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co-worker claimed I'm prejudiced


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JaneInVegas

My apologies for making this a really long post. I submitted a statement for my direct supervisor today (who is not involved) and the 2nd one I am contemplating taking to HR. I'm on the fence, haven't decided. I have never ever been called prejudiced before, and that offended me. For the record, he referred to himself as black, but he's actually from India. Not sure what to make of that. Also, I actually have a State level government job, from an HR point of view I don't know if/how/why that would change things.

 

I really don't feel like typing it all out again, so I'm just cutting and pasting my statement from Word, that's why it's so long.

 

I would love some feedback from anyone savvy about HR issues regarding whether I should bother or not. I have changed all the names, the internet world gets smaller every day.

 

 

 

To (uninvolved) Supervisor:

 

 

The Head Honcho came to me requesting to process an account asap, he said he would like for it to be processed today. The first step in processing these accounts is to scan the letter into the system.

 

The scanner was clearly in use, although no one was sitting there. I could tell it was John because his tablet and headphones were sitting there on the table. I went to his desk and told him The Head Honcho had asked me to rush the the account process. I said, “Can you finish the one you’re on right now? This won’t take long, it’s just two pages.” He just looked at me. So I said I’d be done in just a second, and went back to the scanner.

 

I sat down to finish the scan John was in the middle of, and immediately John said very brusquely to me, “Let me finish it.” So I got up and let him complete his own scan.

 

The last step of the scanning process is the Validation screen. At that point the scanned image is visible, and to the left are the data entry fields where the customer account number is entered. The scan is not completed until after the Validation process. When I got to the Validation screen, the scanned image was visible but no data entry fields. I checked all the menus and drop downs, and was unable to figure out how to get the fields back.

 

I closed down the program and re-started it. The data entry fields were still not there. So I closed the program completely out using Task Manager, and that did not work either. I was contemplating rebooting the computer when Judy asked what the problem was. She came over and tried for a minute or two and gave up.

 

It is important to note that the entire time I was struggling with this issue John was standing behind me with his arms crossed, impatiently waiting.

 

After Judy left John said in a very angry voice, “You’re holding me up from my work.” I told him I was trying to figure out how to fix it. He reiterated that he had work to do. I reminded him that the Head Honcho had asked me to put a rush the account and he said he didn’t care. I said, “The scanner is dead in the water until it gets fixed anyway, neither one of us can scan until it’s resolved.” He repeated that he didn’t care. I said, “You’re not the only person that has work to do John.” To which he replied, “My work is more important than yours!”

 

I walked away, and he said I didn’t have to have such an attitude. I said, “And you don’t have to be so arrogant.” He took great offense to that and said, “I don’t like being called arrogant!”

 

At that point I was standing next to the Head Honcho's office door, waiting to tell him I was booted off the computer before I was able to scan his rush in. While waiting to speak with him I looked over at John, who was scanning in his own work. I watched for a few moments and saw that he had pulled up the data entry fields and was working away.

 

The Office Manager was standing there and asked what was going on. I told her everything that happened. I also said to her, “He’s over there scanning right now. He watched me try to figure it out for a long time and never offered to fix it, he just let me fail, and then kicked me off the computer because his work is more important.” The Office Manager asked me, “Did you get it finished?” and I told her no, I did not.

 

Contemplating for HR:

 

This afternoon I had a conversation with The Office Manager regarding what happened between John and me. When I told her that The Head Honcho gave me Acme's production as a priority for today she scoffed, “Acme a rush? Why? They’re just going to sit on it for 8 to 10 weeks. What was the rush? Wasn’t that something you could have done later in the day when John wasn’t scanning?

 

It seemed as though she was telling me that The Head Honcho's opinion of it being important was meaningless. She was scoffing his directive away without even knowing the details of the problem.

 

I told her that the scan should have taken only a minute or two, and I hadn’t asked to have the scanner any longer than that. With a tone she asked me, “Why DID it take so long?” I explained to her the issue I was having with the scanner, and she repeated that I should have just waited until John was done with the scanner.

 

I said, “But it was non-functional, I couldn’t get it to work, and John would have been unable to scan as well. I wasn’t trying to take the scanner away from him, I was trying to fix it so I could get The Head Honcho's task completed and let John have it back again.”

