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A smear campaign against someone [at work. Help!]


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Dear Lady Disdain

Dear all, I'm treading carefully because I am currently a contractor in my workplace but I need to urgently ask for some advice

 

Within our team there is a Narcissist, a girl who wears revealing clothes, is bullying and mouthy/ cries when she needs to, a drama queen and never does a scrap of work - she gets away with everything, she is being protected by a manager, everyone who has worked with her has ended up as a broken heap, having had to carry her while she swans around acting arrogant and conceited, she is vile in a word

 

Anyway...I have had the good fortune to have her as a team mate for the last five months and one manager from another team sympathised and was kind to me, he realised how much I covered, how I would always pick up the phone and answer for his team members asking how she was, how I would pick up cases and carry her

 

We work in the care industry so it is vital the work is done fast with a quick turnaround, she is about to move to an area where this is extremely important and he learnt of this and complained to a manager in front of me while praising my good work

 

The manager is clearly protecting her and tried to cover it right up, telling him not to go to the other Boss above him or to the higher ups, but just to tell him about it

 

He went to the Higher ups though because he told me, as it was unbelievable how this manager was covering for her trying to defend her

 

Fast forward about a week - now this girl, encouraged by the manager who was covering up for her, has complained about this gentleman to my Boss today

 

She told me about it and I didn't back her up - I saw the Boss too and said to him that he was frustrated because I've been fielding her calls and doing all the work, the Boss saw my view and agreed in the end that this girl could be difficult but he still thought this gentleman could be too

 

I am so furious that she said that this gentleman ought to take stress leave, just because he was trying to make her do the work ( I was not there to cover then, I was off over Christmas ) implying he had mental health issues

 

I feel really angry about this and I am tempted to whistleblow to my Boss about me being there when he spoke to the manger about it previously and the covering up - to me this is obviously these two trying to retaliate against him

 

My friend, who spoke up for me, does not know about this complaint and I've resisted telling him for fear it might stress him out too much

 

But very tempted to tell the Boss about what took place

 

What would you suggest I do? Do you think it'd jeopardise my job if I whistle blew

 

This manager covering up for her told me to go to him instead of the other Boss if I had any problems - but the nicer Boss told me to go to him

 

Now this creep is buttering me up, being nice and has requested me as a LinkedIn Friend

 

Incidentally as well after this man exposed this girl to the Higher Ups I received a phone call saying my job would shortly be made permanent from the above Boss

 

What a tangled web! I hope this is clear

 

My question is, do you think I should whistle blow as this is clearly retaliation and not fair for the man in question - or do you think it'd jeopardise my job or should I go to HR or tell the man

 

So many people know what this girl is like and they are sick of her, they all know somebody is covering up for her and helping her get away with everything

 

I am tempted to put a complaint in writing tomorrow

 

Thanks, so much DLD XXX

Edited by Dear Lady Disdain
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Superchicken

Hi,

 

 

You're in a pickle, and dirty tactics, attracts dirty tactics.

 

 

Up to you, so please remember this..

 

 

I would get some roses sent to her, on her desk, when she's away long enough, for the boss who covers for her, to see them.

Or place them where he can see them FIRST.

Place a card that says what a "GREAT" time they spent together, and that she needs to call him to pick up some of her cloths from his house.

Or something like it..

Once this guy reads that, she's toast.

Its a dirty trick yes, but the idiot boss, is the one when set the ground rules.

 

 

Never fails to spread a few rumors that she has a Young guy in her life..

Those rumors travel fast..

Yeah, I watched too much TV..

 

 

 

 

Apart from that, the only thing left is to fess up higher and get some action..

HR will then make an investigation, and find out what's been going on.

However, it may backfire, and then you have two people hot on your ass..

 

 

 

 

Good luck.

 

 

 

 

Ted.

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OP,

If your line manager isn't ensuring that fair play takes place in his department then you escalate and go to HR.

 

However, if you plan to do that you need to get all your ducks in a row and have a detailed record of time/place/what happened. So you need to start keeping a diary.

 

And don't pick up any slack for anyone, work to your contract and that's it.

