Aibu to approach manager about colleagues productivity

[Lostandlittle]

I work as a team and work on a rota.

Productivity is low (on a sliding scale) for certain colleagues.

I’ve asked to move because they talk too much and also I can’t concentrate. Plus some colleagues are on their phones constantly. I’ve been moved which is great.

It’s not in my head that colleagues aren’t doing as much work. Ive done a quick report and saw Y colleague has raised 1/3 of the jobs that me and X have raised. We accept incoming calls (we aren’t a call centre), have an inbox we manage and raise jobs for colleagues.

I’ve been self employed for many years. This job is £24k so somewhat entry level job.

Management have made a big rota change recently and I’ve never had a 121. So I’m hoping they are aware of the issues and making changes that way.

Got my 121 next week.

Btw, I’m really focusing on your question here… so I’m not sounding sympathetic about being surrounded by lazy colleagues and incompetent managers! I am definitely sympathetic about that!

@Dancingonmoonlight

I once worked with someone who did three times more than anyone else. Mgt were aware of the quantity of work she did. The quality of her work was dreadful and they were also aware of this!

Yes. The tasks we are doing are straight forward and you can only do them one way or else computer says no.

From a manager’s prospective, I’ve had employees come to me with this exact issue . They tell me as if I don’t already know/ not already handling it . It’s a bit annoying however I understand their frustrations .

If it impacts your work just say you would find it beneficial if x, y and z was done more efficiently as it's delaying you.
Don't name names. Your manager will know.

If it's not impacting your work then don't say anything.

You can only raise things that directly affect you. Eg I'm finding it hard to get all the work done as the files are coming to me with no prep work done . Don't give an analysis of who's fault that is it's not your business.

Don't complain that your colleagues aren't productive - do the graphs and demonstrate that you're twice as productive as Dick and 50% more productive than Jane, and you believe that that should be reflected in a pay rise of, say, 25%?

@DameFanny

Don't complain that your colleagues aren't productive - do the graphs and demonstrate that you're twice as productive as Dick and 50% more productive than Jane, and you believe that that should be reflected in a pay rise of, say, 25%?

Which won’t happen

@EgSk

From a manager’s prospective, I’ve had employees come to me with this exact issue . They tell me as if I don’t already know/ not already handling it . It’s a bit annoying however I understand their frustrations .

So why wouldn’t you be identifying it beforehand?

Because the work that is being wrong is going to get corrected at some point.

At your level, I would just work hard yourself, manage your own ambitions and channel being a good example (head down, not talking, raising the team's morale).

Do not start judging your colleagues and acting like you're the judge of your colleagues' productivity. You're not.

Part of team work is psychology in my opinion. Knock yourself out by doing your bit to raise morale, to be supportive, to set a good example, to do your own work, to be ambitious, to encourage others to be ambitious, to explain the parts of the role you've grasped to others who ask, to cover others when they need a dig out or a favour, to feel safe to ask for a favour yourself.

Start looking for something where your work will be recognised then?

Alternatively, learn to care less and do less work yourself. You'll get no reward for working hard by the sounds of it. Of course that depends on whether you want to progress upwards in the company or if you're happy at the level you're at.

Are you in a management position? Is monitoring employees and performance your job? If so then yes, raise it with HR. If not, then erm…. No.

@QueenDanu

At your level, I would just work hard yourself, manage your own ambitions and channel being a good example (head down, not talking, raising the team's morale).

Do not start judging your colleagues and acting like you're the judge of your colleagues' productivity. You're not.

Part of team work is psychology in my opinion. Knock yourself out by doing your bit to raise morale, to be supportive, to set a good example, to do your own work, to be ambitious, to encourage others to be ambitious, to explain the parts of the role you've grasped to others who ask, to cover others when they need a dig out or a favour, to feel safe to ask for a favour yourself.

There is none of that at the moment. It’s pretty much do as much work as you feel like, no regard for the next person doing the task or the actual teams performance

If you're not their line manager and it doesn't impact on your output keep your nose out of it.
Getting involved with earn you no favours from anyone.

So why, in a culture like that, would you be asking about bringing it up with your manager?