 

“Did you ask him for help?”

 

“No. He was standing there cross-armed impatiently waiting for me to finish, for about 10 minutes or so. It didn’t even occur to me to ask him, because a reasonable person would assume he didn’t know what was wrong if he hadn’t already jumped in and fixed it so we could both get back to work again.”

 

She went on to tell me that John is not my supervisor, and it is not his responsibility to tell me how to fix something. She said she could not fault him for standing there for 10 minutes watching me struggle and not offering to fix the problem. I told her that if I was in his shoes I’d say, “Hey tick tock tick tock I have work that needs to get done, let me get that for you.” Once again with a tone she said, “That’s YOU, not John. He is not your supervisor. That’s just the way he is, it’s his culture.”

 

“So John gets a free pass to act as he pleases because that’s his culture. He was very, very rude to me.”

 

“That’s just John, I’ve known him for 13 years and that’s the way he has always been.”

 

She went on to say that I owed him an apology for saying he’s arrogant. I said, “That’s fine, but I would like to have an apology for him being so rude to me.”

 

She said, “I can’t fault him for anything that he did.”

 

“Even though he took it upon himself to say that The Head Honcho's rush wasn’t as important as what he was doing?”

 

She became very impatient with me, and she wasn’t trying to hide her tone anymore. “It was just ACME, it wasn’t important. And besides, he has been working on scanning in those invoices ever since you walked in my door and complained that they weren’t scanned into the system. He has been giving up all his breaks, including his lunch breaks, to get those scanned in because you complained, and now you want to say that Acme is more important?”

 

I was taken aback by what seemed like a guilt trip.

 

I reminded her that the task given to me should have only taken a minute or two tops. I also reminded her that John could have been back to work very quickly if he had taken two seconds to show me how to fix the problem.

 

Slightly raised voice, “Did you ask him?” Since she repeated her question, I repeated my answer. “No, it did not occur to me to ask him, because a reasonable person would assume he didn’t know what was wrong if he hadn’t already helped, instead of standing there for 10 minutes glowering at me with his arms crossed.”

 

She went on about his culture, how I owed him an apology, and how she wanted all of this behind us and forgotten.

 

I had been surprised that John would consider his routine tasks to be more important than something the Head Honcho considered important enough to rush. However, I was shocked that The Office Manager maintained this opinion as well.

 

I personally did not hear John's comments to The Head Honcho that all this happened because he is “black.” I took great offense to that, because I see everyone as “people,” no color involved. I have never said or done anything to him to even remotely suggest that I think less of him because we are from different races and cultures.

Edited by JaneInVegas
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You lost me. You started off the thread stating you were upset about being called prejudice. Then you told a long story about the back and forth between you and the co-worker over the scanner. During your exchange with the co-worker he never called you prejudice. Then you shared the conversation you had with the office manager and during that exchange she never called you prejudice. Then finally in the last paragraph you address the prejudice thing by stating in a single sentence "I personally did not hear John's comments to The Head Honcho that all this happened because he is “black.”

 

 

Huh? Who called you prejudice and when exactly did it happen?

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To (uninvolved) Supervisor:

 

So you've already sent this one? Not much you can do about it now, then.

 

Contemplating for HR:

 

What is your goal in sending this letter? You didn't include what you wanted out of this or why you wrote it. It just reads like a long vent/rant. Were you asked to give your side of the story?

 

In my opinion, you're making a big deal out of a minor office spat where you and your coworker were pretty much equally crappy to one another. Getting more people involved in this petty drama would probably be a mistake and could bite you in the ass. My suggestion is to let it go and steer clear of John from now on.

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JaneInVegas

eh, sorry, had a really bad, long day today, I forgot to mention that John filed a discrimination complaint today. I would like to tell my side of the story in order to hopefully descalate the situation. I'very never been in a situation like this before. And no, John did not call me prejudice to my face, nor was it discussed with anyone openly.

 

Also I would like to bring it to someone's attention that the office manager is encouraging employees to go against head honchos instructions. That's a really bad thing to do against your boss.

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JaneInVegas

My supervisor heard most of the exchange and asked me to email that to her. John is infamous for being haughty and arrogant, and she is tired of it. Another coworker overheard everything and wrote a statement for me in case I decide to be proactive about all this nonsense.

