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Toxic Positivity at Work

It seems like corporate culture is doubling down on the cult of positive thinking as a way of denying that any of the realities of the workplace are real and severe since COVID began.

Somehow it’s all a perception problem—and the only real problem is your negativity. I was optimistic and had a “we’ll get through this” mentality all of last year, and tried to be encouraging for your everyone’s sake, but the reality is that now I’m worn down by it all.

I resent being told that the only problem with the way things are is my perception of things—or some kind of personal or professional failing.

It’s like being trapped on a deserted island for years, and after being rescued, being shamed for not appreciating all the space and alone time you’ve had—and that somehow being negatively affected by the extreme social isolation is a choice you are making. FUCK THAT.

There’s no rescue ship in sight, and this island SUCKS.

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by Anonymousreply 78September 14, 2021 5:01 PM

Honey, America is now all about "Fake it 'til you make it", it has been that way since that horrible TED talk. Corporate loves it because it is a sugar coated way to tell you to ignore your problem.

by Anonymousreply 1September 4, 2021 4:08 AM

Corporate America will destroy your soul.

by Anonymousreply 2September 4, 2021 7:23 AM

It’s been this way forever. Social isolation? People have been dealing with that well before COVID-19. Also, no one had to be isolated since COVID-19. There were very safe ways to be around plenty of people.

by Anonymousreply 3September 4, 2021 7:27 AM

People are sick of sitting in traffic for hours to get to a place that they hate with the people who work there and who specifically make them hate the office as much as they do.

Through working from home due to COVID, they discovered that they don’t have to get up at 5:00 am every morning, and drive to be miserable in some office or cubicle, for 9 to 10 hours or more, every freakin weekday.

And guess what? They’re right.

Help slow down climate change/global warming by allowing employees to continue working from home, whenever possible.

Only assholes want people sitting in their cubicles every day, so that they can break their employees’ spirits by having endless meetings and writing up people for being 5 minutes late for the third time in three months.

Give me a fucking break. If you’re “that” guy, people who work under you HATE you.

by Anonymousreply 4September 4, 2021 7:38 AM

It’s very en vogue to have mandatory trainings to indoctrinate what r1 says. It’s almost cultish how you are forced to share personal stories and hear that any problem you have can be “reframed” into positive.

You might ask why don’t you just not attend if you don’t like it, but that marks you as a non-team player that doesn’t “live the values.” It’s really sick and another example of HR creating initiatives to justify their existence.

by Anonymousreply 5September 4, 2021 9:08 AM

We hold the money, so it's only our Truth that matters, slaves, not yours.

You WILL attend your cubical during office hours. You WILL be happy. And you WILL be fulfilled. Or ELSE.

by Anonymousreply 6September 4, 2021 9:22 AM

All HR cunts should be sent to the electric chair. Fuck those rancid cunts.

by Anonymousreply 7September 4, 2021 9:25 AM

Just popping in to let you know I'm a Joe Schmoe and my life is half full! Say, if you’re not busy Saturday want to come to a cookout?

by Anonymousreply 8September 4, 2021 9:40 AM

Typical Boomer ideology from top management down. That's how they really think. And they expect you to bootstrap your way into the office you good for nothing other Gens.

by Anonymousreply 9September 4, 2021 9:45 AM

[quote]All HR cunts should be sent to the electric chair. Fuck those rancid cunts.

This +10

All HR managers I have ever worked with or met are total cunts including the few gay ones. What is it with these people? They are like used car salesmen drunk on power full of blatant lies while they transparently pretend to be your friend. They are not even clever, its like they just opened the hand book of 1980's corporate success quotes and motivational posters form Sharper Image.

by Anonymousreply 10September 4, 2021 9:54 AM

The worst of the positivity crap is that when things went shitty and you got upset, then suddenly it was all your fault because you were not positive. WTF. I hate people even bought up the world positivity. It is so fake and just gross me out.

by Anonymousreply 11September 4, 2021 10:29 AM

I was accused of "negativity" in another thread for pointing out that not all people thrive in the same type of environment, and that some people didn't think that pre-COVID "normal" was very nice.

