Community Chat

[terrier3]

On 3/20/2015 moonstone dunes said:

On 3/20/2015 terrier3 said:

On 3/20/2015 4KICKS said:

Terrier3:

Your experience has me just shaking my head. I am so glad I am now out of the working world. There are words I would use to describe your former co-worker, but not here. I admire your patience and how you handled the situation.

Wow, just wow.

Based on what this OP is going through - and my personal experience - "highly sensitive" appears to be a code word for bi-polar, schizophrenic, or just plain batty...

I do find it hard to believe there was no supervisor, manager or team lead in your group to assist with calls that needed to be escalated?

Having worked in a number of telesales and telemarketing environments, touching a co-worker for any reason unless it mutually agreeable is not appropriate and I do not understand how a reaction to inappropriate touching can be construed as bipolar, schizophrenic or batty.

I was a senior AE, with over 10 years in that office.

She was harassing a client's assistant...threatening to drive from Buffalo to Syracuse, sit in the office, wait for the boss to come and tell him that his assistant was a bad call screener and should be fired for not allowing him to hear her great advertising opportunity. She didn't know she was talking to a Million Dollar a Year Plus client's assistant, because she didn't bother checking the account list before she called.

I passed the note in front of her...she continued screaming, so I tapped her on her shoulder - gently - to end her embarrassing and potentially damaging call.

It turned out that she WAS bi-polar and had stopped taking her meds so they wouldn't be detected in her company drug screening. She told ME she was highly sensitive after I tapped her to get her off the phone.

After all the excitement with her going to the police and hiring a lawyer...the general manager called me in and thanked me for ending the call...she was fired for leaving her illness out of her job interview, lying about needing meds(and going OFF them - knowing it would lead her to inappropriate behavior), not checking the account list before cold calling, and harassing an important client's assistant....and also not responding at first to the message I placed on her desk. I wasn't her supervisor, but I was a senior AE and the boss was very appreciative for my help.

[4Kicks]

On 3/20/2015 terrier3 said:

On 3/20/2015 4KICKS said:

Terrier3:

Your experience has me just shaking my head. I am so glad I am now out of the working world. There are words I would use to describe your former co-worker, but not here. I admire your patience and how you handled the situation.

Wow, just wow.

Based on what this OP is going through - and my personal experience - "highly sensitive" appears to be a code word for bi-polar, schizophrenic, or just plain batty...

Which makes you truly wonder how they were ever hired in the first place without also being extremely conniving, right?!

[Burnsite]

I had a really bad boss some years ago, but she finally did herself in after years of getting away with firing people for no reason and favoring her sycophants. It was like how they got Al Capone into jail finally for tax evasion, but padding her expense records was so outrageous that she was dismissed summarily. She had billed a dinner for 4 people at $1000. If you can hang in there, eventually she may be "hoist by her own petard", as Shakespeare puts it.

[terrier3]

On 3/20/2015 Penellope said:

Suing someone for tapping on the shoulder sounds batty, or purely opportunistic to me. On the other hand, at a former job of mine we were given noise cancelling headphones for a more peaceful working environment, then we were forbidden to use them because they might necessitate tapping on the shoulder to get someone's attention, which was not ok.

We were outside salespeople, not telemarketers. We had cubes very close to one another...her screaming at an important client was upsetting everyone and as the senior person I tried to get her to end the call the best way I could.

As I said, the police laughed her out of the station!!!!

[terrier3]

On 3/20/2015 4KICKS said:

On 3/20/2015 terrier3 said:

On 3/20/2015 4KICKS said:

Terrier3:

Your experience has me just shaking my head. I am so glad I am now out of the working world. There are words I would use to describe your former co-worker, but not here. I admire your patience and how you handled the situation.

Wow, just wow.

Based on what this OP is going through - and my personal experience - "highly sensitive" appears to be a code word for bi-polar, schizophrenic, or just plain batty...

