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1. Employee Rude To Customers
2. You Are A New Employee You Overhear A More Experienced Coworker Being Extremely Rude With A Customer

This is a sneaky form of disrespect. Things seem fine with your coworkers, but you feel like you're just not being heard. No one listens to your pitches at meetings. Your office-wide emails go unread. An employee has been criticizing you and your management style, according to reports from the usually reliable office grapevine. Although you might feel angry and hurt at the news, it’s not a good idea to lash out in retaliation. Before you address the situation, evaluate the comment and the circumstances and plan your strategy.

You’ve got problems, I’ve got advice. This advice isn’t sugar-coated—in fact, it’s sugar-free, and may even be a little bitter. Welcome to Tough Love.

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This week we have someone who’s struggling with a crappy coworker who seems to be holding all the cards.

Keep in mind, I’m not a therapist or any other kind of health professional—just a guy who’s willing to tell it like it is. I simply want to give you the tools you need to enrich your damn lives. If for whatever reason you don’t like my advice, feel free to file a formal complaint here. Now then, let’s get on with it.

Hey Patrick,

I am curious how to handle a situation that has come up at work over the last two years. I have a co-worker that is rude, condescending, and dismissive towards several people in our office (myself included). The problem is that she is in charge of scheduling and is an unofficial shift supervisor, even though officially we are equals job-wise. In fact, I have seniority. The others that are suffering a similar fate as I am are hesitant to confront her, given her control over their schedules.

I have tried to bring up these issues with her before, only to be dismissed or accused of being the actual cause of the problem, which never gets defined. My department head doesn’t really like getting her hands dirty, and tends to avoid issues of conflict. Another co-worker of mine tried to talk to the department head last year about the same issue, and was subsequently admonished and told that the problem was with her, not the shift supervisor. In lesser cases, it turns into a “let’s all get together and talk this out,” which the shift supervisor knows how to milk and turn it back on the person complaining. I’d go to HR, but they are outsourced and technically, no rules are being broken. I’d leave, but my job is specialized enough in a way that leaving would require me to move to another city.

I’m stuck on how to proceed. I can’t stand the thought that I’m being treated this way and it’s really affecting my ability to do my job. However, I can’t think of any good options other than a direct confrontation, which I worry will play right into her hands. Any advice?

Stuck in Nowhere Land

Hey Stuck in Nowhere Land:

This grief-bringing gal is good. Why? Because she’s got leverage, and you have none. Your department head is useless, your HR department isn’t even around, and you sound like a big ol’ weenie who can’t fend for yourself. But it’s not over, Stuck. She doesn’t get to win if you don’t let her.

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First, go to HR anyway! Yes. Do it. Get these complaints down on record so they’re official. In fact, have everyone complain about her. If she slips up at all in the future, someone will be able to see those complaints and realize how awful she actually is. Then bye bye Barbara (that’s her name in my head). You say no rules have been broken, but I’m pretty sure there’s something in the ol’ employee handbook about not being such a rude piece of shit to coworkers that it affects people’s ability to do their job.

Once you’ve done that, you have a few options on how to proceed. Pick your favorite:

• Take away her leverage: You say you have seniority, or are at least stand on equal ground, so try to take over as the “unofficial” shift supervisor. Ask your boss if you can do it for a while, or at least take turns doing it. You can even make it seem like a nice gesture to her, and make it look like you have a go-get-em attitude to your boss. There goes her power..
  
• Get on her good side: If you really don’t think you can change her ways, try to get off of her shit list. Fake your way to being her pal so you can at least work in peace. Offer to do her some favors, treat her like she’s an old friend, or hell, pay her off with a gift or something. Maybe she’s dead inside and hates most people, but you could slip into that small percentage of people she tolerates with neutral acceptance! If you can’t beat her, join her.
  
• Stand up to her: You’re worried a direct confrontation will play into her hands, but there’s no way she’s that brilliant and diabolical. She’s not a super-villain, she’s a sad jerk that works in your office. You and the rest of your crew can shut her down by not letting her treat you the way she does. When she says something rude, act like you don’t hear her, or tell her to slow down and explain what she’s getting at. When she’s dismissive, follow up with her until she has no choice but to hear you out and listen. If she tells you to do things, refuse until she changes her tone and asks nicely. Confront her and tell her how her actions make you feel, and tell her to stop treating you that way. If everyone finally stops being such a pushover and shows her they’ve had enough, she’ll have no choice but to pretend to be a decent human being.
  

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The truth is, this woman is just a run of the mill bully. And bullies get all of their power from you. Stop playing the victim, Stuck, and fight fire with fire. She does all this crap because she can get away with it—so stop letting her! She doesn’t have to like you, but as a coworker, she does have to respect you.

