They can't do the job

Localgirl_2

I work in Local Authority and through restructure and redundancies the department I work in has lost some of its most valued members of staff. Work is piling up, relentless work load which in the climate is only going to stay the same or get worse.

There are hardly any staff and everyone is stretched and we are all trying as hard as we can while new staff are being employed. Yes, they have made people redundant and regraded the jobs on lower pay for doing more and now they are recruiting. The wages do not come up in comparison with other local authorities in a similar job hence why we can't get any staff with the relevant experience. You may guess what I work in.

I have been in the team less than a year after coming from other local authorities and I have to say the whole department needs restructuring properly but the problems lie in the management of the department. Everything that other departments do in other councils they shun and say due to, 'statutory constraints' they can't do the same. What a load of rubbish. I have asked what law but it's funny they change the subject.

Anyway. I work along side 4 other members of staff. Some full time some part time and this is a small team part of a larger team that should be about 30 people. It's around 15 at the moment.
One of these members of staff I work along side is a nightmare. He can't follow statutory procedure, he can't reply to an email with out a disaster and tells people that things are going to happen that are not.

Examples- Mrs A called the office and I checked our customer management system for her record. Didn't exist. Looked in our postal system which every part of correspondence comes through, no trace. Mrs A had received a letter from us and usually copies of these would be on the system. So I then took the customer details and said I would investigate. I investigated. I asked him - 'oh yes that's in my tray she will get this bla bla bla' and I pointed out something that would mean she wouldn't. He shrugged it off as oh we'll - so I told him he could tell her as she was very angry that she had read our guidelines in the Internet and what he said was not what the policy said so she believed he had told her wrong. Well he had!

Example - I asked this man to process something on my day off that was urgent. And I came back to work the next day to find it in the wedge of paper work which I only found when I was looking through. I asked and he said - 'oh yes I put it there ready for me to do' - I ended up doing it. Poor person it was a dire case.

Example - in certain circumstances things are suspended. No notes one file meant I had no idea why something was. I asked everyone had no idea so I placed a note and made it live as there was nothing to suggest why and it had come up on a report error. The person had emailed in and he had printed it shoved it in a bag and forgot about it. No notes no letters no evidence - how would anyone know!

I am getting sick of it. I spend my day being shouted at for his mistakes. If I reported them all back it would be ridiculous if I listed it all. High light was yesterday when a lady said to me - oh if there is something wrong it's always him you can guarantee it! Been the same for years!

I am by no means perfect i make mistakes and when I do everyone knows to tell me and I will sort it out. The other members of staff have started coming to me to sort mistakes out tht he has made. I want to move on with my career. How do I deal with this? No one else in my close team seems to want to sort it out but is that because they all work part time; or they don't want to rock the boat? Advice please?

Sambucus_Nigra

Only his manager can sort it out and only when they receive enough complaints to make it worthwhile sorting. By the sounds of it he's been incompetent for years.

Who is his manager and what is the relationship between yours and his?

Are you prepared to put a grievance in about his standard of work? Are other staff members willing to also do so?

Localgirl_2

Well we have a new manager. He seems very knowledgable but I don't know him at all yet. He is always in meetings. We have spoken about an error which he thought was me then when I explained realised that it wasn't my work it was this mans and said it will be looked at and dealt with.

The others won't do anything I doubt. I could ask but if they say no they may speak to him and tell him. I am very much in and out of the offices and I don't feel I have created any good working relationships because everyone I knew well has now gone!

Sambucus_Nigra

Ok - new manager is good.

You need to document every error to cover your back. And coincidentally - when you next get told off you can take your big list out, run your finger down your list to find the error you are being accused of making, and show that it was not you, again, but 'the incompetent one'. And if your new manager requires a copy of that document, of course you can print it out, email it or photocopy it for him.

It's his responsibility to manage this chap - and he's new so whilst covering yourself, it can give him a helping hand in managing him up or managing him out.

ailuro2

two words here - record keeping

keep a sheet by your desk and take note of each job you do, with a reference number, postcode or other way to identify it without leaving people's data on display.

don't leave it lying aorund for others to see.

then when anyone mentions you did something wrong, pull out your worklist and show them it wasn't one of your jobs.

Good Luck - have work with lazy gits and incompetents before, it's no fun and you do need to get toguh and shut yourself off a bit from them where possible.

Emailing the person to ask them to do something helps too - a request in black and white with a timescale sometimes help to clear the mind of those that will be doing the urgent job for you.

BitterAndTwisted

Yes, document absolutely everything. Any time this person needs to be asked to do something put it in an email, and when you find that they have not responded to a request or done it incorrectly, follow it up with another email. The second time you put things in writing, consider copying in your manager. That way, their poor performance is on record for when you tackle this situation formally. I would also suggest that you try and get your other colleagues on board with putting everything in writing to them too as it's obvious that this idiot can't be trusted to get on with what they are paid to be doing.

No-one anywhere should have to support, cover up for or work around an incompetent when they have their own work to do.

alwaysonthego_2

MOVING THREADS FOR BETTER RESPONSES


Hi, Martin’s asked me to post this in these circumstances: I’ve asked Board Guides to move threads if they’ll receive a better response elsewhere (please see this rule) so this post/thread has been moved to another board, where it should get more replies. If you have any questions about this policy please email [EMAIL="forumteam@moneysavingexpert.com"]forumteam@moneysavingexpert.com[/EMAIL].

denla

alwaysonthego wrote: »

MOVING THREADS FOR BETTER RESPONSES


Hi, Martin’s asked me to post this in these circumstances: I’ve asked Board Guides to move threads if they’ll receive a better response elsewhere (please see this rule) so this post/thread has been moved to another board, where it should get more replies. If you have any questions about this policy please email [EMAIL="forumteam@moneysavingexpert.com"]forumteam@moneysavingexpert.com[/EMAIL].

Who's Martin? Who are you? You're not making any sense here.

kara7758

denla wrote: »

Who's Martin? Who are you? You're not making any sense here.

The Martin they are referring to is Martin Lewis the guy who started this website.

The person posting is part of the forum team who make sure the forums run smoothly. They have chosen to move the thread to a better area of the forum so that the poster can get lots of relevant responses. Very common practice on the forums!!

Hope this helps!

floss2

denla wrote: »

Who's Martin? Who are you? You're not making any sense here.

kara7758 wrote: »

The Martin they are referring to is Martin Lewis the guy who started this website.

The person posting is part of the forum team who make sure the forums run smoothly. They have chosen to move the thread to a better area of the forum so that the poster can get lots of relevant responses. Very common practice on the forums!!

Hope this helps!

Good to see someone being put right by a Newbie

jen245

OP, I also work in Local Authority, and trust me, its not just your workplace thats like that! Its been like that in mine since I can remember. Managers IME are actually the worst!!