 

Workplace politics/power struggles are a real pain :rolleyes:

 

Good luck.

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A very similar situation ruined my long-running career. It is VERY hard to fight this situation. In my case, same method of operation, sucked up to higher-up couple of males who protected her. Didn't work. In fact, he'd tell me to givce her something to do and she'd lie and say I never did when the work wasn't done.

 

I ended up going to the owner of the company about it was very lucky because she had gotten complaints from a store she sometimes picked up a few hours ran by his nephew, so he knew she was trouble. So he told his VP and my immediate supervisor to always believe me (the tenured employee) over her, the new employee, but the VP soon looked for some other reason to fire me because it rubbed him the wrong way, getting his little suck up in trouble. So not long after I thought it was finally settled and she was gone, I was fired because Sony's computer order system was broke, basically. No, I didn't work for Sony, not yet anyway. They were a product provider. I was fired for a situation I had zero control over.

 

So I can assure you there isn't a good way to fight this type of person, not when they've got higherups wrapped around their finger. All that happened to me about 25 years ago and I recently found out from my then immediate supervisor's wife that that same woman came sucking up to him asking for money, having hit tearfully hard times :rolleyes: and he gave it to her. The wife was unhappy, but she can't do anything with him just like I couldn't either because he likes to think he's this worthless user's hero or something.

 

If you are going to fight it, you're going to have to get down on her level. One thing I did trying to control her lying was have a witness nearby anytime I was told to give her some work so they could see I gave it to her and instructed her when it was due. By the way, she never completed a task that I can remember and I didn't want to give her anything, obviously, after that.

 

If I had to do it again, I'd drop a dime on the two guys who were protecting her to their wives or girlfriends and get them on the case. Anonymously, of course.

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  • 2 weeks later...
Excalibur1814

It might be too late but please...

 

Do... not... do... it.

 

Your neck would need to be stretched and it just might get chopped. People are not daft, as there will be a lot of office talk, which means that everyone probably knows what's going on but we/they tolerate it.

 

Your main should be yourself. If you're sure that nothing, AT ALL, can come back to you, then go for it but if there's even a small chance then it's not worth it. You have bills to pay, you need to live, so think about YOU first and everyone else second. It's survival.

 

It is a great and positive thing, doing what's right, but you are realistically nothing to the people above you. If it benefits YOU then go for it. If not, ignore it.

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LivingWaterPlease

I see this was written on January 3 so the situation has most likely been resolved one way or another but in case it hasn't I'll add my belief:

 

Personally I would pray about it a lot for several days, or if things needed to be addressed right away, for one day.

 

Then I would do what I know to be the right thing.

 

When you stand up for truth you are coming from a position of strength no matter what the result is to you.

 

Because God is powerful, even if you lost your job (and He could prevent that) God could help you find a better one. No matter the result, knowing that you did the right thing means everything.

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hi dld, hhmm...im gonna be honest with you and say I'm not really following this thread so easy sorry. so I don't really know what I would do fully because I am not sure what is going on. :confused:

 

it sounds rather complicated and I think that there is quite a bit of fear caught up in this situation and I think there is probably more to this post that you might feel comfortable in saying (and maybe that is partly why I cant follow it so well) - either that or I'm just not getting it yet; but one thing I would say is don't go down the false rumours route yourself because you will probably be caught out and look like another liar in this situation as well and it will discredit what you are trying to say if you need to put a stop to this situation properly.

 

bullying is not good however and if it were me I would want to try to do something to stop that; and as for the smear campaign that just says a lot about the people you're dealing with, so you are right to be cautious.

 

is there any way you can talk to the man in question and tell him what is going on if there is a smear campaign against him? maybe he can take it from there and if there is a smear campaign against him (if that is the one part I have got right in your post?) if that part is right then maybe I feel he has a right to know the truth about what is going on behind his back; because if he's been good to you or is a good person then surely he deserves to know what is going on; because if you are not saying anything and he is getting his reputation damaged further unfairly, then you I'm afraid are also prolonging his suffering! and letting this person who is spreading nasty rumours and the people covering for them feel even more power over you.

