This may turn into more of a vent (or a laugh) -- problems w/ one of my employees

[HokeyReligions]

I have to laugh at this because if I don't it would make me angry.

 

The receptionist where I work was pulled onto a special project in another department. She readily agreed to do this.

 

I got in a temporary receptionist to take care of the front desk and the mail, etc.

 

The first day our regular receptionist was to spend with the temp to get her up-to-speed. That went so-so-ok.

 

Today my boss asks me to send out an email and let everyone know not to go to our old receptionist, but to make sure and go to the new one, or to my admin. asst.

 

OK. So, the original receptionist has her panties in a royal bunch. She doesn't want to let go of her desk, and does not want the temp to be successful, etc. so she is having a fit. She won't even speak to me except to tell me that she doesn't care what I say, she is not going to lose her receptionists job and that she doesn't appreciate me telling others not to go to her and she'll go tell Lloyd (the president & owner of the company) exactly what *I* am saying and doing!!! (She's been here longer than I have, but I came in at a higher level and she reports to me, which she does NOT like and does not agree to---tough for her huh?)

 

I proceeded to tell her that she was needed to focus on the special project and not be pulled away by others all the time and to let it go, she wasn't being replaced. My boss got in on it and told her that she would have to listen to me and not worry about her desk--I would see that it was taken care of (which I'm doing, I have my admin. asst. monitoring it and well as myself)

 

A little while ago the big copy machine needed toner---which is the receptionists job to replace. I went up and got our temp so she could learn how to put the toner in, and so I could as well since I don't know that machine. I'm not one of those managers that can't do for myself---I can even load paper into a printer!

 

The copy machine sits right in front of the cubicle the our regular receptionist is working from. The temp and I got the toner loaded and there was one separate bit that was in the box and she picks it up and says "do I throw this out?" and as I was saying "no, I'm sure there's a reason for it, where are the instructions" the regular receptionist stomps (and I do meand STOMPS) around her cubicle and grabs it out of the temps hand, deliberately keeping her back to me, and pops the filter out of the copier and pops the new piece in. She hands the old one to the temp and says "Now you can throw THIS out" and stomps back around her cubicle wall and sits down. I said "thank you [name]" and the temp and I walked off.

 

It was really funny, but it irked me too. I will have a discussion with her tomorrow. I've already had one with MY boss, who has also pulled the receptionist aside and talked to her. I'm working on how to approach her on this. I know my boss has my back on this (yay for me) but I expect the receptionist to just walk out on the conversation. She's the one who made the sarcastic remark to someone else when I started here that she absolutly was NOT going to work for me or report to me, and if I think that, I have another think coming!

 

The rest of my group are still chuckling over this--how childish!! The receptionist is really over-qualified for the job--she's been an executive secretary for many years, but she wanted the flexibility that comes with the receptionist role -- she won't work OT and takes a couple of un-paid vacation weeks a year, so she thinks that she should have some say-so and direction too. But she doesn't because her position does not and she can't seem to grasp that, or let go. She's very good at what she does, but the attitude has got to go!

 

We are going to keep having problems. The next big hurdle is when the office is restructured to make me the permanent supervisor of the boss's step-daughter who so far, doesn't really report to anyone. She was hired because the President said "find a place for her". Oh, the joys of being a middle manager. Thank goodness the rest of the staff is 'average'.

[FolderWife]

[moimeme]

Are you staying in that job? I thought you had quit or were going to?

[HokeyReligions]

I'm still looking for work. I signed another contract with them that ends June 20. I got a call about a job yesterday that I'm going to check out.

 

It's been interesting this week. I had to let the temp go today because she just wasn't working out. Monday she was in training and Tuesday & Wednesday she should have been okay to answer the phones and do a few things, like mail. But I had to tell her several times to speak up when she answers the phone because people can't hear her and to make sure and tell the President when he has a call--even interrupt him when he's in meetings. If he absolutly cannot be found, to give the message to my other boss, or me.