To the firing squad with me!

by Anonymousreply 12September 4, 2021 10:44 AM

Your HR must be surfing this website.

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by Anonymousreply 13September 4, 2021 10:54 AM

You’re responsible for your own happiness, OP! Turn that frown upside down!

by Anonymousreply 14September 4, 2021 10:59 AM

I said it before and I will say it again. Wait until they say: we like to see ourselves as all "family" here. Response: Since we are all family, will you be sharing all the profits with us equally like family?

It usually shuts them up. HR needs to be called out on their bullshit. Been doing it for years. They don't like it of course, but you will have to weight if that worth the joy of exposing them vs their subversive anger they will use to get you fired for outing them.

by Anonymousreply 15September 4, 2021 10:59 AM

Some company use their HR to prevent the employees from getting the proper reimbursement and treatment. That's not what HR is for.

by Anonymousreply 16September 4, 2021 3:18 PM

There have been so many who have realized they are more productive working from home. Period. There are so many jobs easily done from home. It is a win-win for employees, traffic, gas money, time, meal prep, mental health, sleep, child care and on and on. I know people who have saved in the tens of thousands by working from home.

by Anonymousreply 17September 4, 2021 7:09 PM

R8, Greg is that you?

by Anonymousreply 18September 4, 2021 7:27 PM

There is nothing wrong with positive thinking. However, don't force it on someone who's not in the right state of mind (for example, depressed).

Positive mindset is a state of mind where you find your way to happiness, even when it involves doing a job that sucks with people you don't care for at all. Fake it 'til you make it (back home).

by Anonymousreply 19September 4, 2021 7:37 PM

Even worse: people who think their colleagues should be their best friends and talk smack about those who don’t to hang out with them after work.

by Anonymousreply 20September 4, 2021 7:39 PM

R20, I have always made it a rule to not attend the after work bitchfests.

First of all, I don’t drink, and I consider the sleazy bars disguised as family restaurants, like Whompoppwrs (remember them?) to be dangerous.

The D R AM A I’ve seen unfold after these afternoon drink feats is DEEP.

Unwanted and unexpected office pregnancies, where one chick actually kept the baby, and they guy eventually threw in the towel, and moved in with her and the baby, as he could no longer afford to be a bachelor. Then there was the dude who was outed in the most cruel of outings EVER, by a dude he actually fucked, and had a mad crush on. Poor guy. He was so humiliated by this asshole’s homophobic self loathing. He was an AWESOME guy, who got fired for sexually harassing his downlow fuck buddy. And like EVERYONE knew they were fucking

Then there was the one dude who dropped dead at his desk. He went to the bar with everyone, and came back to the office, in order to wrap up a project. He was found the following morning by the cleaning crew, slumped over his desk, cold as ice. Decomposition was in process.

Multiple DUIs from drunk employees getting nailed on their way home. They’d get fired as soon as the charges stuck.

The entire scene after work was just toxic AF at this particular company, and I’ve always maintained the policy of not attending these meltdowns.

I do befriend people at work, and even hang out on weekends, but only with those who wanna actually go out and do something fun, not centered around office gossip and booze.

by Anonymousreply 21September 4, 2021 7:54 PM

I work in one of those crazy positive environments. It's got to the point that that even when someone has a plan that I know will turn out badly I go along with it and say I think it's brilliant. What I find is that as the plan rolls along, people abandon it when the first cracks start showing, saying it's "not a priority" at this point, rather than just admit it was badly conceived.

We also have regular "engagement quota" surveys. Initially, most people answered the questions honestly and the the scores were on the low side. This led to loads of pointless meetings and action plans as to how we could increase the scores. Not surprisingly, all scores went right up for the next survey because people were being "punished" with extra work for to remedy the low scores.

by Anonymousreply 22September 4, 2021 8:27 PM

I told my boss in Corporate that I thought she was a man hating lesbian. I walked and never looked back.

by Anonymousreply 23September 4, 2021 8:32 PM

Here's another Empress CEO who wants everyone back in the office ASAP. You SHALL obey.