 

also, have you spoken to the people or person creating the smear? and what do they say about what or why they are saying what they are...because that might tell you something about what is really going on and why people are acting like this.

 

you know the people in this situation who are genuine and those who have an agenda!!!!

 

you have to think if you were in the persons shoes who is being gossiped against and everyone is trying to smear, and ask yourself would that person stand up for you and tell you what they knew against you knowing if you were in distress or it was affecting you or would they stay silent and let others get away with this?

 

what I don't understand is why are people also treating you with difficulty?

 

if the answer is they would look out for you and try to do the right thing to help you and stop things getting any worse for you then you need to talk to them and let them know the truth.

 

if you can talk to them privately then if it does go further it is because they can take the matter further.

 

but maybe if you cannot sort this and you still have to see this person even after they move on, then would it be worth looking for a new job. you are not getting support already from your managers and poor management can make your life hell just as much as workplace bullies! and often is the case, managers with a grudge tend to also keep chipping away at things until you go or they want you out anyway.

 

if there is anything that can make the post a bit clearer or join things up a bit more I might be able to add something or be a bit more sure in what I think.

 

I have a feeling also that you are not the only angry person in this situation, but before you speak to the person being smeared; you must be 100% sure that the person spreading rumours is really spreading the rumours that you think they are and that that is not also a rumour created by others who may also have an agenda!!! otherwise there is going to be one hell of a explosion and it could destroy friendships or working relationships.

 

I'm not sure if that helps you in any way. but I think going to talk officially may put your name squarely in a place where you are forced to confront these people one on one or at least make a full statement about what you know, and if you are not prepared to do that then you perhaps shouldn't go there.

 

but the truth has a habit of coming out when people keep getting away with things. but only you really know what is at the centre of this. maybe you cold get some advice from a helpline and then you can put the whole story to them, as as I said earlier, I think that there are still details in this post that we don't know and that might make all the difference to what we think. but if I am wrong apologies.

 

but I hope things can clear up for you soon. maxi.

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todreaminblue
everyone who has worked with her has ended up as a broken heap, having had to carry her while she swans around acting arrogant and conceited, she is vile in a word

 

Anyway...I have had the good fortune to have her as a team mate for the last five months and one manager from another team sympathised and was kind to me, he realised how much I covered, how I would always pick up the phone and answer for his team members asking how she was, how I would pick up cases and carry her

 

then this

 

So many people know what this girl is like and they are sick of her, they all know somebody is covering up for her and helping her get away with everything

 

 

this girl is failing at her job and with her team because people are covering for her.....you have been one of those people who has covered for her.....helped her get away with things.....have you spoken to her personally.....in private...asked her to take back her complaint.....instead of doing her cases.....show her the best way to do them......tell her honestly that no one can cover her anymore and tell her you want her to feel supported as part of the team but she has to work as part of the team....if she is the weak link in your team then you need to strengthen that link....who is in line to lose their job?...not you...

 

as an employer i would question who carried her and allowed her to coast and causes an imbalance in the team.....i would give her a quiet and private warning to pick up her act and ask a more experienced team member to guide her in how to complete cases competently...i dont think its the woman 100 per cent fault for everything here..i would ask to be updated on her performance by an honest and reliable person.....i would also organise a team building day due to gossiping and low team morale..........and request it to be compulsory.....

 

if i was the janitor(janitors know everything)......i would be finding out where the suggestion box was and putting pretty memos and ideas in.....with smiley faces....

 

there is no I in team......

...deb.

