Back to work after 14 months and received complaint about team

[PonyPals]

This is my second day back to work after 14 months of maternity leave and at the end of the day I was cornered by a manager from a different department who needs to talk to me at once (!) about my team.

She basically said "we are meeting tomorrow at 9 am as i checked your calendar and you are free, I need to make a formal complaint about your team.

I asked her what it was about and all she said was that they were unbearably noisy whilst I was away.
She then flounced off and left me standing there.

Now that some time has passed I am so angry, annoyed and anxious.
I think she is being ridiculous to wait until I get back to attack me like this.

She and her team of 2 sit next to my team of 6 and yes sometimes things get a bit noisy when they are on the phone but nothing that I would consider unbearable.
Having said that, I wasn't there this whole time.. how would I know!
I did have a catch up with our line manager (hers and mine) and asked if there is anything I should know and was told that everything and everyone went really well.

The problem is her and line manager are friends since high school (go on yearly trips together, dinner at each other's houses) and I feel that she will not be impartial in this situation.

I don't even know what I am asking. I guess I just feel anxious and can't sleep and keep running through every scenario in my head... including throwing a drink in her face!
I'm just trying to formulate my response for tomorrow... anyone have any choice words???

Hmm. Well if she didnt turn up until 930 it can't have been that important after all then.

Have there been any formal complaints filed with HR?

And any talk of 'why should I be punished' could quite easily be turned onto her with what do you suggest we do? We have proposed X Y and Z all of which were rejected.

I think any meeting between you and her should have an impartial person taking notes which are then distribbuted to you both afterwards.

Do you think she might be working up to a constructive dismissal case?

Was this person working there before you went on ML? I'm a bit curious as to the timing of things. When did hte problems start?

There hasn't been any formal HR complaint that I know of.
I think the friendship between the two managers might be stopping things from being done in a professional way.
We work for a University, it's not very corporate.
I have worked with her for over 10 years and have always found her a bit... not quite right.
But it wasn't until 2 years ago that we all moved into a big open plan. Who ever decided that open plans are productive must be crazy.

And sorry for such long posts. I haven't had much happening in my life that was not baby related

Did things coincide with the move to open plan? Because if you are stressed already then noise can exacerbate it. So it might be really stressful for her, but then why wouldnt she accept the headphones?

Are there partitions with fabric on? they absorb quite a bit of noise.

I think perhaps the reason your manager didn't mention it to you is because the complainer is clearly being unreasonable (and also maybe it isn't a big deal in anyone's head apart from the complainer's). It sounds like everyone's tried to help her and there isn't a lot more that can be done, and she knows that, which might be why she didn't quite manage to have a meeting with you about it? I would basically stop worrying at this point.

I'd go to your HR department and ask them what has been happening in your department for the last year.

As you have only been back 2 days and already X is demanding a meeting about noise etc, and you have spoken to your team and they have told you somethings and that suggestion haven't been put in place.

I would also ask for a impartial person to be also involved as your Line manager and X have a close personal relationship outside work and you feel that perhaps their friendship is getting in the way of professional working conditions.

Why isn't she wearing the noise-cancelling headphones and why will she not move to a quieter area, neither are punishments, they are adaptations for her work environment to be more tolerable.

You cannot complain about something, (noise) have solutions (noise cancelling headphones and relocate to a quieter area) and not take them up, or arrange a meeting to discuss for 9am and expect it to be still on at 9.30 or whenever you rock up, just because you want other people to change their ways, not you.

It's a tenuous and very immature position she's clinging to.

And sorry for such long posts. I haven't had much happening in my life that was not baby related

I get that.

It's time to have her fired.

Alternatively, have a well minuted one-on-one meeting with your line manager. Have a list of reasons you feel she is unreasonable (professional) as well as what you think are appropriate measures.

Ask why she isn't wearing the headphones. Ask why she isn't but continues to moan and complain. Suggest to you line manager that this needs to be sorted. Tell them that you've had complaints about her behaviour: list specific examples.

Good luck. She sounds like a dick!

I think she has come to your door as you are her last hope of getting what she wants. It's clear she is unhappy with the noise level but is not willing to take the compromises offered in your absence. She wants to bulldoze you into making them quiet.

Personally I'd talk to your manager before going any further. Find out what happened from her point of view in your absence and how she sees the situation.

Can you arrange for you and your team to be relocated to a much nicer, more comfortable area away from the complaining person?

Seeing it neutrally, she has complained and hopes you will take this on as your cause. You need to get the monkey off your back (best work phrase ever). Any meetings f you doneeds to be you as referee with your line manager present. If they try to duck out, reschedule the meeting. Make it her that has to schedule this. It's her problem not yours.

Allpartout. 😂 You said you didn't rate my advice...then tell the OP to 'get her fired'. Hilarious.

PonyPals. Your LM obviously feels it was all sorted out, but Weird Woman doen't agree, but as LM is a friend she's decided to wait until you come back to 'have a go'. She clearly knows she's out of line though or she would have been in on time for this ridiculous meeting. She's trying to exert some power over you, but she's so bloody incompetent she couldn't even manage that. Ignore...ignore...ignore.

Still no meeting between us and I'm ignoring it and just being cordial to her.
Had my 1:1 with my LM today and let her know that each staff member has raised the issue they have had with the Weird Lady (thanks for the nickname suggestion!)
LM dismissed it and said not to worry about it as Weird Lady is being crazy and selfish (her words)
Just said don't engage with her and don't encourage her to have a meeting.
It's all so odd and I can't help but think that if an official complaint was put through HR it would actually show that none of this was handled properly!

Weird Lady rode her scooter around the (tiny) office at lunch today.

I would still have an informal meeting with HR, so they are aware of what's happening. Your line manager is never going to do anything as she is putting their friendship before their professional life.

I know how hard it is when the lines are blurred between and profession and friends. I've been in this situation and I can tell it will only get worse as your LM has not made boundaries clear. Your LM is allowing and excuses weird lady to behave like this.