I've had some traction with this mob. It's a real Old School operation They exploit their new recruits, expecting them to work very long hours under pressure, as a kind of test to determine the 'best'. What happens is that only the very strongest and most ruthless survive, who aren't necessary what one might term the 'best'. Meanwhile, the partners live like kings.

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by Anonymousreply 24September 5, 2021 1:53 AM

Always been that way. Management doesn't want to hear that there continue to exist problems for which you're trying to show evidence or explain there seem not to be solutions. It's about that everybody else is busy and cranky just like you are, too. Nobody wants to hear anybody else's work problems. It's an endless treadmill of IT ALL SUCKS.

by Anonymousreply 25September 5, 2021 3:34 AM

Boomers love toxic management style, they thrive on it's power while attempting to sell it as a thriving positive work place. They literally can not understand a work place that does not involve manipulation, exploitation and a pyramidal power structure.

by Anonymousreply 26September 5, 2021 6:39 AM

[R26] I have to disagree. I have found that millennial workers are much more into creating a falsely positive working environment than any other group. Out HR team, which is all millennial women, love this sort of shit and roll out new programs/celebration events on a regular basis. Millennial co-workers are always going on about toxic people who dare to suggest their flawed work needs correcting.

Boomers think it's a load of shit but go along with it as they don't want to fuck up their retirement.

by Anonymousreply 27September 5, 2021 7:05 AM

Boomer trained the Millennials R27, so there is that.

Maybe all HR people are stupid fake cunts. On that I bet we agree.

by Anonymousreply 28September 5, 2021 7:16 AM

Karen from HR says:

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by Anonymousreply 29September 5, 2021 7:17 AM

Karen helpful tip of the day:

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by Anonymousreply 30September 5, 2021 7:19 AM

Karen just wants to remind you:

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by Anonymousreply 31September 5, 2021 7:20 AM

Bob from upper management wanted me to pass this on:

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by Anonymousreply 32September 5, 2021 7:23 AM

Well, obviously you all just aren't a good fit for these companies awesome cultures. Imagine, there were days when things like doing a good job were what got you ahead instead of playing these stupid games.

by Anonymousreply 33September 5, 2021 7:31 AM

I know this isn't an HR thread but I am an honest believer it's a field ripe for disruption. There was a time when companies functioned perfect fine without them. It's become a joke and most employees do not see it as anything other than an extension of BS from the employer. They often cause more problems then they solve. They are not on the side of the employee, that's for sue. And there is the rub, that's ALWAYS how they try to sell themselves to the employees. "we are here to help you bla, bla, bla"

There are online companies now popping up who will do the same thing a full time staff HR person does for pennies on the dollar. Its a lot cheaper for the employer and less personally attached to the work environment. They are used as needed. Not busy body Karens coming up with BS team speak and forced social events so they can look like they are doing something to justify their high pay.

by Anonymousreply 34September 5, 2021 7:50 AM

The Power of Positivity.

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by Anonymousreply 35September 5, 2021 8:04 AM

Do most companies have a woman as the Global Head of HR?

by Anonymousreply 36September 5, 2021 8:06 AM

Most do, R36 — which is why it’s all so fucking FRAU-like.

Back on topic: When I started as COO at my previous job, I got rid of HR. We hired a full-time recruiter and an additional accountant and that took care of all our needs. Why?

1) People work for their direct managers, not HR - so if they suck, no Happy Friday is going to keep them from walking away

2) Set understandable KPIs and clear goals to achieve for every single person, and you’ll never need another feelgood talk in a safe space.

3) Contract extensions, bonuses, and promotions are dependent on point 2. Makes evaluation talks real short and crisp.

With all of the above, you only need one top dog (usually the COO or CEO) to keep the managers in check and you are DONE.

Fuck stupid core values, triggers, identity issues and god knows what. Set goals, throw out the saboteurs, pay people fairly and don’t exploit them and you WILL have a company that runs like clock work.

by Anonymousreply 37September 5, 2021 8:14 AM

Empathy in the workplace.

