Newbie!

[ZENCHICK55]

Hi from me
Newbie on this forum

[ZENCHICK55]

we have a work colleague that has rapidly turned into our worst nightmare. We strongly suspect she has some serious issues and by her own admission, she is a bit strange and like no-one else on earth. She's reactionary, volatile, manic by degrees, [worse when she's tired] and we are constantly treading on eggshells. My colleague recently had to ask her why she had turned up 2 hours early for work and got her head bitten off. She's refusing to work the hours set by our managers and is pleasing herself basically! We have had tears, tantrums, the lot! We have had to speak to our line managers on numerous occasions, because her behaviour is so bizarre and causing all manner of stress and anxiety for all of us. We are not the only ones to witness her behaviour but so far because we are full time and she works with us, we are the only ones that have given feedback and so far nothing. We're in a public facing role and our day to day is unpredictable at best and we have volatile situations/emergency situations that can potentially happen at any time. What are our options? Our managers are seemingly unwilling to take control of the situation and are just letting her do what she wants. She doesn't like to be criticised and will react violently to this, either tears, tantrums or silence, all of which make for a very unstable and unpleasant work environment!

We have done our utmost to support her as she told us she'd been bullied/picked on/ostracized in the past so we are extra careful to be supportive and we would never ever be unkind. She recently accused my colleague of being abrupt and unkind because my colleague had asked her to move some filing she was doing because it was all over the work station and it is essential that we keep the place tidy as we are front line staff. We are at our wits end essentially and dread coming into work with her as we don't know what she will be like from one day to the next!

[ZENCHICK55]

One of our managers has worked with her in another department and by his own admission he said he could sympathise but apart from that, no action taken!

[ULA]

Welcome to LB


If you have already tried to approach this informally with line managers, then you may need to consider a more formal route. However in doing so you need to provide details and evidence of the behaviors of your work colleague that is causing an issue.

Given you are all front line staff it may be worth highlighting specific issues that directly affect the performance of those duties.

[ZENCHICK55]

Welcome to LB


If you have already tried to approach this informally with line managers, then you may need to consider a more formal route. However in doing so you need to provide details and evidence of the behaviors of your work colleague that is causing an issue.

Given you are all front line staff it may be worth highlighting specific issues that directly affect the performance of those duties.

Apparently she is meeting with the senior manager [they all work out of the same office] tomorrow and we have to wait for that to happen first, before they will take any further steps [if any!] but yes we could potentially do that, we are documenting every episode/occurrence and I have copies of emails I sent to the managers back in June when her behaviour started to cause us worry.

[ZENCHICK55]

I did ask one of the managers in the office, [there are 3 of them!] if the overall manager above them was aware of the escalation of events and the fact that this person was seemingly allowed to do whatever hours she pleased and he wouldn't answer the question. Nor would he admit that she knew about the volatile behaviour, I'm betting that she knows very little! As it was the overall manager's decision [in consultation with others no doubt] to make our desk a 24 hour manned service, we cover from 7am to 7pm and this latest recruit is refusing to do anything other than what she wants to do " to suit her lifestyle" [her words!]
As I say, we're at a loss to know what to do, our immediate management seem unable to control her or take any kind of decisive action!

[ULA]

Definitely see what happens after the meeting with her today.

However if it does conrinue then add this to the events you have been documenting already and put something formal to mannagement.

[ZENCHICK55]

I had a "well being" meeting [they are doing this for all staff in our workplace] where the topic was raised, and I explained how stressful the ongoing situation is for both myself and my other colleague. We have lost count of the times we have expressed concern over our mutual colleague's bizarre behaviour, her unwillingness to work the hours set by our rota that we are continuing to work, saying it doesn't fit in with her lifestyle and "she will NOT work later than a certain time and she doesn't care" [direct quote]. What can we do? Our line managers have put through her request for flexible working meaning that if this is approved, she can do whatever hours to suit herself, regardless of what her work environment requires! Should we take it higher? I'm wary of challenging her as she has reacted quite violently to this in the past and has accused us of trying to force her out and that we are picking on her! We don't set the rota hours, the managers do! We have bent over backwards to support her, and we would never be unkind, we have a long history of good employment relations between the two of us in various workplaces, people who know us would testify that we would never knowingly make anyone feel unwelcome or victimised as this mutual troublesome colleague has stated. I should make it clear that she has a known history of this behaviour in other workplaces and has left several jobs after exhibiting this behaviour there, except it's never her fault!

Totally exhausted with all the worry to be honest.

[ULA]

I can only repeat what I have said. Certainly you have the opportunity to do so on the back of you being involved in a well-being meeting and you have raised these concerns. If nothing happens as a consequence to support you and your colleagues then it must be raised formally.

[ZENCHICK55]

I can only repeat what I have said. Certainly you have the opportunity to do so on the back of you being involved in a well-being meeting and you have raised these concerns. If nothing happens as a consequence to support you and your colleagues then it must be raised formally.

thank you for taking the time to read and post