 

I'm tired of all this .... earning your Cheerios shouldn't give you a headache every other day.

 

Just curious, how do you think I was treating him badly? I was completely neutral until he announced my rush from the boss wasn't as important as his daily tasks. He slashed the bosses authority, all I did was tell him he was being arrogant.

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John filed a discrimination complaint today.

 

Let them come to you, then.

 

I would like to tell my side of the story in order to hopefully descalate the situation.

 

I don't think this will deescalate the situation. I think your letter is just an admission that you were an equal participant in an argument.

 

Also I would like to bring it to someone's attention that the office manager is encouraging employees to go against head honchos instructions. That's a really bad thing to do against your boss.

 

I think you're going to create an uncomfortable situation for yourself by tattling on your superiors over something very minor.

 

I hope it made you feel better to write this all out and get it off your chest, but don't send that to anyone. If you absolutely can't stop yourself from sending a message to HR, I think you should scrap what you have now, do a google search on how to file a complaint with HR, and rewrite the entire thing. People are busy at work and no one wants to read a letter that boils down to, "He said this, then she said that, then I was all..." Make it short and to the point. But really, honestly, I think you should let this go and hope it all blows over.

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Didn't see your last post before I hit submit, sorry.

 

Just curious, how do you think I was treating him badly? I was completely neutral until he announced my rush from the boss wasn't as important as his daily tasks. He slashed the bosses authority, all I did was tell him he was being arrogant.

 

Calling your coworker names is inappropriate, even if they called you a name first.

 

One could also argue that you interrupted John's work and took over the use of the scanner without his permission. Then when your work wasn't finished "in just a second" and he asked you (in a dick-ish way) to let him get back to work, you did not allow him to. Then you copped an attitude with him by saying, “You’re not the only person that has work to do John.”

 

Don't get me wrong, I'm not saying this was all your fault and John was being an angel. I think he was being a colossal prick, but I don't think you handled it very well.

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JaneInVegas

Actually I did ask him first, I didn't just barge in. And I had no idea that he knew how to fix it, so in my mind I wasn't holding him up, the stupid scanner was. Even after ten minutes he didn't share that with me. It wasn't that I didn't allow him to get back to work, I was trying to fix it. I was trying to follow bosses orders and get mission accomplished.

 

But yes, I guess you have a point, I should have kept silent. I should have just taken the letter back to the boss and said the scanner was broke, or whatever.

 

I changed a little of the wording around to hide where I work, but I will say there are no customers involved. The office manager and John were dissing on a panel of judges, saying they were not importent enough to receive this information.

 

And WHY did he turn this into racism?? He is a very unpleasant person, but that has nothing to do with his skin. That hurt.

 

Thank you for the constructive criticism, it has helped me wrap my head around this.

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And WHY did he turn this into racism?? He is a very unpleasant person

 

That's why.

 

I'm sure everyone in your office is well aware of him being an unpleasant person who is difficult to work with. Let his own actions speak for themselves. Hopefully, his claim of discrimination will be seen as the BS that it is, and the whole situation will fizzle out.

 

Good luck with this.

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My work does not pay me enough to worry over s-hit like this. I understand the "head honcho" wanted it to be rushed. Does that mean interrupt other people to get in done and make them wait instead of you? Was getting it done that instant really important? Like, get it done now or a bunny rabbit gets shot in the head? Or get it done this instant and then it sits around for next few hours or even days? I'm guessing you coulda waited a few minutes and there would have been no difference in the outcome for the "head honcho". Maybe calm down.

 

 

John coulda handled it differently sure, but you were the aggressor in this situation. I'm not the one wearing your shoes, but I'm betting that wasn't necessary.

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SincereOnlineGuy

Well, there's no evidence of discrimination (aside from 'discriminating' between 'Acme' and John's random work) (were nobody 'discriminating' then it would all be haphazardly blended together).

 

 

But your boss is right, John had no duty to assist you in repairing the scanner.

 

 

A sensible boss would have avoided any references to John's "culture" in describing his personality, for there are some 'cultures' which mutilate girls, but we don't allow that here. It is at best irrelevant.

 

 

John's race/culture has nothing to do with any of this picture, and you seem to be trying to get us at LS to become focused in undo fashion on John's race.