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by Anonymousreply 38September 5, 2021 8:22 AM

[R34] It's already started happening. A friend of mine works for a large German multinational and they recently gutted all the HR departments globally to one person per office. That person is basically there to escort people to the door if needed. This is a Europe thing so I'm not sure how it would fly in the litigious USA.

HR departments are basically fucking themselves over by implementing self-service models for al the basic staff requirements so they can organize charity events, cake days for women in the workplace, theme zoom calls and assorted other pointless crap.

by Anonymousreply 39September 5, 2021 8:32 AM

I agree with everything you said R37 except for one thing, and maybe not what happened in your case. Corporate deiced to eventuate everyone on the same criteria which sounds good at face value but the qualities they set as goals were not fair depending on the job position.

For example, as a Jr. in my first job, part of the evaluation included how much outside contact with clients I had and how much work resulted from that. Well as a Jr, I was not allowed to meet with clients yet let alone bring one in. But I was still marked down for that with a score of ZERO which affected my over all score. I was not the only one and when others brought this up we were told, dont worry eventually when you get to meet clients your score will come up. OK, but that's BS we were doing the best job possible and you sill give a a mark down? Which affects our potential salary or raises? It was manipulative and disingenuous in terms of an evaluation.

by Anonymousreply 40September 5, 2021 8:43 AM

[quote]HR departments are basically fucking themselves over by implementing self-service models for al the basic staff requirements

Most of what HR dose in America is pointless. Maybe 10% of what they do is actually needed by the employer. That's why some of the more progressive companies are skipping this position entirely and hiring outside firms to handle the job as needed. Let employees long into a website and upload their own data. $200 or $300 dollars a month paid to an outside company is a lot better than $70,000 a year for one HR director.

HR is not even really good at finding people. They never actually know the job they are hiring someone for. They just go off a script someone told them to look for. Basically high paid filters. And not even good ones at that.

by Anonymousreply 41September 5, 2021 8:53 AM

R40 That’s working as intended. They design the ratings so that most people do not “exceed expectations.” In many cases managers are told how many slots they have for raises and then reverse-rate to achieve the expected results.

by Anonymousreply 42September 5, 2021 11:35 AM

I worked somewhere that had three performance reviews per year. The process wouldn’t even be completed before the next cycle’s info was sent out. They also implemented mandatory weekly forms to document “wins” and “challenges.” All in an attempt to justify however much they spent on the happy-feely HR SaaS they bought.

by Anonymousreply 43September 5, 2021 11:40 AM

WTF is R3 blathering about?

by Anonymousreply 44September 5, 2021 11:43 AM

Reviews are more often than not a way to justify low wages and deny raises than to reward good work. I have only had one job where the review was simple and honest without forms or score cards. Just your boss talking to you about what they noticed over the past 6 months. Not surprisingly, they paid the best too.

by Anonymousreply 45September 5, 2021 12:54 PM

R40 I agree — this is why I implemented scores / expectations per level.

E.g it is expected that a Senior scores higher than a Junior on customer outreach. If the Junior isn’t allowed to contact customers, that question will simply get skipped.

by Anonymousreply 46September 5, 2021 2:42 PM

Every year at my law firm’s retreat we hear the same propaganda speech about what a fantastic place it is to work. I always joke to my colleague: “Wow, that sounds like a great place to work. We should get jobs there.”

by Anonymousreply 47September 5, 2021 2:45 PM

We know about your jokes, R47, they’re all in your file.

by Anonymousreply 48September 5, 2021 2:46 PM

The minute I read R47 I had R48's reaction, and thought of the cheerful young guy in 'The Lives Of Others' who makes a joke, and whom we next see in jail. Not that contemporary America has too much in common with the former East Germany.

by Anonymousreply 49September 5, 2021 5:47 PM

I feel so sorry for workers today with KPIs and performance reviews. When I started work there was no such thing. Managers simply managed. If you were not up to scratch you were given a talking to. Done. Simply common sense. KPIs are total bullshit: and performance reviews become arbitrary judgements. The amount of time wasted is incredible, and outcomes in corporations have not improved one iota since they were instituted. All they've done is create more stress and misery. We need to go back to a world of common sense.

