I suspect someone in my division is using his disability and religion to get away with shit. Nothing like this though.
This guy has virtually no common sense and takes three 15-minute breaks per day whereas the rest of us get two. Routinely, he leaves a few minutes early for lunch, comes back a few minutes late from lunch, and heads home a few minutes early. One former supervisor made certain to watch the doors on our floor at a quarter of three to make sure the guy didn’t sneak out before three.
For those still a bit confused, Russel Sage is an women’s college that is at the bottom of a large hill on the city, whereas RPI is at the top of the hill, and the walk down the hill takes between 30 mon and an hour depending on where on the RPI campus you are.
(Related anecdote about women walking back the morning after)
A few years ago when I was a sophomore or junior, all the fraternities had to attend a sex talk thingy. It was you basic sexual harrasement/assault lecture. The kind of thing where if a guy was going to do it, that lecture ain’t gonna stop him (luckily, at my school, it rarely happened (i think I remember once instance all four years I was there.)) Anyhoo, the lecturer was actually quite funny, and shared an amusing anecdote:
"So one day, I just flew in to a city and was getting a ride back to campus from a member of a local fraternity. It was early on a Sunday morning, and I noticed a large amount of young women, several dressed as if they were going out to a party, all walking back in the cold to wherever. I asked the guy driving me what the deal was, and that he should offer them a ride. He said,
“no, man. That’s the walk of shame.”
“Walk of shame?” I said.
“Yeah, these girls all spent the night with a guy, and now they have to walk back to their dorms or apartments in the clothes they wore last night, and everyone sees them and knows what they did, and they are ashamed of it.”
So I said,
“Ashamed?! I don’t know what kind of reputation the fraternities have here, but when I have sex with a girl, she’s happy and wants to stick around!”
I tried this earlier, but my post got eaten. So, one more time.
Thanks. I wish I could take credit as me being a nice person, but really it was more CYA than anything. I don’t want her to have anything to come back with when it comes to the inevitable parting of the ways. So I will bite my tongue and vent here occasionally.
I’m sure that’s played a part. I mean, it’s been 10+ years. So, I’m documenting everything and being very careful to show that she’s being given every opportunity to correct the problem, and that we’ve accomodated,… yadayadayada.
But the probation period this time is six months. I cannot see her going that long without a melt down. She’s way too addicted to drama to let it go that long.
Heh. No smashing at all. I felt sorry for her, too. Initially, I thought, “well, maybe her transfer will be a good thing. A fresh start. She can let go of all the crap and start over.” But, she won’t. She won’t let go of anything. And it’s exhausting, trying to give her the benefit of the doubt. It’s been just over a year. There’s always something, and there’s always a story to explain that something. I mean, I’ve walked away from her after listening to five minutes of whatever rambling story she has, and have her follow me to finish it. One of my coworkers actually wears her headphones all the time now, even when she isn’t listening to music so that Joan will leave her alone (they work next to each other). As ivylass said, she’s bringing about her own destruction.
PunditLisa, I appreciate the concern. We have a sonic wall, and everyone’s stuff is monitored to some extent. Although, not by her, and she has very few allies left after this particular explosion.
tdn, that is SO kind of you to offer. My gratitude knows no bounds. The SLK320 convertible please, black.
Skippy, (Mod or no, I’m still gonna call you Skippy. So there. Nyah.) let her out of the closet now and then, sheesh. Give her a hug for me, tell her I now know exactly how surreal cow-orker crap can truly be. And, because she can’t be hearing it enough from her mom, when are you two reproducing?! I kid.
Elza, do warn him about the goat. But, let the calamari be a surprise.
Bouv, that’s an impossible position to be in. You know for a fact that they’re taking advantage of their disability, but point it out and you’re cruel and heartless and a scoundrel. How dare you pick on a disabled person??? Because suddenly the person they are doesn’t matter, their disability is all that’s taken into account. Kinda screws the people who deal with their disabilities every day and still manage to be productive and good people. One of my patients comes in at 5 am three days a week, dialyzes for four hours, rests for an hour, goes home, does house work, helps her kids with their homework, does work from home, makes dinner…in other words, is a nice person just trying to deal with the fact that her kidneys aren’t working. I don’t see her wailling to the heavens that life has treated her unfairly. It’s always the people who think they’re owed. Go figure.
ivylass, TC has been suspended without pay thrice. Once when she forgot to pay rent on the facility and we were fined $3300, this time, and a classic melt down of epic proportions, which I shall impart shortly.
Lute & picu, thanks for the links. The woman is my hero, I tells ya.
