Interesting develolpment in my new job

[HokeyReligions]

I've been working LOTS of OT in my new job. Its a very stressful job (more-so than I thought it would be) and in the 3 weeks I've been there two people were terminated from my department. One started the same day I did. According to my supervisor our main goal is to please the engineers because my department has/had a very bad reputation from the sabotage of previous employees (note: In the last year there have been six terminations in my group--which only has five people in it and three of those people serioulsy trashed the department and the people in it and the new Sr. Manager (my boss) who now is fighting against the slander heaped on her)

 

Anyway, I am doing OK there and getting to know people and helping to change the reputation of the department. While doing that I am getting to know some of the engineers and they are getting to know me.

 

There are a couple (well many actually) who feel that since they went to college longer than I did and are more specialized in engineering they look down on anyone who isn't an engineer and the younger interns are very resentful because they somehow know that they make less than I do. That is their problem and they have to deal with it - I can handle their resentment, its their own sabotage that is hurting us. They come into the department and take drawings and vendor documents etc. without signing them out or letting anyone know and our department takes the blame for losing things. We are implementing new procedures to counteract that--one of which is that we can now lock our offices--we weren't 'allowed' to do that before!

 

Anyway, one of the engineers who I have been getting along with is now fixated on me. I have had to work very closely with him on a new project that is starting. He has asked me to have lunch with him several times and I told him that I could not and that any project discussions we need to have, we need to have in a meeting with the input of others. He is a senior engineer but not a project manager and his PM needs to be in on the meetings for this project (and has been several times).

 

Well, this engineer knows I'm married and I swear I have not given off any signals or said anything to him that did not pertain to the project. No personal chit-chat except that he heard me talking with others in my department about my husband coming to pick me up. He asked me my husband's name and I told him. I purposly did not ask him about his family or anything because I felt something weird from him right from the start when we met and he started talking about my hair. (I have very long hair)

 

Some of my other teammates who also work with him have told me that he asks them about me on a personal level or said something like "why didn't Hokey bring this to my office? She's the one I really want to talk with" kind of comments. They have noticed something too. I have made it a point to never be alone with him and will bring someone with me when I do need to go to his office, and will leave my door open when he comes to mine and have asked them if they see him coming to find an excuse to step in or be near my office.

 

We are all on the roster so we all have each other's home phone numbers and he called me last night at home! Supposedly to ask me a question about something he was working on yesterday (that's what he told hubby when hubby answered the phone) but what he was asking was if I would meet him at a restaurant to discuss something on the project so that Monday morning we could "hit the road running" with it. There is NOTHING that needs my attention on that project on the weekend unless a vendor or the client is having a crisis and then I would hear from the vendor or the client. I told him that I couldn't meet him and that I would call the vendor in question and see what I could do. He said "Oh no, don't do that--we don't want to bother the vendor on the weekend. We'll handle it on Monday morning"

 

I told hubby what is going on (Hubby thinks its cute!!) and that I am uncomfortable with this guy. He's an integral part of this project and they would replace me before they replace him so I have to handle this very carefully.

 

I've kept a log of whats been going on and I will have to address this tomorrow. I'm going to the PMs office in the morning and asking him about the so-called issue with the vendor that the engineer called me about yesterday and I'm asking my supervisor to be there too. (My supervisor works in a different building)

 

I'm too old for this krap. He seems to be fixated on my hair--maybe it IS time to cut it all off! (I'm getting tired of sitting on it anyway)

[Outcast]

It seems a little soon to be involving others. It's ok to ask about the vendor, but I wouldn't bring up the issue with the engineer. Instead, I'd talk to the engineer and tell him that you do not want to be called at home except in cases of emergency and that he should call the supervisor first and ask the supervisor to call you if there's an emergency.

 

Or else ask the manager to clarify situations in which employees may call each other at home to all the staff.

[quankanne]

well Hokey, I think your "Eau de Hot Mamí" scent must be what's driving him wild, though it IS rather odd that he's trying to contact you at home. Maybe your self-sufficiency and business-like demeanor is what's turning him on, especially after you describing those scenes of sabotage in the workplace.

 

keep your logs, and if it gets too uncomfortable take it up with the HR person. While it sounds a bit flattering on the one hand, there's really no place for that kind of attention in the workplace, especially when you're being as professional as can be.

 

other thought is to have DH drop by your office from time to time and lay some steamy kisses on you when you *think* no one (namely creepy co-worker) is watching. It might be that him seeing that you and your hubby have eyes only for each other will do the trick. Otherwise you just might have to stoop to anonymously leaving a blow-up "Juicy Lucy" doll at your co-worker's desk ... :laugh:

[brashgal]

He might think you are even hotter with short hair.

 

I feel for you Hokey, here's hoping his interest shifts to another real, real soon.

[HokeyReligions]

Otherwise you just might have to stoop to anonymously leaving a blow-up "Juicy Lucy" doll at your co-worker's desk ... :laugh:

 

LOL! They would know it was from me. I did think about getting some Rogain for him and putting a note on it "here, grow your own on whichever head you use most"

 

I am going to talk with him again tomorrow after I make sure that there is no critical need from the vendor. If he continues then I will bring it up to HR. The policy is that the people involved need to work it out and if they can't, escalate it to their supervisors and HR. I'm hoping that it won't come to that and he will be professional and we can just put it behind us. It might just be a game he plays with new people and will shrug it off. If I go directly to HR they will talk to him and the first thing they will ask is "Did Hokey tell you she was uncomfortable with the attention you have been giving her?" and all he has to do is say "NO! I had no idea" and that puts it back on me. There is a procedure in place at this company for handling situations like this. I don't think of it as sexual harrassment, but if we don't get it straightened out ourselves it could possibly escalate.

 

The guy is younger than my husband (I think he just turned 50) but old enough to know better.