I lay the blame at women here. None of this shit existed until they came into middle management. Unlike men, women prefer to work by consensus, which is why we now have KPIs and Performance Reviews and -- God save me --- "Teams". Instead of the days of mild Alpha Dogs who told you what they wanted, bark, bark – done, there's now endless meetings and discussions. Decisions which once would have been made by a single male manager have become 'round table' discussions involving three women and one neutered compliant male, with the resultant increase in costs and time lag. Offices were once fairly happy places where anyone could save anything to anybody without having to think first. Today's generation have absolutely zero idea of the hell they've become to what they used to be. I know. Because as a contrator I got to experience dozens and dozens of offices over time, and saw the change as it arrived.

by Anonymousreply 50September 5, 2021 11:54 PM

Typo: save anything = SAY anything

by Anonymousreply 51September 5, 2021 11:55 PM

R50, but you understand that MEN were the ones who told us to be good wives for them at work, yes?

I believe Gen Zers MAY perhaps be the first generation which might overcome sexism and strict gender stereotypes.

For the gaylings and younger frauen and lesbians here, picture this: when I started working, men hired me to be pretty, shut the fuck up, and do their jobs as an underpaid secretary, while they went out to play golf, get hammered with their pals, and spend time fucking their mistresses.

Once I learned to do their jobs well and produced as much or more than they did, they’d suddenly tell me shit like: “Why don’t you develop a new filing system for our department and set it up? Would you polish the conference room furniture? Would you plan a company outing for us? Would you mind firing Eddie?”

And trust me, as soon as I got everything done and was ready to draft some ore contracts or whatever, I’d hear shit like, “ I’d like for you to polish the conference room daily, before we open. Your filing system is real nice, you’re like an office wife. JFC! Couldn’t you bargain that company retreat at the Raddison for a lower price? Call them back up and spit ball some creative math with them. We should’ve never fired Eddie. He was never here but when he was, he knew what he was doing. Call him back up and get him back here, ASAP. And where’s that contract? Is it ready yet? You think you can land this client for us? Call Eddie. They like him.”

Then come review time and bonus evaluations, these guys will sit you down, and tell you that you’re not ready for a promotion. You’re not motivated enough to build a book on your own yet. Maybe I’ll send you out with Eddie one day, so he can show you how it’s done and you can take notes, if he ever shows up to the goddamned office again”.

MEN made this toxic work environment for women, because they didn’t want us competing with them for the jobs we did for them and they got paid six figures to BARELY do.

Men are assholes in the work place. At least the boomers were. And don’t even get me started on the office cunts who we call office fraus. Those bitches were the absolute worst. Manipulative, competitive and bitchy gossips with nothing better to do than to tear younger women down in order to not get replaced, and yes, the HR cunts were THE ABSOLUTE WORST. Still are.

Look at the shit that was pulled on Hillary Clinton in 2016. Every single man in positions of power did EVERYTHING SINGLE THING POSSIBLE in order to prevent a highly qualified and experienced woman, from becoming THEIR executive and chief. They took Donald fucking Trump, a conman, over a woman who would have been a GREAT POTUS.

That’s what old men do. Fuck women over. Then they talk shit because they essentially relegated us to being busy bees and useless micro managers who polish the conference room desk every morning.

Tale as old as time.

by Anonymousreply 52September 6, 2021 12:43 AM

[quote]I agree — this is why I implemented scores / expectations per level. E.g it is expected that a Senior scores higher than a Junior on customer outreach. If the Junior isn’t allowed to contact customers, that question will simply get skipped.

