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Original poster

I was told off by a work colleague

454 replies

selepele · 02/11/2018 20:28

i have been at my current job since June, the person concerned has been there longer than me. He is the accounts guy, not my manager and I do not need to answer to him at all.

He works downstairs and me upstairs but you can see my desk if you walk round the corner from downstairs as I'm at the top of the stairs.

I work as admin so people sometimes ask me to type up stuff for them ect, which is no issues. I was hired to do the project manager and ICT persons admin.

so this particular person I have never had issues with and had a good relationship with until today.

He ask me to type up some stuff and I ask when does he need it by which he says "its not urgent, like 2-3 days I don't need it today" he gave me this work around 3pm

so everyone has left the office and it is just me and him (we are a small team of around 8) he walks pass the stairs (at the bottom of the stairs) once and sees me on my phone, he then does it again to go loo then when he is back turns around and says to me...

"I will appreciate if you do what I told you to do and not play on your phone"
I said I am doing it which he said "no youre not" and I said you told me it wasn't urgent which he said "that's not the point you don't just sit there on your phone"

I was very shocked by his attitude, as stated he is NOT my manager or of any authority to me.

He didn't even come upstairs to see if I had done anything since giving it to me so I made a point to finish it all and put it on his desk before the end of the day at 5pm.

I then left and I did slam the door and ignore him when he said bye to me.

do you think I am wrong at all?

He asked me to type up some stuff for him, which was fine

OP posts:
HotSauceCommittee · 02/11/2018 22:17

He’s a prick, he’s not your manager, fuck that shit.
I’d have an attitude problem with a douche like that!
Door slamming, oh well, there was no one else around except the swinging dick to see it, was there?
Go in first to see your manager to explain, calmly, before he goes crying to her. Too many people want a little power trip when they don’t have the authority.

5foot5 · 02/11/2018 22:18

Well I don't really think occasional phone usage is an issue. Certainly not where I work, although obviously if someone was sat gossiping on their phone or WhatsApp a lot when stuff needed doing it would be frowned on.

However I am struck by the fact that you work on a small team, admit you often don't have much to do and yet still want to resist doing admin for him because that's not what you are employed for. I have often worked on small teams, I do now, and generally the attitude is that everyone mucks in with whatever needs doing.

Gwenhwyfar · 02/11/2018 22:19

" I suppose he could have been politer about it, especially as he’s not your manager."

If he's not her manager, then he has no business commenting on it at all does he?

WitchesHatRim · 02/11/2018 22:19

He’s a prick, he’s not your manager, fuck that shit.
I’d have an attitude problem with a douche like that!

Then I imagine having an attitude problem with someone after only being there for 4 months you could find yourself job hunting.

Gwenhwyfar · 02/11/2018 22:21

" I am struck by the fact that you work on a small team, admit you often don't have much to do and yet still want to resist doing admin for him because that's not what you are employed for."

People in small teams have to muck in, but you are allowed to have a job description as well, especially with the kind of admin job OP has. If she accepts any job she'll be treated like the office junior.

Goldenbear · 02/11/2018 22:22

If he works in accounts then he is probably more aware of the cost of staff. Perhaps he felt the same about the person that previously occupied the job and was on their phone all of the time. It is odd he has no one to do his admin, is he an accountant?

Onecutefox · 02/11/2018 22:22

OP, he is a pig and probably has some issues if he is starting to bully you. You do him a favour once and he will ask for another one. Be careful as he sounds nasty. No slamming doors anymore but don't do anything for him if you're not required to do it.

limitedperiodonly · 02/11/2018 22:23

How old are you op??

I think the traditional MN response to this is ODFOD Glossymare

Thissameearth · 02/11/2018 22:23

I can’t comprehend the priggish responses here. I’m a solicitor and have had various support staff over the years - i’d never dream of speaking to any of them the way you were spoken to today. Late Friday afternoon, non urgent work, not something I care about at all. Even if it was urgent, if I’d told them the deadline, and there had been no issues issues before with failing to meet them, I wouldnt be pressing them every 5 mins to check or bristling if I saw them on their phones, I’d assume they could manage both, just as I do.

TheMaddHugger · 02/11/2018 22:23

I was told off by a work colleague
Gwenhwyfar · 02/11/2018 22:24

" you like to work slowly. Admin is not for you. "

Oh I can assure you that you NEED to be able to work slowly in a lot of admin jobs. Being able to stretch things out is a required skill in many places.

