our own brand of institutionalized stupidity, we’d be the worldwide leader. ---
**Author:** ![Yllaria](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/yllaria/32/3452_2.png) [@Yllaria](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Yllaria)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2013, 7:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/workplace-griping-anyone/560401/6009 "2013-08-27T19:32:00Z")
> [@rockle](#): > > . . . But, really, it’s the dinosaur signs that are creating a hostile work environment. Were you the one who thought of the "This Workspace Proudly Velociraptor Free Since . . . " sign? I copied that and it’s still up. The only response I’ve ever gotten was a chuckle. Your complainer has no sense of whimsey. ---
**Author:** ![WhyNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c77e96/32.png) [@WhyNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WhyNot)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2013, 12:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/workplace-griping-anyone/560401/6010 "2013-08-28T00:12:41Z")
[QUOTE=email I got today] Thanks [WhyNot] for explaining to me what is required of me in [name redacted] wound care case today. I appreciate your assistance but feel that you were talking down to me, and a little bit harsh in the tone you took when explaining that my license is on the line since I did not clarify the wound care orders with the MD staff. [/QUOTE] Oh, really? Because you didn’t know how to take care of your patient properly and you couldn’t be fucking bothered to pick up a fucking phone and ask? Or maybe because you sent \*me \*out with incorrect instructions when I filled in for you, putting \*my \*license on the line? I sounded a little bit harsh in tone? No fucking kidding. Guess what, buttercup, you’re the fucking nurse, it’s your job to know what you’re supposed to be doing. Idiot. (Now to go translate that into something that won’t start a war in the office…) ---
**Author:** ![Dr.Girlfriend](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dr.girlfriend/32/193_2.png) [@Dr.Girlfriend](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Girlfriend)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2013, 12:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/workplace-griping-anyone/560401/6011 "2013-08-28T00:34:34Z")
I have two gripes and a yay! First the yay! I got picked up as a regular employee, no more temp agency! Big raise too. It’s nice to not hate your job. Gripe #1: The temp agency “forgot” to pay me for my last week as a temp. My boss turned in my time card, HR told them the correct date of my conversion to regular employee. Apparently the agency just thought I was doing nothing that last week. HR got it straightened out, but that was an unwelcome surprise. Gripe #2: There should be some kind of maximum size allowed for lunch bags in the fridge. We have a nice commercial size fridge, but even a fridge that size doesn’t allow for luggage-sized lunch bags. The worst offender is someone who apparently comes in after everyone else and then shoves their foot locker in on top of everyone else’s bags. What the hell do you have in there anyways, a side of beef? Everyone else better hope they don’t have anything squishable in their bag. ---
**Author:** ![rockle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/73ab20/32.png) [@rockle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rockle)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2013, 1:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/workplace-griping-anyone/560401/6012 "2013-08-28T01:13:44Z")
> [@Yllaria](#): > > Were you the one who thought of the "This Workspace Proudly Velociraptor Free Since . . . " sign? I copied that and it’s still up. The only response I’ve ever gotten was a chuckle. > > Your complainer has no sense of whimsey. Yes. I think I borrowed (appropriated?) it from somewhere else, but I had that sign up and was accused of “fomenting revolution.” The assholery is strong with my department. ---
**Author:** ![Chimera](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/8e8cbc/32.png) [@Chimera](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chimera)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2013, 1:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/workplace-griping-anyone/560401/6013 "2013-08-28T01:22:55Z")
> [@Dr.Girlfriend](#): > > I have two gripes and a yay! First the yay! I got picked up as a regular employee, no more temp agency! Big raise too. It’s nice to not hate your job. Hurray! Glad you walked the same path. ---
**Author:** ![Cheez\_Whia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/d26b3c/32.png) [@Cheez\_Whia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cheez_Whia)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2013, 1:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/workplace-griping-anyone/560401/6014 "2013-08-28T01:32:50Z")
> [@Dr.Girlfriend](#): > > I have two gripes and a yay! First the yay! I got picked up as a regular employee, no more temp agency! Big raise too. It’s nice to not hate your job. > > Gripe #1: The temp agency “forgot” to pay me for my last week as a temp. My boss turned in my time card, HR told them the correct date of my conversion to regular employee. Apparently the agency just thought I was doing nothing that last week. HR got it straightened out, but that was an unwelcome surprise. > > Gripe #2: There should be some kind of maximum size allowed for lunch bags in the fridge. We have a nice commercial size fridge, but even a fridge that size doesn’t allow for luggage-sized lunch bags. The worst offender is someone who apparently comes in after everyone else and then shoves their foot locker in on top of everyone else’s bags. What the hell do you have in there anyways, a side of beef? Everyone else better hope they don’t have anything squishable in their bag. Yay **Dr. Girlfriend**! Meanwhile, in the good news/bad news department: I too, have been working a temp job for the last couple of weeks, along with 4 other people. Bad news: we got sent home for a week tonight because we got through with the project we were originally trained for a week sooner than they had planned for. Good news: they are going to train us for other programs when we come back. Hopefully, this will eventually segue into permanent positions. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![flatlined](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/eb9ed0/32.png) [@flatlined](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/flatlined)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2013, 4:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/workplace-griping-anyone/560401/6015 "2013-08-28T04:36:48Z")
> [@Dr.Girlfriend](#): > > I have two gripes and a yay! First the yay! I got picked up as a regular employee, no more temp agency! Big raise too. It’s nice to not hate your job. > > \ > > Gripe #2: There should be some kind of maximum size allowed for lunch bags in the fridge. We have a nice commercial size fridge, but even a fridge that size doesn’t allow for luggage-sized lunch bags. The worst offender is someone who apparently comes in after everyone else and then shoves their foot locker in on top of everyone else’s bags. What the hell do you have in there anyways, a side of beef? Everyone else better hope they don’t have anything squishable in their bag. Happy dance about your job. HURRAY!!! Advice for the socond gripe. Get a cooler that you can put under your desk. Not only will your food not get smooshed, nobody will be tempted to “borrow” anything. (not to mention the part where you can snack at your desk without having to get up and go to the breakroom.) ---