Yes, that sounds reasonable, but it was not the game the company was playing. They knew what they were doing and continued this unfair practice long after other people brought it to their attention.

by Anonymousreply 53September 6, 2021 1:01 AM

R4, rocks our world 👍😊

by Anonymousreply 54September 6, 2021 1:11 AM

[quote]MEN made this toxic work environment for women, because they didn’t want us competing with them for the jobs

To be fair, as an out gay man in the 80s I was treated the same way and my boss was a woman. Same Boomer attitude with a vagina. And to top it all off her husband was another manager in the office who spent all day marking her as the star of the company in print and trade magazines. I worked 10 to 12 hours a day while they left at 5pm on the dot. No overtime I might ad.

by Anonymousreply 55September 6, 2021 1:18 AM

[quote]over a woman who would have been a GREAT POTUS.

The only thing she was great at was being an even more shameless and greater liar than her husband!

by Anonymousreply 56September 6, 2021 1:58 AM

Remote work is the best

by Anonymousreply 57September 6, 2021 2:00 AM

I wonder how much of it comes from extrovert managers and CEOs. Optimism has its value but so does pessimism. Pessimists are typically better at anticipating and preparing for problems for example.

by Anonymousreply 58September 6, 2021 2:02 AM

IMO, HR or Human Resources is just the middle man. Yes, it's frustrating, but what do you expect from HR? It's like getting angry with at the cashier at the store when your complaint is high prices.

by Anonymousreply 59September 6, 2021 2:03 AM

Millennials want every day to be a woke, kum-ba-yah drumming circle- with vegan snacks. Or else they're not playing.

by Anonymousreply 60September 6, 2021 2:06 AM

Cult of Corptocracy

by Anonymousreply 61September 6, 2021 2:12 AM

OP here — I think being positive and professional is important, but the extreme circumstances caused by the pandemic have created realities that companies are blaming on employees instead of acknowledging them. People have worked from home for years, but dealing with customers and home life since COVID have been. Incredibly stressful and creating all kind of awful realities that people wouldn’t normally have. It’s similar to the Recession where companies pushed employees hard—and any pushback was met with “you’re lucky to have a job”.

by Anonymousreply 62September 6, 2021 2:36 AM

Plus I think companies are pushing the return to the office farther down the road because they don’t want to deal with mask regulation—or vax mandates that will result in resignations or lawsuits. So it’s easier to push the power of positive thinking.

by Anonymousreply 63September 6, 2021 2:42 AM

[quote]IMO, HR or Human Resources is just the middle man. Yes, it's frustrating, but what do you expect from HR? It's like getting angry with at the cashier at the store when your complaint is high prices.

Not so. HR is usually top management. They usually report to the CEO directly, often part of the top tier team. Usually make more many than the average employee. Ironically, less skilled, educated than the very employees they higher. Basically the highered enforcer in Frauen dress and bad hair with trite platitudes about how everyone in the company is special.

by Anonymousreply 64September 6, 2021 4:25 AM

Someone at my sister's workplace in Boston came down with covid and has been in the hospital for weeks. They only told upper-management, and no one else. Employees have been required to come into the office since March, so a lot of people have been exposed. Apparently, not telling their other employees is not illegal.

by Anonymousreply 65September 11, 2021 1:10 PM

Not illegal R65? How about unethical. Someone at your sister's work place should harp on that publicly.

by Anonymousreply 66September 12, 2021 6:44 AM

When I joined my first company 15 years ago, work was work, my boss was not my BFF and I was not supposed to hang out with my colleagues after work. Nobody expected that. And then something changed, I blame it on Silicon Valley and social media.

Now I have nothing but KPI meetings, team social events, diversity workshops, mental health awareness training, feel-good management bullshit and I am expected to be friends with everyone. I don’t get why so many European companies want to be like Google or Facebook when we don’t have the same mentality? I just want to do my work and then be left alone, is that too much to ask?

by Anonymousreply 67September 12, 2021 12:20 PM

[quote]I just want to do my work and then be left alone, is that too much to ask?

Yes.

by Anonymousreply 68September 12, 2021 2:13 PM

[quote] Ironically, less skilled, educated than the very employees they higher. Basically the highered enforcer

R64 OH DEAR!!! OH DEAR!!! Oh dear!

by Anonymousreply 69September 13, 2021 4:31 AM

[quote]When I joined my first company 15 years ago, work was work, my boss was not my BFF and I was not supposed to hang out with my colleagues after work. Nobody expected that. And then something changed, I blame it on Silicon Valley and social media.