I used to work in the council. Picking up calls and emails for repairs for tenants. Both colleagues either side of me would put their phones on busy. So I would have a que. when managers were at the desk they would work as normal.
Both chatting back of me on phones while I couldn't get a second to think.

Definitely raise it!

channel being a good example (head down, not talking, raising the team's morale).

If this isn’t the culture of the office, the OP will just ostracise herself doing this.
Some offices aren’t productive and have lower standards.
People chat and the atmosphere is relaxed, especially true in lower paid jobs or where people have worked for a long time.

The OP sounds like a bad fit for this environment. You might be better off finding a new role where ambition is recognised and rewarded.
Can you change departments OP?

@Dancingonmoonlight

channel being a good example (head down, not talking, raising the team's morale).

If this isn’t the culture of the office, the OP will just ostracise herself doing this.
Some offices aren’t productive and have lower standards.
People chat and the atmosphere is relaxed, especially true in lower paid jobs or where people have worked for a long time.

The OP sounds like a bad fit for this environment. You might be better off finding a new role where ambition is recognised and rewarded.
Can you change departments OP?

Yep that’s the plan.

“So why wouldn’t you be identifying it beforehand?

Because the work that is being wrong is going to get corrected at some point”

It’s addressed in confidence. Under performance is not always straight forward, I wish it was as easy as a simple meeting or a dismissal ( and sometimes it is ).

@Dancingonmoonlight

channel being a good example (head down, not talking, raising the team's morale).

If this isn’t the culture of the office, the OP will just ostracise herself doing this.
Some offices aren’t productive and have lower standards.
People chat and the atmosphere is relaxed, especially true in lower paid jobs or where people have worked for a long time.

The OP sounds like a bad fit for this environment. You might be better off finding a new role where ambition is recognised and rewarded.
Can you change departments OP?

I’m a bad fit because I do my work? I think someone who isn’t doing their work, at work, instead being on their phones etc is the bad fit and a risk to a management

I think I’m still going to bring it up at my 121, even for a whinge
And because I shouldn’t be at work whilst someone is deliberately missing calls, drawing etc.

@SaskiaRembrandt

I used to work with someone who completed their work much faster than anyone else - it turned out she was doing it wrong.

And I used to work with a team who were under performing compared to me because they would endlessly chat shit whilst I cracked on.

One of them even voluntarily shadowed me because he did want to improve his performance. He saw I was doing nothing differently, at which point I showed him my tally of times chat had broken out during our supposed "busy" time. Sixteen times in a hour.

@Lostandlittle

I think I’m still going to bring it up at my 121, even for a whinge And because I shouldn’t be at work whilst someone is deliberately missing calls, drawing etc.

Nearly the whole thread has said don’t- focus on yourself.

If there is a measurable way their lack of productivity is impacting on your productivity (report not done = my own task delayed) then mention the report being late as a recurring problem and offer a process-based solution - which is not “tell off Colleague X” but more “Perhaps the deadline for the report to come to me could be moved up, so there’s some leeway if Colleague X is running late with it for some reason”.

You can’t “have a whinge”, that’s not what 1-1 is for.

You are at work to work. Your colleague is also at work to work. If they’re not working, that’s not your problem to solve nor does it change the fact that you’re at work to work. It only becomes your problem if a) you are their manager or b) their workload becomes your workload.

I completely disagree with everyone. The only issue is how you word it.
Why not complain that a colleague is underperforming if it affects you?

You have 30 tasks to do as a team. 10 each. 1 barely does 5. So you always have the pressure of 15 tasks on your plate. Even if you do manage or don't manage to do all 15, the pressure is always there.

EgSk:
"From a manager’s prospective, I’ve had employees come to me with this exact issue . They tell me as if I don’t already know/ not already handling it . It’s a bit annoying however I understand their frustrations ."

Sometimes these things take time for the manager to correct, but more likely the manager is actually poor, and isn't addressing it at all.

@NoSquirrels their workload becomes my workload. As I’ve always said, when X doesn’t do their task, it becomes my task as it’s on a rota basis. So this week when I’m on ABC task and I’m left with 200 to do, and the past three weeks only 12 have been done, and I’m able to do 200 in three days - it does raise a question of what people have been doing on the other 15 days.