Alright, so, we have meltdown #3, the boombox that should have been Joan’s. We have meltdown #1, the rent that didn’t get paid and resulted in very breakable vehicle meeting unmoving lead pole. In between those, we have meltdown #2,
In which my former boss causes Joan all kinds of stress
When I first started with the company, I worked for a really wonderful woman (she’s still here, I got promoted). Everyone in the department would do just about anything for her. She and the CFO worked very closely. No hanky panky, she’s happily married. Now. It was widely known that Joan had a major crush on John, the CFO (which was why she was so destroyed when he chewed her out.) We all travelled quite a bit, training nurses & techs on our equipment and software. At any rate, my boss was travelling to Colorado to visit a unit there, and our CFO said “Oh, great! I have a house there! You can stay there, I’ll make sure you have the keys!” Joan came unGLUED. You would think they were having sex there on Lisle’s desk for all the world to see. “OMG, it’s SO inappropriate! How could she be staying in his house!?!” “Joan. Chill. He won’t even be there. He’s saving the company some cash. It was a nice gesture.” “Nice gesture? She’s married! What is she thinking!!” By the next morning, it was rumored that John and Lisle were sneaking off to his place in Colorado for the week. She totally snubbed my boss. Wouldn’t even look at her. Spilled John’s coffee all over his paperwork. Finally, exasperated, Lisle took her aside and asked her what the problem was. Joan looked her straight in the eye, and said “you have no right doing what you’re doing. You know it’s wrong. How can you even look your husband and son in the face?” Lisle very calmly explained to Joan that aside from being none of Joan’s business, John would not be there, and it was specifically for business purposes. And also, that if the unsubstantiated rumors had anything to do with Joan, there would be serious repercussions. Joan stormed out of the room. We figured to sulk. No. No, no, Joan was not done by a long shot. She called Lisle’s husband and ranted at him about the irresponsibility of allowing his wife to run around the country with the company’s CFO. TOTALLY inappropriate, and if I had been her boss at that time, she WOULD have been fired. She then stalked into John’s office and said she would not allow the company to pay for his “trysts” and stomped out. At that point, she was just starting to get treated, so it’s possible that’s what saved her ass; the person I spoke with didn’t know how she got out of it. But get out of it she did, with a three day suspension.
Hey Maureen, not to butt in, and I really loved the story, but are you okay with posting more stuff about TC, would she have any way to find out about it on the SDMB, and would that cause your company grief (run on sentence)?
Hate to sound like a pissant, asshat, or (current creative swear du jour), just sayin’
No, you don’t sound like a pissant or an asshat. Um. The names have been changed to protect the guilty, the innocent, and my sorry ass. The situations are exactly as I have posted them, but nobody here (to my knowledge) posts on the Dope; I’ve even asked people if they’ve heard of it. My superior knows about my internet useage, but he’s the only one, and he isn’t about to go noising it about. It would only be used to show me if I’m spending too much time doing something other than work. She’s never seen me doing anything on my computer but working.
People with mental illnesses can be some of the most unpleasant people to work with. We are sometimes hostile, moody, unenergetic, talkative, sullen, manipulative, arrogant, negative – and that’s only Monday morning. Or illness is never an excuse, but it is often the reason we are such assholes.
I am not familiar with any law that protects us more than anyone else who is not able to do the job because of illness, but I am willing for ink a dink a dink or anyone else to change my mind with a cite.
I am all for firing her ass. If she has a mental disability, she can received Social Security benefits. If she doesn’t have a disability, why would your office have to be on guard all the time?
Maureen, keep in mind that people with other kinds of disabilities at least have a fully functioning brain with which to be “productive and good people.” I don’t know that I would have the courage that the woman on dialysis must have.
Was she psychotic both before and after the accident? Do you mean that literally? How would you expect her to behave? I’m not sure what you are saying. Is she just an asshole who blames her behavior on an accident that damaged her brain? Was she mentally ill before the accident and did that affect her behavior? Did she become mentally ill after the accident?
Are you sure you’re not blaming her for her mental illness?
Maureen, incident #2 makes me wonder what she’d make of my father who’d routinely stay with his mother-in-law when the company would send him to England on business! Would she really try to convince my mother that my father was sleeping with her mother?!
You know, you have been more than fair with this woman. This is completely beyond the pale. I would have been furious.
Hell, at my old job, we fired a receptionist who took a confidential fax and spread it around the building, instead of giving it to the person it was addressed to. She knew this person was waiting for the fax and had been told to bring it directly to her.
Jesus, Joan’s going to be working as a pharmacist next, right? I can just see her going into a towering rage when someone wants to get their birth control pills. Although I can see her doing the same thing for Viagra, oddly enough.
This is just too funny as I’m involved with what sometimes seems like an entire company filled with whacko’s.
Anyhoo, if I were you , I’d go have a quick chat with HR. Make sure everything is in order just on the off chance that demon bitch from hell makes a threat to quit or throws another hissy fit. Be really convenient if there’s documentation just waiting for a signature and date to be filled in, and a manager who’s got a pen ready. Just saying…
Apparently she has a sister who has never been in an accident, but is every bit as bratty, selfish, and manipulative. Knowing a few other things about this girl, my guess is that she’s not so much mentally ill as spoiled beyond all recognition. So to call her psychotic is an insult to psychotics everywhere.
Well done Maureen. I don’t mean to criticise you but I think a better course of action would have been to have a quick chat with the prize winner before he meets Joan, telling him not to let her guilt trip or pressure him, that he had every right to keep that prize, etc. and leave it at that. After that, it’s in his hands to stand up for himself. I can understand how difficult that can be sometimes and why you did what you did, but this way much drama could have been avoided. After all, up until you took the boom box from under Joan’s desk, she hadn’t done anything wrong yet. She might have said to him “Here is your prize, congratulations and enjoy!” You knew she wouldn’t but you understand what I’m saying, I’m sure.
Still, like I said, you did the right thing sticking up for the kid.
I just stopped by our hospital lab’s mini-lunch buffet set up for Lab Week. There was a notice for people to leave their names for a drawing for Lab Week gifts.
I don’t think anyone that nuts is working here, but I suppose we’ll find out.