I agree with your basic premise but that shit started long before Silicon Valley. I blame the rise of HR promotion into self importance as the real culprit. Silicon Valley are mostly internalized reclusive types, no way would they want that kind of forced social participation BS.

When I started working 30 years ago, HR was a side job for someone in the office like the boss's spouse or executive secretary. By the time I left my last job it was common place to have entire HR offices full of staff with nothing better to do than dream up fake team building events, higher people without a clue what the job was about and demand higher salaries as they were an "intramural part of the human capitol" bull shit line CEO's swallowed hook line an sinker.

by Anonymousreply 70September 13, 2021 4:54 AM

I'm sure it's nothing like Asian work culture OP. They are guilt tripping you for every little personal quirk you have. It's all about productivity maximization and profit. Individualism is totally undesirable.

by Anonymousreply 71September 13, 2021 5:39 AM

My answer to the whole “we are all friends/family” — friends don’t fire you, family doesn’t track your performance.

by Anonymousreply 72September 13, 2021 5:55 AM

That's a good one R72.

Friends will do things for you without expecting anything in return, family will help even when no one else will.

by Anonymousreply 73September 13, 2021 6:11 AM

R37 Yeah women love to come to you to talk about their sexual harassment, Dutchie.

by Anonymousreply 74September 13, 2021 8:50 AM

You have better chances to climb the career ladder by networking than being great at your job. Some bosses and supervisors love ass-kissers and suck ups who give them one ego boost after the other. Corporate social events are all about networking. If you don't play the game and not a team player, don't expect any promotion.

by Anonymousreply 75September 13, 2021 9:02 AM

[quote]Some bosses and supervisors love ass-kissers and suck ups who give them one ego boost after the other. Corporate social events are all about networking. If you don't play the game and not a team player, don't expect any promotion.

I don't disagree, but that is total Boomer corporate culture in a nutshell.

Skill and hard work is not as important as ass kissing and playing the game. You wonder why people hate it so much.

by Anonymousreply 76September 13, 2021 10:06 AM

R52 describes what it was like being a worker, male or female, as Gen X working for Boomers in the 1980s - 2000s. Wildly overqualified for your positions, often more qualified than the people you were working for. When you'd meet goals, you got new goals that were usually all scut labor and busywork. You were constantly browbeaten and your reviews were middling. You were never good enough for that raise, promotion or new position. Meanwhile, your boss' brother-in-law just got out of rehab and was handed the job, with no experience, that you'd applied 3x and told you weren't qualified for.

by Anonymousreply 77September 14, 2021 4:26 PM

I have one foot out the door at my office and don't have to give a fuck about appearances so I enjoy playing the counterpoint, a one-man band of toxic negativity. Not on every small point of course, but only when there is some new scheme that is a purposeful distraction, I take the time to explain that these are crumbs thrown out to distract from bigger doings or to give a false sense of "we care" benevolence.

What's the motivation behind this seeming one-time "payment" of $1000 to $1500 or so (they avoid even calling it a bonus) when they froze salaries for the last three years against what even executives acknowledge as shockingly high profits? Probably that your salary will remain frozen again this year, or adjusted oh so minimally. Notice that if and when you do get a raise, it will not be based on your income with various bonuses but based instead on your current salary - stuck in amber for three years now.

Why put low seniority "diversity" staff in the spotlight and hot seat when on various do-nothing committees when the executive team has within it's power to lead by example and promote more women to senior positions, hire and promote more people who are minorities? Because they are concerned only with making a show and not with results: the diversity committee IS their result, their ONLY result.

The company takes a posture of benevolence in setting back the return-to-the-office date once again, from October 1, to not earlier than mid-January. Because they are concerned about lawsuits and disgruntlement over trying to shoehorn two offices worth of staff into one office - because they let one lease expire, and because they're waiting for federal policy to guide vaccination requirements for the workplace.

by Anonymousreply 78September 14, 2021 5:01 PM
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