Ignore Joe’s workplace antics
The following column was originally published in 2013.
Dear Annie: I love my job, but I constantly see favouritism among the management staff. One in particular frustrates me. “Joe” was hired because of “what he brings to the table.” What he brings to the table is sitting at his desk surfing the internet, talking to his friends and family, and playing games on his phone. In the meantime, the rest of us are working hard and getting nowhere.
Why is it that people who pretend to work are the ones who get promoted? It just doesn’t make sense. Are employers really that blind?
I’ve tried talking to my manager, who does nothing, as well as to human resources, which sends me back to the manager. I get nowhere. I don’t want to come across as a bitter employee or a tattletale, but it is frustrating to see this type of behaviour and it brings down office morale, causing tension and friction. How do I make this stop?
Working Hard
Dear Working: If you have taken the matter to the manager and human resources without result, there is nothing more you can do through normal channels. What’s left is your personal response. If you like your job and wish to stay, you’ll have to ignore Joe and whatever his “table” lacks, in the hope that someday he will be found out and your hard work will be appreciated. Your second option is to look for another job where management takes these things seriously.
Dear Annie: This is in response to “Worried Grandma in Illinois,” whose granddaughter is being force-fed by her mother and stepmother. I am an occupational therapist who works with infants, toddlers and young children. I spend a great deal of time working with feeding problems and picky eating. Many children are picky eaters at one time or another.
However, force-feeding will result in picky eating turning into a significant problem. Stepping back and making mealtime a fun and positive experience will eventually lead to better eating.
The parents should talk to their pediatrician and seek further evaluation.
Many times picky eating can be due to reflux, oral motor delays or oral hypersensitivity, which results in the child having a stronger gag reflex than is typical.
O.T. from Michigan
Annie’s Mailbox is written by Kathy Mitchell and Marcy Sugar, longtime editors of the Ann Landers column.