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Dear Lady Disdain

You are all so incredibly kind thank you so much

There is an update, I DID go and see my manager but only briefly and informally...I said I understood she had made a complaint and I wanted to say that this man has always been fine with me and became frustrated because she did not pick up her phone and I was having to chase her and do most of the work, it wasn't official but I did something

The manager half backed me up, he said he knew she could be difficult but so could he...I did not dare argue further as I am an agency worker

 

I also warned the guy being smeared as much as I could ( as I didn't want to make him anxious or freak him ) and said she was malicious and to not phone her up, also said she would try to wind him up and provoke him to react and stay cool, he took this on board

 

Of course they knew as I also stood up for him to their faces and last week the gentleman in question whom I defended asked if they were harassing me at all, they were a bit but I dealt with it, I know how to

 

I did as much as I could but the situation is still continuing - and becomes more disgusting by the day - they are still retaliating and if he has a late piece of work ( he cannot help it if somebody is discharged late ) she writes back and copies in both bosses and tries to argue with him, roping bosses into it. He keeps his cool admirably and has the last word, he has a higher up position than any of them

 

The whole team is disgusted, this woman seems to have something over them or is bribing them - we are having to do the groundwork whilst she acts extremely arrogant as if she is a manager and swans off to meetings and gets given special projects though she is on our level

 

The man working with her is keeping a log of all the cases he has done as she is doing hardly any - he has appealed to the boss who is not helping

 

I am keeping my head low as I am waiting for a permanent contract but I'd encourage this guy to go to the Union

 

Here's hoping they are being super duper nice to her because they want to let her go or transfer her - the team is falling apart, it's blatantly obvious one manager in particular is protecting her, he is actually DOING her work for her though it is beneath his level and not part of his remit

 

Team lunches have fallen apart, nobody wants to go

 

I just hope my friend, the gentleman I wrote about is ok and so am I, we are very close and I'm glad I have him whereas these other people who are allies it is more corrupt, they are both married

 

Thanks so much again and very grateful, DLD XX

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hi dld,

sounds like you did the right thing by the guy and will also help to ease your conscious a bit and allow you to get on with the work in the best way you can under the toxic circumstances.

 

I know I didn't get it, but its good to know an update, I'm sure those who gave more useful info to you will also be glad to have the update.

 

I cant help thinking the workplace and at times life in general is getting gradually more toxic when things don't fall in line for folks (well, some folks of course that is); but all we can hope is that they get their share of bad karma and those that are covering for them or joining in to fuel another'd discomfort or downfall via gossip and slander....

 

I'm real glad to read your update actually, standing up for what you believe and what is right is not always an easy thing to do, but if you can sleep easy at night and you have also helped someone having a hard time due to other peoples spite and hidden or nasty motives then good for you. they are real good qualities to have that also are in the karmic balance I'm sure.;)

 

see ya and thanks. maxi :)

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Dear Lady Disdain

Hey thank you so much Maxi, it's lovely to read your post, especially about the sleeping better in your bed at night, knowing you've done the right thing...funnily enough, everything is coming up to the surface now, other people are smelling the corruption and something will need to be done about it soon

 

I don't know if I wrote that a colleague also overheard them plotting on the phone as well so the whole team is now aware

 

It makes work quite unpleasant but I am blessed on two counts 1) I can work from home a few days a week so we are not all stuck together 2) my colleagues and I are on the same page, united against this corruption and very aware of it now so I do not feel alone

 

I'm really happy that I spoke up and this man is not in trouble and I told him not to react so he ends up looking better and retaining his dignity, these people cannot win because now everybody knows

 

Thank you so much :-) when I go in tomorrow I've decided I'll be able to focus on just doing a good job at work, I have one lovely team mate I work with and we have made a pact to not focus upon these people or give them time and energy while we are in the workplace and it's working well

 

God bless, DLD X and thanks

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  • 2 weeks later...

In all the years I have worked as an employee, I had to witness something similar just once.

 

There was this lady in the workplace who had sort of special privileges. As I was hired after her, she would ask me to do things for her. I was not pleased about it, but at first I didn't mind, thinking she was in good faith.

 

But going on, the disparity had reached an unfair and unjustifiable level. My desk was full, with a pile of stuff, and calls to answer. While she would - no kidding - leaf through some women's magazine, with fresh nail polish on.

 

As she was kind of untouchable but contributing very little, and travelling with the boss now and then, considering she was no family member nor a relative of his, it's possible there was something going on between them.

 

I ended up finding another job, as the company was not financially stable.

 

But if I were you, I'd make sure to know my rights in the workplace (is there an ethic code in place?) and use any tool available. Maybe you can file a complaint anonymously.

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