HR advice please

[MiserableMelanie]

I’m sorry to post on AIBU - but I am so stressed out by work and really need some advice.

I submitted an anonymous email to HR about the conduct of a colleague. It was incredibly difficult to write this and not in my nature to do this. I like to deal with things but in this instance I couldn’t.

There is a situation in my office where one persons behaviour is impacting me and many others. They are sadly my peer but in a slightly different role.

HR have acknowledged my email and said they do not need to have any further contact with me. This was approx 10 days ago. Nothing since.

Am I entitled to more from them or by being anonymous has this taken any right for information away from me?

Does your workplace do exit interviews? If so , and the issue is causing people to leave, they will be aware of it.
It could be they will have a word with this person, they may just keep an eye on things, but either way they will only go so far if it is an anonymous complaint.
Would you be willing to submit it with your name to it?

But you wouldn’t be the one being investigated. She would be. You make the complaint (though you’d need to have much better examples than you are sharing here) and let HR do their job.

How else do you expect anything to improve? If you’re last resort is that you’ll have to leave then you literally have nothing to lose.

Honestly, I think I’m too much of a coward to put my name to it.

Someone mentioned toxic - that’s exactly it, every single day.

Maybe one day someone will snap but I suspect people will just leave. There are lots of jobs - just not at my level sadly. I will be sad to leave because I love my job.

Exit interviews - are done inconsistently. And by the wrong people. Also people don’t want hassle in their lives.

I suppose I hoped that this could have some
impact - that someone would ask the right people the right questions from this.

It’s clear that I have been naïve and wasted my time.

Yes they are finding other jobs.

Sadly yes I think you’ve wasted your time , as said this could be anyone who has reported, and it appears subjective and behavioural, which means it could be spite, personality clash, jealousy, resentment, anything.

What I will say is that I have raised very specific issues. However, I appreciate without my name there is probably little they will do.

I think you’re doing the same on here, you’re just not providing enough info for people to help you.

specifif issues is wide, is it non compliance, is it behavioural, who is it to.

The person you’re going after has rights, and of course if no one else is complaining, it could well look like jealousy or spite, or you simply don’t like them, maybe they are perceived as better at the role than you, have a more linear career path, are younger and promoted early, maybe you’re an ex partner,someone they rejected, hr doesn’t know, all they know is a complaint has been raised and the person who did it wishes to provide no evidence or even give their name and own it,

She has no right to be informed even if she was known, the individual is legally entitled to privacy, all she would know is it’s actioned or completed, past that they are not permitted to give personal details unless she is directly complaining about behaviour to her, and even then it’s limited.

@Achangeinplanning agree, if the op failed to name herself but named others, this would be unacceptable, so hopefully she’s not done this.

shes not been clear on here what she’s actually said, even in broad strokes, she indicates it’s behavioural and then says it’s not, if the complaint is as muddled it’s going no where, and they will think this is a vindictive person trying to cause issues,

I’m sure she’s right, but this wasn’t the way ti handle it,

That's an interesting take !
I would think about the reporting systems and culture that would force someone to report anymously.

If you're in a leadership role you should know better. Clearly other affected colleagues are talking to you about this - get everyone together and put in multiple reports.

Well an anonymous complaint would absolutely be investigated where I work (I am shocked at HR people on this thread saying they wouldn’t) but as others have stated, it does make it harder to investigate. Having managed one of these myself, these things can take some considerable time to reach a conclusion. So don’t assume that nothing is being done but also don’t expect general updates. Once the investigation has completed, you may get an update to let you know this but I am not sure given the anonymous email. If HR have acknowledged your email, then I would assume they are looking into it.

You jumped there with no detail, there is no way any organisation would investigate irrelevant of what it said and ghe op is not being clear. In her op she clearly indicates it’s behavioural and then says it isn’t, and hr are likely to tell the person they have received it,

We investigate anonymous complaints and thoighits unlikely to in itself lead to something l, it's useful context for if there are further issues or complaints raised. Also means they can't say in future there have been no issues raised.

Its a good first step in a shit situation for you. You've been brave

I am not sure why you are coming at me. I have read the whole thread and have experience in this area. All complaints would be investigated as far as they could be where I work, even anonymous complaints. This is a fact. Not sure what your point is.

@Achangeinplanningsorry I was responding to @Charlenedickensbut forgot to tag them.

Well they quoted my whole post, said I jumped in with no detail and rubbished what I said so …

I simply disagreed with you,

Good luck OP. I hope things get better for you at work.

All grievances should be investigated as far and as much as possible with the info provided.

Not least because every single one is also useful information for the business to suss out whats going on on the ground.

They dont owe you an update tbf beyond "its being/been dealt with" type response. But any HR person who would do nothing because its anonymous needs to go back to learning the very basics, so Id be very surprised if nothing is being done unless your HR team are known for being incompetent.

First up, HR are there to protect the company, not to help employees.

They will log your issue, because if in the future they say "we had no idea" when someone makes a substantial complaint with evidence, they do not want someone else (you) saying that they had been made aware previously, and you will have the email to show that.

Usually a whistleblower - you, in this instance - blows their whistle and then is uninvolved. It's unreasonable to expect them to respond to you with anything other than acknowledgement of receipt. They may investigate, but will definitely not give any details to an anonymous email account.