 

I checked on her quite a few times during the day over Tue & Wed and reminded her again about her phone voice and this morning I find out that she left at 5 yesterday and left a message that came in for the President sitting on her desk. The message came in at 4:11! From Lagos, Nigeria. Pres was in a meeting but she could have and should have gone in and given him a slip of paper at least telling him who was on the phone -- or called me and I would have.

 

I checked on her at 4:30 and at 5:00 before she left and she never said a thing, nor did I see the message. Our regular receptionist stayed a little late working on her project and when she went to her desk she saw the message and brought it to the Pres who was furious and said "I WANT THAT GIRL OUT NOW!" NO ONE came to me about it (I sit at the very back of the office and they are at the front) and I was working on a proposal that had to go out, but would have certainly stopped and taken care of this.

 

Anyway, the VP of Corp Development (whom I also work for) was brought in and she tried to call the agency to tell them not to have the temp come back and she couldn't get through. The number to have the temp agency paged was in the folder right in front of her, but she was too impatient to see it. I heard about it all at 8:00 this morning! I discussed the workload with the regular receptionist (first talk we've had since her childish little outbreak) and I had to call the agency and explain to them what happened (they were not thrilled either) and then go talk to the temp---who by the time I got up there had talked to the temp agency and was getting her stuff from the front desk. She was crying and wanted to explain why she didn't give the message --- she didn't want to barge into a meeting. I told her I was sorry it worked out the way it did, but that it was not acceptable for her to just sit on a message when she had been told several times, and by several people, NOT to do that.

 

I let my bosses know that IF I had been in the loop last night I would not have had to put anyone -- especially the temp -- through this, she would have been told by her agency last night not to come back and could have avoided the embarassment, and we could have avoided the lost time this morning dealing with it. That's my job to take care of these things and the fact that MY receptionist chose not to tell me right after she went to the President really made me angry and was just another attempt to deny that I'm her supervisor, and to make me look bad to the President.

 

My seating arrangement is not good because I'm so far away and through a doorway in another departmet, so I tend to be 'forgotton' by a lot of people. I'm working on a build-out that will move me and possibly moving to a new office when our lease is up in Sept. 06, but until then I MUST be kept informed and in the loop with the President. He doesn't know me yet, or my capabilities because my desk is not convenient to his office.

 

Yeah, I'm still looking for a new job!

[Mz. Pixie]

Gosh, I can feel ya!

 

Being a middle manager is tough!

 

The hardest part of my job is people being sick or out. Then I have to do their job. Last week I had to do four jobs on Wednesday. Now, I can usually handle three- but add the fourth to it and I start to freak a little and get a bit snapish.

 

One of my employees is from another country. She just adopted a little girl who's not quite two. The daughter has been ill and in the hospital and I feel for her. But the girl has used most of her time. She asked for vacation at the end of the week this week and the beginning of next week. I already have one on maternity leave so even having one other person out is a struggle. Our jobs are not the kind of job you can bring a temp in to do. So, because I try to always approve their time off if I can I told her she could be off. She came in Tuesday and told me her daughter was having a test ran and she would need a couple of hours off on Wednesday.

 

I said, "Why couldn't you schedule this during your vacation?" She stammered and kind of said, "Well that is the only time I could get it scheduled" Fine, okay, but then you realize that if you take a half of a day on Wednesday I can't allow you to have a half of a day on Friday as you requested?? She also doesn't have the time available. If she takes unpaid time she will lose her bonus for the quarter so she keeps trying to slide in a way for her to make up the time but it's impossible because she can't work until ten at night!

 

I find it crazy that some people do not consider the needs of their team. I understand her daughter has been ill and she needed to be off for that and I didn't hassle her about that but, come on- you're going to take vacation when your team really needs you?? I would never do that!

 

Sometimes you just have to laugh to keep from killing someone!