 

Had John been a white man, standing behind you as you made a mess of company equipment, do you think he would have been responsible for the mess you made?

 

 

 

And beyond all that, your story reads as if you both "let him complete his own scan" AND that "the entire time... John was standing behind (you)... impatiently waiting".

 

So exactly what was John waiting for, if indeed you had already "let him complete his own scan" ??

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The issue is three fold.

1: apparatus malfunctioned. Where is your support staff to repair it?

2: a directive from head honcho supercedes the office manager. The office manager reports to the owners. The unsupportive comments from the office manager need to be openly discussed , it undermines the morale.

3: off the cuff comments (venting) need adjusted. an apology should suffice

 

With all that in mind, allow the complaint to manifest. Get legal counsel. I doubt that any ink will dry before the owner puts a halt to this inter office mishap. You were given a directive and it shows you were trying to abide and a malfunction created the domino effect. you are not responsible for others attitudes or actions.

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Do take it to HR. Use names, not "Head Honcho," and official title. The one telling you to apologize, complain about her too saying that especially since she stated how long she'd known him it sounded like she was biased and took his side.

 

Don't worry about this discrimination charge. That will have to be against the company, not you, for him to get any money. He will have to prove the company unfairly terminates minorities and that sort of thing. If they don't, then you calling him arrogant after he made his "my work is more important" comment that started it isn't going to hold much weight. That has nothing to do with prejudice.

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I agree, I would not worry about the discrimination charge...worst they can do is suspend you while they investigate, but discrimination is VERY difficult to prove unless you have hard evidence...emails, recordings or any documentations or witnesses they overheard this.

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Seems like you'd need to have some authority over him in order to effectively discriminate against him as well. Otherwise the most he could go for would be some sort of coworker bias, which I doubt he'd get far with based solely on his 'heartfelt conviction' that you plotted to steal the scanner from him based on his color.

 

The sticky part here is that private companies are often little better than government entities when it comes to ....not being completely and utterly idiotic.

 

Is there any sort of chain of command protocol for prioritizing jobs? It seems odd to me that this head honcho person, who I'm assuming is a CEO or company president or what have you, would have a priority request deemed non-priority by what I'm assuming is his underling, the office manager. Unless the whole operation is much more informal than it appears from your information.

 

Was this a "Jane, I the Head Honcho command you to process this account at once" type thing or more of a "Hey Jane, can you do this for me when you get a chance?" moment? Do the HH's desires formally overrule everything else? Seems like office manager's opinion on the matter would mean very little if so.

 

Also, IMO yes, he was being a total dick by not helping with the scanner when he apparently knew how to fix it and instead stared at you, which itself could be deemed some form of harassment. You could even go so far as to say his actions directly caused the waste of a significant amount of company time, both his and yours. If he had provide the solution to fixing the scanner, which was within his power, you could have finished sooner, which would in turn have allowed him to finish sooner instead of wasting time staring at you.

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Also, IMO yes, he was being a total dick by not helping with the scanner when he apparently knew how to fix it and instead stared at you, which itself could be deemed some form of harassment. You could even go so far as to say his actions directly caused the waste of a significant amount of company time, both his and yours. If he had provide the solution to fixing the scanner, which was within his power, you could have finished sooner, which would in turn have allowed him to finish sooner instead of wasting time staring at you.

 

 

I dunno. I have offered help to people before and it was an insult to them. As if they didn't know how to do their own job. And if he just stepped in after her and it "started working", it was probably operator error...not a "fix".

 

Honestly, if someone went over the top on me and then proceeded to demonstrate they didn't know what they were doing, I'd be very tempted to let them stew in their own **** that they created.

 

 

Also I would like to bring it to someone's attention that the office manager is encouraging employees to go against head honchos instructions. That's a really bad thing to do against your boss.

 

 

I don't know how it is for your business, but for what I do, the very top people don't know my job. Sometimes they try to help, by getting inconsequential crap done and being in the way....screwing everything up. Putting a rush on something that then has to sit and wait for matters outside of our control and wondering why we failed to get other things done in time that would have properly flowed on through to completion. If where you work is big enough, the "head honcho" probably doesn't know everything. But hopefully your office manager knows her job. I've had plenty of instances where I had to tell people in charge....'it doesn't work that way'.

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