Receptionist Accused of Stealing Parcel

scheming_gypsy

tyllwyd wrote: »

I think you should speak to your boss, and discuss the fact that a lot of your time has been wasted dealing with a personal parcel and ask if he can circulate a memo to all the companies in the building to ask them to remind staff that they should not be having personal parcels delivered to work.

i don't think they'd be able to dictate to the other companies, if personal parcels can or can't be delivered.

It'd make more sense for them to distribute an email asking that if staff are having personal emails delivered then they advise reception in advance so they can be prepared

heretolearn_2

I think you need to relax a bit - you weren't accused of stealing anything, that's a bit of hysteria from you there. They were expecting a parcel, it hadn't arrived, they were trying to find out what happened, that's all. There was no accusation there. I had a parcel (personal) delivered to work the other week and it came up on the royal mail tracking site on Monday as delivered on Friday. No one had seen it and the time it claimed it was delivered was a bit early. I even went down and checked with the shop under our offices in case they had taken it in. No. I was just trying to work out what was happened, it didn't cross my mind that anyone had stolen it. (Just as I was on the phone to the company supplying me and they were sorting out a replacement delivery guess what turned up? Postie holding my parcel!)

On the second problem, you have done the right thing, you shouldn't accept any deliveries unless it is clear which company they are for, the woman is just full of hot air and your manager has supported you in this. Ignore her.

I wonder if you have reacted so strongly to a couple of minor things as you are maybe feeling a bit down/underappreciated/struggling at work overall? You mention your hours as if you are feeling a bit hard done by (they've got nothing to do with what happened). Are you feeling worried in general about something else at work? Do you need to have a discussion with your manager about it? A bigger problem can make you lose your sense of perspective over the little things.

kazzah60

one point that the Op could legitimately make in her defence is this;
the parcel had no company name on
she did not recognise the name of the recipient
no-one informed her they were expecting an important parcel and could she keep an eye out for it

what if she had accepted the parcel and it was a bomb?
I know this seems extreme - but these days we are all advised to be vigilent with regards safety and security

if I found myself in the OP's position my response would be

" there was no company name on the parcel, I did not recognise the name of the recipient, the recipient didn't advise me there was a parcel with just her name on it arriving, therefore for reasons of security, I refused to accept the parcel "

the recipient would have to be particularly hard nosed to argue with that point in my opinion

Sambucus_Nigra

A - start a book and note down everything you sign for and which company it is for with date etc.
B - only accept company deliveries not personal
C - if people want personal deliveries, suggest to your boss that they get invoiced for you doing personal work for them at £5 per parcel.

I'd tell Miss Gobsh1te to bog off personally, if she can't be bovvered to communicate with you when she is expecting a delivery then even the power of Greystoke cannot give you mindreading capacity that tells you who it is for and where they work. AKA - get knotted.

Jerryjerryjerry

Have emailed boss with suggestions you've all given. Will keep you posted as to the outcome. I guess I feel a bit overworked at the moment, which is why this will probably seem like such a small problem tomorrow. I know a lot of people out there work very long hours, much longer than me, but I'm a bit fed up. I am too scared to bring it up with my boss incase he starts to look for someone else. A temp came in recently when I was on holiday for a week and she did a really good job and i'm sure they would prefer her to work here.

But all the comments are very much appreciated and have helped a lot. Not only that, its put everything into perspective. I am going to come here a lot more often.

Jerryjerryjerry

Sambucus_Nigra wrote: »

A - start a book and note down everything you sign for and which company it is for with date etc.
B - only accept company deliveries not personal
C - if people want personal deliveries, suggest to your boss that they get invoiced for you doing personal work for them at £5 per parcel.

I'd tell Miss Gobsh1te to bog off personally, if she can't be bovvered to communicate with you when she is expecting a delivery then even the power of Greystoke cannot give you mindreading capacity that tells you who it is for and where they work. AKA - get knotted.

A - I will definitely start that with immediate effect.
B - Don't think that will work as its not up to me. Bosses want me to sign for all deliveries.
C - hmm... don't think I could do that. But nice thought.

Jerryjerryjerry

kazzah60 wrote: »

one point that the Op could legitimately make in her defence is this;
the parcel had no company name on
she did not recognise the name of the recipient
no-one informed her they were expecting an important parcel and could she keep an eye out for it

what if she had accepted the parcel and it was a bomb?
I know this seems extreme - but these days we are all advised to be vigilent with regards safety and security

if I found myself in the OP's position my response would be

" there was no company name on the parcel, I did not recognise the name of the recipient, the recipient didn't advise me there was a parcel with just her name on it arriving, therefore for reasons of security, I refused to accept the parcel "

the recipient would have to be particularly hard nosed to argue with that point in my opinion

Very helpful post. Particuarly the security/bomb part. I will add that to my concerns.

Jerryjerryjerry

heretolearn wrote: »

I think you need to relax a bit - you weren't accused of stealing anything, that's a bit of hysteria from you there. They were expecting a parcel, it hadn't arrived, they were trying to find out what happened, that's all. There was no accusation there. I had a parcel (personal) delivered to work the other week and it came up on the royal mail tracking site on Monday as delivered on Friday. No one had seen it and the time it claimed it was delivered was a bit early. I even went down and checked with the shop under our offices in case they had taken it in. No. I was just trying to work out what was happened, it didn't cross my mind that anyone had stolen it. (Just as I was on the phone to the company supplying me and they were sorting out a replacement delivery guess what turned up? Postie holding my parcel!)

On the second problem, you have done the right thing, you shouldn't accept any deliveries unless it is clear which company they are for, the woman is just full of hot air and your manager has supported you in this. Ignore her.

I wonder if you have reacted so strongly to a couple of minor things as you are maybe feeling a bit down/underappreciated/struggling at work overall? You mention your hours as if you are feeling a bit hard done by (they've got nothing to do with what happened). Are you feeling worried in general about something else at work? Do you need to have a discussion with your manager about it? A bigger problem can make you lose your sense of perspective over the little things.

You and another poster above are right. I wasn't accused of stealing anything. But they kept telling me it had been delivered. I kept saying it hadn't. They kept ringing to say, but it has been delivered. I am the only person who has access to the reception area. It wasn't actually said, but I know it was being implied.

poet123

Another point- when they collect personal parcels (in fact, any parcel) do they have to sign for them? If not they should, if they later deny all knowledge of the parcel it would be your word against theirs that you had handed it over. Add another column in for their signature on your received book.

ceebeeby

You do sound a bit of a jobsworth to be honest - if you've worked there a while, it doesn't take long to start to learn who everyone is - personally I'd have been a bit peed off too - I think you should have done more. Reception work is about customer service, the people in your building are your customers. The people that come to your desk are your customers.

It's not exactly the hardest job in the world is it. Accept parcel - pass it on ... you must have played the game when you were younger - only difference is you're now getting paid for it. If you don't want to do it or think its too much responsibility leave - but don't b1tch about having to do your job when there's a zillion people would chew your arm off for the job right now.

Are you on a day off today?