Re colleague foisting work onto other people

[user1485342611]

A guy I work with was promoted recently and is now at the same level as me and some others. It is becoming increasingly obvious that he has been promoted beyond his capabilities, but instead of tackling this management are just allowing him to foist bits of his work onto the rest of us.

The guy in question is quite arrogant about the whole thing; acting as if it's no big deal, saying he's 'too busy' to do certain parts of his job, 'it's not his job' to do certain things and so on, while walking around as if he thinks he's wonderful.

He's well in with senior management (including someone with a lot of influence) so complaints are being fobbed off, all kinds of 'explanations' given and so on. Everyone's totally fed up.

AIBU to think if someone gets promoted and is obviously not up to the job, it is up to Management to take responsibility and tackle the issue - by either a sideways move, or a demotion dressed up to look as if it was the person's own choice or something like that?

Yes but sadly in the real world that never happens. Idiots are so often allowed to get away with it whilst others pick up the slack. I propped up my boss for years (he fobbed work onto me claiming he was helping me develop and grow when I knew he was incapable of doing it), people on his level gave me work he was meant to do, it was all very unfair. He finally got let go recently when I simply refused to engage with him and do his work for him. If you all stand together and refuse to pick up his slack management will have to deal with it.

People get promoted to their own level of incompetency.

As long as they are competent they get promoted. They stop being promoted when they aren't good at their current job.

Afraid my experience is that people get promoted not for ability but precisely because they get on with management. Sometimes of course, the management come unstuck.

Stop accepting his work.

Next time he says he is too busy, you, being the more experienced member of staff, offer to show him some time management techniques?

A bit of reduced capacity to start with would be normal. Suggest you work with colleagues and manager to 'agree a timetable for helping him reach full capability' perhaps with a time management and prioritising course to layer on the helpful.

Suggest that he 'bears in mind he'll need to take on what 'you are all supporting him with' and use language like 'stabilisers off by Christmas' but breezily like its usual team jargon...And work out a timetable to hand responsibilities back with overall manager.

..Evil

As they say, poo floats to the top. Funny enough was just laughing about an ex colleague who was lovely but as strategically minded as a goldfish landing a top job in another organization... great guy but pity his new team!

Just refuse to do his extra work full stop. He needs to learn. He may have been promoted beyond his capabilities but that doesn't mean he needs to continue to work like he doesn't know what hes doing - he needs to quickly upskill himself to pick up his own slack and thats what management should be doing about it. As they are not then its up to you to instil this in him and refuse his extra work. Don't be a doormat.

Look for a pay raise, a large one! After all if you are taking on a percentage of someone else's job then you should be compensated accordingly.
If the company don't want to pay you then I would decline to take work on. When he says he is too busy respond by saying 'I am too, maybe someone else can accommodate you'.

Start taking ownership of the work that comes to you, and encourage stakeholders to buypass him. It's how many people get managed out in my industry