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That’s it for this week, but I still have plenty of blunt, honest advice bottled up inside. Tell me, what’s troubling you? Is work getting you down? Are you having problems with a friend or a coworker? Is your love life going through a rough patch? Do you just feel lost in life, like you have no direction? Tell me, and maybe I can help. I probably won’t make you feel all warm and fuzzy inside, but sometimes what you need is some tough love. Ask away in the comments below, or email me at the address you see at the bottom of the page (please include “ADVICE” in the subject line). Or tweet at me with #ToughLove! Also, DO NOT EMAIL ME IF YOU DON’T WANT YOUR REQUEST FEATURED. I do not have time to respond to everyone just for funsies. ‘Til next time, figure things out for yourself.

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Choose the best and worst answer for the followingquestions.

Suppose your supervisor returns from vacation and notices thatthe work area looks terrible. You also had the last two days off.He's angry and criticizes you for being careless and sloppy. Thiswasn't your fault. What would you do?

Tell him it wasn't your fault and not to criticize youunjustly.
B. Let the coworkers responsible know that you had to take theheat.
C. Suggest he talk directly to the people who left the place amess.
D. Straighten up the department and try to reason with himlater.
E. Take it up with your supervisor's boss.

A customer calls in and is upset that an issue on her order hasnot been fixed. She complained about it a month ago. What would youdo?

Apologize to the customer and inform her that you will find outwho was responsible for fixing the issue.

Seek out manager to see what action you should take

Apologize right away and tell her that you will personally lookinto It right away.

Offer the customer a discount on the order.

Tell the customer that someone will call her soon as the issueis fixed/

You are a new employee. You overhear a more experienced employeebeing extremely rude with a customer. What would you do?

Ignore the coworker, it’s not your business

Tell the customer that was inappropriate

Offer to handle the customer yourself

Suggest to the coworker another way the situation could havebeen handled

Talk confidentially to your supervisor

You have come up with a new idea to improve services, but itrequires the support of several employees in different areas. Oneof the employees is likely to be against the idea. What would youdo to convince her?

Explain the logic behind the idea and why is a good one

Sell your idea to the manager and have the manager convince yourcoworker

Tell the employee you need help on something and explain how shecan help you implement the idea

Convince the other employees and use their influence on thereluctant employee

Find some way to help the employees and then offer to tradesupport

A customer says the last call center representative she workedwith provided poor services. She gives details about the poorservices (such as not calling her back, when she left a message),and she tells you the call center representative name. How wouldyou respond?

Tell the employees manager what the customer said

Tell the employee what customer said

Tell the customer that you can handle her business from nowon

Tell the customer that you can report her comments to theemployee’s manager if she wishes

Ignore what the customer said and complete the transaction

A customer tells you she asked a coworker of yours for help withsomething. She says the coworker told her he didn’t know anythingabout it and just rudely ended the call. What would you do?

Suggest talk to the manager personally

Ask her what she would like you to do

Ask her if she remembered the name of the employee and approachthat person yourself

Apologize and tell her you will glad to help her whenever youcan

Apologize and tell her you will tell the manager

A new employee, doing the same job as you, keeps asking youquestions about how to do the job. You just explained all of thisto him the day before. Hes slowing you down. What would you do?

Tell him he is interfering with your job

Ask him if he would possibly be better suited for anotherdepartment

Tell your manager about the problem

Show him how he can find the information on his own

Suggest he ask the manager for more training

You are on the phone with a customer. Suppose that all systemshave just shut down. You are unable to review any accounts in thecomputer and are unable to process any customer request. What wouldyou do>

Inform the customers calling in that your systems are down, andthey will have to call back

How to delete amazon account on iphone. You won’t be able to return purchased items for a refund or replacement.

Redirect all customer calls to a separate department

Stop answering the phone until you can help the customers

Apologize to all customers calling in and give them an estimatedtime that systems will be back up

Take down the customers information by hand and call them whenthe systems are back up

A customer calls in to cancel her account, claiming she hasreceived a lower price from a competitor. What would you do?

Employee Rude To Customers

Offer a customer similar rate as the competitor and allow thecustomer to keep her current plant.

Seek out a manger to see what action should take

You Are A New Employee You Overhear A More Experienced Coworker Being Extremely Rude With A Customer

Try to sell the customers a cheaper plan, which would lower hermonthly bill

Attempt to persuade the customer to stay with organization byexplaining all the benefits she has as a customer

Inform the customer that the competitor does not have as greatcustomer services as your organization and that many othercustomers have switched back to your organization