Gwenhwyfar · 02/11/2018 22:26

" In most work places phone use is restricted to break times or your lunch hour."

I just don't think this is true in offices.

pickingdaisies · 02/11/2018 22:27

Glad you're going to follow dragon's advice. I don't get why you're getting such a hard time on here. It sounds to me like he's taking advantage of everyone else leaving to act like your boss. All that " I told you to", really not on! What gets me though, is that one day you have to go home early, because HE wants to go early, and the next he's trying to criticise you for not working fast enough. Cheeky sod!

Thebluedog · 02/11/2018 22:27

Unless you’re on the phone 24/7, everyone has the odd look now and again which I consider acceptable (I manage a team of 40+ people).

He was rude and I’d complain to his manager about HIS behaviour.

HopeGarden · 02/11/2018 22:28

Most places I’ve worked have been tolerant of personal mobile phone use, provided people still get their work done.

But even so, I can’t imagine any manager I’ve had being sympathetic to me complaining about a scenario like OPs - it’s difficult to argue that your personal phone use isn’t getting in the way of work if you’re complaining about a colleague telling you off about using your phone instead of working during work hours, even if the colleague was rude about it.

HotSauceCommittee · 02/11/2018 22:30

@WitchesHatBrim, I’ve lasted far longer than 4 months, so the only job hunting I’m currently doing is for something better. No problems for me, I just wouldn’t accept that from someone who was not directly senior to me and I would question how they were speaking to me if they did. Doesn’t mean I can’t call them Douches and pricks in my head. Meh.

HotSauceCommittee · 02/11/2018 22:31

And put some drawing pins on his chair, OP! Grin

Fluffy40 · 02/11/2018 22:33

Officially phones are banned in our workplace, but most people send the odd text at various times. It’s in health care.

tedrekasta · 02/11/2018 22:36

Good luck with resolving this.

I've never stood up to anyone in my life and so I suppose if this was me I would just have listened to him and then apologised and got on with things. Basically, I'm very conflict averse.

I'm not suggesting that's the best way forward but I take that approach because on the whole it has led to a quiet life for me.

Each to their own.

Storm4star · 02/11/2018 22:36

Wow, where do all you people work that someone cannot send one message on their phone? I’m glad I don’t work for any of you! It’s an office, not a prison!

WhatToDoAboutWailmerGoneRogue · 02/11/2018 22:37

Your behaviour was very unprofessional and the fact that you’re still ok with that and won’t be talking with him unless it’s about work, along with your snippy replies here, shows you haven’t learned from these posts that your behaviour has been unacceptable.

If he is a manager he has a right to ask you not to go on your phone during work time, regardless of whether or not he is your direct manager.

I am also concerned about you being in admin when your posts are full of spelling and grammar errors (and not just shorthand that is sometimes used on the internet). These are mistakes you should not be making.

Asthenia · 02/11/2018 22:39

OP you don’t sound like you have an attitude problem at all. I would be shocked if someone spoke to me like that at work, and have never been spoken to in that way at all. I would definitely speak to his manager about it. I personally wouldn’t have slammed the door but I understand why you did - he sounds like an utter dick.

FruitCider · 02/11/2018 22:40

Ive never heard of not being able to use your phone at your workplace

It's a criminal offence for me to take my mobile into work. I survive for 14 hours at a time! I have email, and my immediate family has an emergency contact number to call me on, it would take approx 30 minutes to get hold of me.

Gwenhwyfar · 02/11/2018 22:45

"It's a criminal offence for me to take my mobile into work. "

You don't have a normal office job then do you Fruit Cider?

"If he is a manager he has a right to ask you not to go on your phone during work time, regardless of whether or not he is your direct manager."

I can imagine there are workplaces where managers pick on staff that don't report to them, but I wouldn't want to work in one of those places. You could potentially have hundreds of people telling you off all the time.

HopeGarden · 02/11/2018 22:47

Ive never heard of not being able to use your phone at your workplace

An acquaintance of mine used to work at an industrial site that restricted mobile phones on site. Most of the site was classed as having a potentially explosive atmosphere, so anything that was considered capable of producing a spark - including mobile phones - had to be left in the employee’s car or at the security office at the site entrance.

They did however have landlines in the office areas that could be used as contact numbers for employees in emergencies.