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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

To think colleagues are being deliberately difficult with me as it's my last week?

41 replies

hadenoughhh · 09/05/2023 18:38

It's my last week at work, and today has been such a stressful day. I should be winding down and doing more admin kind of things, but it feels like everyone is piling as much work on me as they can.

I had one colleague asking me to show another colleague a process I'm not familiar with. I'm at home and my two colleagues were in the office, so what would be quickly showing them in the office in 5 minutes ended up taking most of my afternoon up as I had to ask colleague how to do it first, before I could then show my other colleague how to do it... Then I started showing the colleague how to do the process only for it to come up with an error I had no idea how to fix, as I don't know the process and never used it once during my time at the company!

Then I had another colleague send me something at 4:30pm asking for it to be finished by end of day, as they had agreed for it to be reviewed by someone senior tomorrow morning without consulting me first. I said I can't get it done by end of day, I had a 30 minute meeting and other work to do. Now I need to log in tomorrow morning and rush to finish work to get it over to the senior person ASAP.

I feel like I know objectively these are small things, but maybe it's the emotion of leaving a job that's catching up to me but I just feel so fed up!

OP posts:
PingPongPiddlyPong · 09/05/2023 18:43

Why did you say yes to the training?
Why didn’t you say “I’m really sorry I don’t know how to do that. But I think Mr X is fully trained on it. Try him” Then you’ve got rid of the person but hopefully directed them to someone who can help them.

Schroedingersimmigrant · 09/05/2023 18:47

I am very helpful colleague but I am also all for efficiency.
The training is absolutely illogical to me. Are you all in the iffice spending hours extra on nonsensical jobs?
That should have taken 5 min when you wrote email to lerson who knows ccd in these two and ask if they could be please shown how to do X.😳

The latter one is absolute pita and I feel you. However, if that's same level colleague I would very much say they have to speak to LM about that because you don't have capacity. Maybe lm can move some your work so you could finish that thing

Schroedingersimmigrant · 09/05/2023 18:48

So many typos. Sorry

Original poster
hadenoughhh · 09/05/2023 18:51

I did say no to the colleague, and asked if they had time or if X had time as they both know the process well. They ignored my request and instead just sent me some written instructions, and I had to keep going back asking several questions to clarify things. The colleague I was training then put in a call before I had time to get my own head around the process, so I asked them to delay it. Then I joined the call and the process came up with an error which I didn't know how to fix as I'm inexperienced.

OP posts:
GrumpyPanda · 09/05/2023 18:54

"I've already told you I'm not familiar with the process. You'll have to find somebody else."

Sorry OP this one's on you for not saying no. Similar to the second request.

HoogahToogah · 09/05/2023 18:57

Do you need them for a reference? You should just say no. What's the worst that can happen?

Treesoutsidemywindow · 09/05/2023 19:05

Quite honestly OP if you're leaving anyway, I would just do what you can, and no more. You don't owe an employer anything other than a 'fair' day's work for a 'fair' day's pay, if you're being asked to do things that don't fit with that, ie, expected to rush work, do things that you have never done before and under pressure, or work late in order to get it done, then just don't do it, after all, they're hardly likely to fire you are they? I think you need to learn to assert yourself, now is a good time to practice this before you move on to your next job, that way you can start as you mean to go on.

BanditsOnTheHorizon · 09/05/2023 19:05

Rather than you going to the person to understand the process, push it back onto the person doing the asking.

Can you train x today on y, no sorry I'm not familiar with the process, try asking z as I think he might be able to help

Can you do x before close of play today? Sorry I won't be able to complete this in my contracted hours. Or 'sorry no, I've got other take that need to be completed today so won't be able to get the additional work down

You need to learn how to say no and how to push balc. Now and in your new job otherwise people take the piss

WateryDoom · 09/05/2023 19:10

You need to be firm.

If you'd said, 'No. I'm not familiar with the process and I'm too busy' that should have been the end of the conversation. I'd have ignored the written instructions and simply got on with what I had already planned to do. I would not have taken the call from the colleague.

You'd said No.

Tomorrow (and rest of the week) just keep doing what you need to. And tomorrow I'd be very tempted to simply log on and say to colleague "I didn't get X done for (v senior person) yesterday. I did say I wouldn't have time I'm afraid'.

What's the worst that will happen?

mainsfed · 09/05/2023 19:19

You should have said no.

