Interview Cheat

[QueenOfWinterfell]

Management have been cutting down on costs and our team have had to reapply for our jobs recently with five of us having to compete for three jobs. One member of our team is very lazy and has got away with doing very little work for years. She has just announced that she has got one of the new posts! We think she’s lied about her work achievements to get the job. The reason we think this is because our manager left three months ago and our new manager doesn’t realise how little she has done over the years. I feel this is so unfair and unethical ( I got one of the other posts btw) and I want to report her but don’t know if I will be listened to. What should I do- if anything?

[MsRomanoff]

You need more than a hunch to report this.

It will reflect badly on you, if that's all you have to go on.

[Fairycake2]

Do you have any kind of appraisal system? If you do I would have thought your old manager would have recorded the work ethic of the team member. This should be available to the new manager although they may have made the choice purely on the interview

[QueenOfWinterfell]

Yes that’s what I’m worried about. Other colleagues agree with me, she’s let everyone do her work for years so there’s a general feeling of disgruntlement all round

[ScreamingValenta]

Sounds like she knows where the bodies are buried. Nothing you can really do about her appointment - those who didn't get a role would have to approach it from the angle of why they were unsuccessful, not why she was.

[QueenOfWinterfell]

Yes we do have an appraisal system but we think our old manager went easy on her because she’s friends with his wife. I know this all sounds like sour grapes but everyone’s very fed up that they’ve worked hard for the organisation and she’s got away with doing so little for quite a long time

[QueenOfWinterfell]

Apart from thinking this is so unfair, I’m also annoyed that there’s now only two of us instead of four to cope with her workload. It’s going to make life tough for us

[welshladywhois40]

Are you under consultation and do you have an employee rep? Although the consultation should have closed to get to selection as part of the consultation the rep would/could have worked with management on how the scoring would have been done for the interviews.

If as a group you feel this has been done unfairly and the staff who lose their jobs as a result of the selection process should be able to see the scoring or at least request a copy of their scoring.

Problem is that maybe her performance before this happened wasn't an accurate reflection of her actual performance? Ie your last manager was lazy and gave her a better rating than she deserved.

[QueenOfWinterfell]

Yes we were under consultation but it seemed to focus on us submitting individual thoughts on how we would fulfil our new roles. Yes, our ex manager was lazy too and just wanted an easy life. I just feel it’s so unfair that two people who did their jobs properly have lost them to someone who doesn’t pull her weight. Also my life would be easier if I was working with one of them instead of her!

[MsRomanoff]

I dont want to sound unsympathetic.

But what do you imagine will happen?

They will take your word for it over her appraisals. The person you should be annoyed with is the managers that let her get away with being lazy.

Its doesnt sound like she cheated. It sounds like she has gone for the job like everyone else and has the appraisal back up.

Unless you can prove she has lied and said someone else piece of work was hers, they wont go back on this decision based on 'we think she is lazy'.

It's not fair. Sounds like she just knows how to play the game.

[QueenOfWinterfell]

It seems strange to me that if my daughter submitted someone else’s work as her own at university she would, quite rightly, be in serious trouble but at work people can cheat and plagiarise other peoples work and get away with it

[daisychain01]

Of the 5 posts, 3 of you including this colleague were successful.

Are you really saying that the 2 remaining people were released, when they were actually great at their job? Do you even know for sure the circumstances around why they left? Maybe they didn't want to stay and went for the redundancy, in which case your colleague was one of the 3 remaining posts they needed.

[daisychain01]

What I'm saying is your logic is biased towards your contempt for this colleague rather than looking at it from the employer's perspective.

I'd advise you to be cautious before making accusations about how the selection process was conducted.

You could end up with egg on your face.

[MsRomanoff]

It seems strange to me that if my daughter submitted someone else’s work as her own at university she would, quite rightly, be in serious trouble but at work people can cheat and plagiarise other peoples work and get away with it

But you dont know if she did that. You are assuming.

You are missing alot of factual detail here. You know you arent aware of that detail. You are, understandably, annoyed. But that doesnt mean she cheated.

[QueenOfWinterfell]

It’s not just me who feels this way- it’s also the other three people in the team. Are we all wrong?

[daisychain01]

Ever heard of group-think? I'm sure if you sit there bitching about the person behind their back, you'll all end up in an echo chamber soon enough.

[QueenOfWinterfell]

I guess we must imagine that she sits at her computer doing personal stuff most of the day instead of work?
We must be fantasising that she never offers any input to the group projects we do?

[JesusInTheCabbageVan]

What would happen if you stopped carrying her?

[MsRomanoff]

I am not saying you are making it up.

But you have no proof she cheated.

Your opinion might be that she doesnt deserve it. That doesnt mean she cheated.

Especially if your previous manager gave her good appraisals and let her carry on not doing things. Thats the problem. She has evidence.

And you coming forward now she has the job, all of you, saying she is lazy etc will look like bullying and that you just dont want her having the job.

Her behaviour needed tackling before now.

Being right and being able to do something about it are 2 different things sometimes.

[QueenOfWinterfell]

The three of us have discussed doing that. Our two concerns are 1) the department will suffer and 2) we might be accused of not acting as a team by our new manager.
It also won’t change the fact that two good colleagues have lost out on a role that has gone to someone who does as little work as possible

[QueenOfWinterfell]

I agree MsRomanov, it should have been tackled by our previous manager and now it’s too late. We’re stuck with a lazy colleague and will have to work harder than we should to make sure the jobs get done

[MsRomanoff]

Unfortunately, that's right.

I sympathise and if its come across that I thought you were the issue, I apologise.

I just think theres not much you can do now. Its shit. It really is.

[QueenOfWinterfell]

No I didn’t think you were being unfairly critical of me MsRomanoff but thanks for the apology anyway! I guess we’ll all have to be firmer about not taking on her workload in future. I’m hopeful our new manager will be more aware of individual workloads

[daisychain01]

I guess we’ll all have to be firmer about not taking on her workload in future

That's actually a lot kinder to her, @QueenOfWinterfell. People deserve honesty. I agree with PP that taking the retrospective action of escalating her poor performance now could be seen as bullying and 'ganging up on her.

It could risk her (the person not pulling her weight!) taking out a grievance against you and the other colleagues and making herself into the wronged party.

As I said upthread, beware it doesn't become a complete crock with you looking the bad person.

[QueenOfWinterfell]

Thanks everyone for your very useful suggestions on what is a very difficult situation. I think going forward we will make sure that everyone is in charge of their own tasks and no one does our slacker colleagues work for her.

[EvaHarknessRose]

Take a new start as a new team and don't talk to the two past colleagues about work - you need a new dynamic for the three of you and to be professional.