Which makes you truly wonder how they were ever hired in the first place without also being extremely conniving, right?!

I have known a lot of VERY highly intelligent people who also had severe mental illnesses....through my counseling work.

I don't know what the percentage is...but if often goes together. They can fool the boss long enough to get hired...but sooner or later the "battiness" manifests itself. (Pardon my slang!)

[4Kicks]

Actually, in hindsight, terrier, maybe you should have put your finger on the button to disconnect the call. Since now we so CLEARLY see that tapping the person on the shoulder was INVADING her personal space.

BIG SIGH.

[jubilant]

Sorry to hear you are still going through this, beanie. It's pretty bad when a co-worker tells you to read a book so you can adapt. Has she read the book so she can adapt? That is discussed in great lengths by the psychologist that people mentioned on the first discussion. Those that do best with this HPS are not expecting to be adapted to as much as they are supposed to look for methods that they and others can live with. If this woman is on the up and up.... and has what she says she has..... and does nothing about it...in reality....she is the abuser. Good luck!

[moonstone dunes]

On 3/20/2015 terrier3 said:

On 3/20/2015 moonstone dunes said:

On 3/20/2015 terrier3 said:

On 3/20/2015 4KICKS said:

Terrier3:

Your experience has me just shaking my head. I am so glad I am now out of the working world. There are words I would use to describe your former co-worker, but not here. I admire your patience and how you handled the situation.

Wow, just wow.

Based on what this OP is going through - and my personal experience - "highly sensitive" appears to be a code word for bi-polar, schizophrenic, or just plain batty...

I do find it hard to believe there was no supervisor, manager or team lead in your group to assist with calls that needed to be escalated?

Having worked in a number of telesales and telemarketing environments, touching a co-worker for any reason unless it mutually agreeable is not appropriate and I do not understand how a reaction to inappropriate touching can be construed as bipolar, schizophrenic or batty.

I was a senior AE, with over 10 years in that office.

She was harassing a client's assistant...threatening to drive from Buffalo to Syracuse, sit in the office, wait for the boss to come and tell him that his assistant was a bad call screener and should be fired for not allowing him to hear her great advertising opportunity. She didn't know she was talking to a Million Dollar a Year Plus client's assistant, because she didn't bother checking the account list before she called.

I passed the note in front of her...she continued screaming, so I tapped her on her shoulder - gently - to end her embarrassing and potentially damaging call.

It turned out that she WAS bi-polar and had stopped taking her meds so they wouldn't be detected in her company drug screening. She told ME she was highly sensitive after I tapped her to get her off the phone.

After all the excitement with her going to the police and hiring a lawyer...the general manager called me in and thanked me for ending the call...she was fired for leaving her illness out of her job interview, lying about needing meds(and going OFF them - knowing it would lead her to inappropriate behavior), not checking the account list before cold calling, and harassing an important client's assistant....and also not responding at first to the message I placed on her desk. I wasn't her supervisor, but I was a senior AE and the boss was very appreciative for my help.

You - a an employee - should NEVER have been privy to her health condition, mental or otherwise. That is a violation of HIPAA and you know that.

Unless she was taking BENZOs, OPIATES, MARIJUANA, QUAALUDES, AMPLETAMINES There is NO drug screening sensitive to medication for bi-polar disorder, she cannot be disqualified if they do find evidence of medication or non-use of medication. And if the company used her mental health condition to terminate her AND also informed their staff of her medical condition I hope she did retain counsel.

[adelle38]

On 3/20/2015 4KICKS said:

Actually, in hindsight, terrier, maybe you should have put your finger on the button to disconnect the call. Since now we so CLEARLY see that tapping the person on the shoulder was INVADING her personal space.

BIG SIGH.

It's not a matter of "invading personal space". It's never ok to touch another person without permission.

[Bird mama]

Beanie - I've worked with some real Lulu's in my life. I'm sorry that you have been going through this. Work is hard enough, let alone walking in, feeling like you are entering a field of land mines.