**Author:** ![amelie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/fbc32d/32.png) [@amelie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/amelie)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2013, 7:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/workplace-griping-anyone/560401/6016 "2013-08-28T07:46:07Z")
Well, this sucks, so I’m griping. I started a job a month or so ago, and - to all extensive purposes - it was a rocky start, but not entirely catastrophic : The office was undergoing a massive shuffle and people were leaving, being promoted, demoted, etc. The office was in a state of flux. Since these 5 weeks, the new office manager - the woman whom originally had my job - has been promoted. On the first week of her job as manager she went on a week long holiday, on the second week she came back and gave me some much needed training, on the forth week she handed in her notice. In some weird twist of fate, the old office manager - the manager who left to work elsewhere - is now returning to her old job as office manager. Office manager number 1, and office manager number 2, are best buddies, and have worked together for years. The reason I’m griping is because I’ve just received an appraisal from the _soon to be leaving_ office manager. This appraisal wasn’t even given to me by the office manager, but was given to me by the floating supervisor, who works 70 miles away in another city - but has to commute here in order to help out, every now and again. The supervisor knows nothing about my job, and was struggling to understand what he was written in the appraisal. In fact, this supervisor said - as far as he could see - I was doing a good job. Simply put, it feels like I’m being booted out of a job I NEED to keep the wolves at bay - re. debt, living expenses, all the usual financial constraints one gets lumbered with. It’s scary. It’s miserable, They’re gossip-y and complain-y. I’m miserable. And to top it off one of my colleagues is so punctilious, and so nit picky, that he has a habit of tidying up everyone’s desk as soon as they leave the office. He never smiles. Always complains. And never talks about anything, bar administration. In short, he is a hoot, with a face like an arse, and an arse that probably has light of helios beaming out. I’m miserbable and worried. ARSE ---
**Author:** ![Kimballkid](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/b5a626/32.png) [@Kimballkid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kimballkid)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2013, 2:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/workplace-griping-anyone/560401/6017 "2013-08-28T14:09:25Z")
> [@flatlined](#): > > Advice for the socond gripe. Get a cooler that you can put under your desk. Not only will your food not get smooshed, nobody will be tempted to “borrow” anything. (not to mention the part where you can snack at your desk without having to get up and go to the breakroom.) You mean you don’t have a desk drawer designated for snacks?! :eek: Where are your priorities woman? 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Kimballkid](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/b5a626/32.png) [@Kimballkid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kimballkid)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2013, 2:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/workplace-griping-anyone/560401/6018 "2013-08-28T14:12:47Z")
> [@amelie](#): > > In fact, this supervisor said - as far as he could see - I was doing a good job. > > Simply put, it feels like I’m being booted out of a job I NEED to keep the wolves at bay - re. debt, living expenses, all the usual financial constraints one gets lumbered with. I’m confused as these two sentences don’t seem to jive. You are getting booted out because you’re doing a good job? 😕 ---
**Author:** ![scudsucker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/scudsucker/32/14101_2.png) [@scudsucker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scudsucker)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2013, 2:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/workplace-griping-anyone/560401/6019 "2013-08-28T14:21:37Z")
There is nothing so pleasing, in a software development company, as your code being failed because of changes to the dev & live environment have not been replicated to Quality Assurance’s environment and therefore the QA server is fucking out. And then being told by QA that it is my responsibility to make it work on their server. My last commit comment “I do not think this story should fail. I am resubmitting it without any code changes.” I could well need beer. ---
**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:** [August 28, 2013, 5:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/workplace-griping-anyone/560401/6020 "2013-08-28T17:16:43Z")
> [@Kimballkid](#): > > I’m confused as these two sentences don’t seem to jive. You are getting booted out because you’re doing a good job? 😕 I don’t understand either - old manager is out, new manager is in, but what does that have to do with **Amelie** ’s job? Was the review bad? And for the record, the other co-worker shouldn’t be tidying other people’s desks after they leave. We like to have the illusion of having our own personal space at work. ---
**Author:** ![Chimera](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/8e8cbc/32.png) [@Chimera](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chimera)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2013, 6:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/workplace-griping-anyone/560401/6021 "2013-08-28T18:21:25Z")
> [@amelie](#): > > And to top it off one of my colleagues is so punctilious, and so nit picky, that he has a habit of tidying up everyone’s desk as soon as they leave the office. He never smiles. Always complains. And never talks about anything, bar administration. In short, he is a hoot, with a face like an arse, and an arse that probably has light of helios beaming out. What I would do is say something to the boss in front of him, without naming him. “Hey boss, someone keeps messing with my desk after I leave and then I have trouble finding things. I don’t like people going into my desk without my permission and I’m worried that some day something is going to go missing and I won’t immediately notice _ **because someone keeps messing with my desk** _!!!” Frankly, I don’t care if he claims OCD. My statement would be that I have my own patterns and behaviors and my own space, and his issue doesn’t give him the right to mess with my shit. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/workplace-griping-anyone/560401.md?page=300) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/workplace-griping-anyone/560401.md?page=302)