Work Reform

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A place to discuss positive changes that can make work more equitable, and to vent about current practices. We are NOT against work; we just want the fruits of our labor to be recognized better.

Our Philosophies:

All workers must be paid a living wage for their labor.
Income inequality is the main cause of lower living standards.
Workers must join together and fight back for what is rightfully theirs.
We must not be divided and conquered. Workers gain the most when they focus on unifying issues.

Our Goals

Higher wages for underpaid workers.
Better worker representation, including but not limited to unions.
Better and fewer working hours.
Stimulating a massive wave of worker organizing in the United States and beyond.
Organizing and supporting political causes and campaigns that put workers first.

founded 2 years ago

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can you help me formulate an answer to a colleague who is not my boss but feels entitled to tell me how I have to work? (linux.community)

submitted 8 months ago by [email protected] to c/[email protected]

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the colleague in question feels that only her way of doing things is the right one and expects me to adapt to her way of thinking and her logic. This is tiring and burdensome because I have to force me to stop doing things automatically and efficiently, but think how she wants it done and do it her way. I work worse when this happens.

There are several ways to reach the same goal and I always adapt according to the situation at hand. I do what feels logic at the time and work my way.

I already told the charge nurse charge about it but I don't know if she had a conversation with this coworker and what was said.

The message has to be neutral and polite. What do you think of this?

I feel you believe you are my boss. You are not. Stop telling me how to work. It's tiring. You have your way of doing things, I've got mine, both equally good. Should you have a problem with this, contact the charge or manager. I'm gonna go work now.

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[–] [email protected] 9 points 8 months ago (1 children)

I think that is likely to result in confrontation. As a general rule I'd suggest always discussing this with your manager first - if you communicate with them directly it may turn into an HR issue where your direct communication would be highly scrutinized.

My advice would be to talk candidly with your manager and express what has happened already and how you feel about it - then my suggestion, as a manager myself, is to suggest a meeting with you, her and the technical decision maker (whether that's a manager or a tech lead) to discuss the scenario and different solutions you can take. It is extremely unlikely (and generally unhealthy for a workplace) for the final path to be entirely your idea or hers - compromise is the expected outcome here. Compromise breeds further cooperation so even if your entire solution is just outright better a good lead will make sure opinions from everyone are incorporated into the plan. You'll end up having a brainstorming session essentially with a chaperone to make sure neither person is disregarded and should come out better for it.

I've been a dev (junior through senior), I've been an architect, and I've been a manager - I want to stress that the technical outcome of this decision is usually secondary to mending the team rift. I have, as an architect, conceded to a bad plan to give confidence to an intermediate developer (and made my boss aware of everything going on) and then immediately set out building a plan to fix it once the solution went live (and no, i didn't "I told you so" or anything, I just silently built the plan and made sure we could easily pivot our implementation). Working together and building a positive team environment is extremely important.

[+] [email protected] -7 points 8 months ago* (last edited 8 months ago) (1 children)

As a general rule I’d suggest always discussing this with your manager first

This is the absolute worst possible advice. You're letting all your coworkers know that you're going to be adversarial about even the tiniest personal conflict, and that you can't be trusted to resolve interpersonal issues like an adult.

[–] [email protected] 5 points 8 months ago* (last edited 8 months ago) (1 children)

What's wrong with that? You're there to do a job. If somebody is making it difficult to do your job then it's your manager or HR who is responsible for dealing with the matter. If all the coworkers know you'll be adversarial about the tiniest personal conflict, they have more motivation to avoid it and remain professional.

[–] [email protected] -4 points 8 months ago

I bet you're a pleasure to work with.