GoodChat · 09/05/2023 19:22

Agreeing to train someone on a process you don't know is daft. Worst case, you should have just sent them the instructions and told them to ask the others if they got stuck.

ChrisPPancake · 09/05/2023 19:23

They're probably not being deliberately difficult, but maybe they think "oh, @hadenoughhh will have time available to her this week because she's handed over x,y, z project". But if you haven't got the time available you should just say no and bat it back.

illiad · 09/05/2023 19:27

HoogahToogah · 09/05/2023 18:57

Do you need them for a reference? You should just say no. What's the worst that can happen?

This - nothing to lose if it's your last week ... just say no (and go offline).

NowItsSpring · 09/05/2023 19:27

You need to push back- it is your last week, what are they going to do?

Original poster
hadenoughhh · 09/05/2023 19:34

The colleague I was training is new, and half the team is out on annual leave so I couldn't just leave them with nothing to do. Anyway, I trained them on what I could and then told them to ask X if they have any questions so hopefully that's all sorted now.

The work I need to rush tomorrow morning isn't over though, and I'm annoyed at the tone my colleague had. I said something like 'I won't have time today due to X and Y, but can work on it tomorrow' and they replied saying 'hmmm ...' It's not my problem, don't send me work an hour before the end of the day wanting it done straight away. I don't have time to work on it first thing either, I have another piece of work I need to finish ASAP.

My go-to habit would be for me to log on early to get everything sorted but I can't be bothered with it being my last week.

OP posts:
LlynTegid · 09/05/2023 19:37

I think they are. Perhaps out of spite, more likely because they have to face anyone who they are unreasonable to, next week and beyond, but not you.

sheworemellowyellow · 09/05/2023 19:43

I’ve had two jobs where 100% people acted like they felt personally betrayed by me leaving and 100% “punished” me with crap like this.

Id already secured my next job both times so I just said “sure” to things that I didn’t think were necessary and never did them; and said no to other things.

Each time, though, I left things very very easy for the person taking over from me. My conscience is clear.

SchoolShenanigans · 09/05/2023 19:47

Sounds like you need to be tougher.

It's your last week, don't allow yourself to be used like this! "No, I don't have time unfortunately, this is too big of a task to ask so last minute. I can either work on it tomorrow, or you'll have to find someone else I'm afraid".

Having boundaries at work will gain you respect.

saltinesandcoffeecups · 09/05/2023 19:49

We’ll unless the work you were doing was for a different senior leader, then it would have made sense to prioritize that work. It’s not unlikely that it was dropped in the requesters lap on short notice. The training was a different story. I would have pushed that one back to the person that sent you the documentation.

But lastly, it sounds like you were planning on coasting in your last week. That I’d not be impressed by.

GiltEdges · 09/05/2023 19:53

You're being a pushover.

It's your last week. Say no and do the minimum. It's what anyone else would do.

Spookysnake · 09/05/2023 20:01

If it's deliberate, could it be that you are known as a bit of a slacker? I'd only "pile work on" someone who I knew would otherwise do the bare minimum in their last week.

whiteroseredrose · 09/05/2023 20:01

Just say that you will add things to your list and hopefully will get most things done before you leave.

EnjoyingTheSilence · 09/05/2023 20:13

Agree with everyone else. You need to be able to say no. Completely pointless you training someone in how to do something you don’t know how to do.

And with the other task, you just needed to say, I’m not going to have time for that today and I have project x to finish tomorrow morning so I can’t guarantee that I will get it done in time for y

Coffeetree · 09/05/2023 20:27

hadenoughhh · 09/05/2023 18:51

I did say no to the colleague, and asked if they had time or if X had time as they both know the process well. They ignored my request and instead just sent me some written instructions, and I had to keep going back asking several questions to clarify things. The colleague I was training then put in a call before I had time to get my own head around the process, so I asked them to delay it. Then I joined the call and the process came up with an error which I didn't know how to fix as I'm inexperienced.

You absolutely could leave the person with nothing to do.

Who among all these people is actually your boss?

Original poster
hadenoughhh · 09/05/2023 22:50

I'm definitely not a slacker and wasn't hoping to coast on my last week. I was just hoping to have time to hand things over nicely and make sure all my files etc are in order.

None of the people in these two situations are my managers, but they are senior to me.

OP posts:
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