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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

to be annoyed that the person I share a room with at work was sick into her bin for 4 hours rather than go home?!

105 replies

ElizabethWakefield · 24/05/2010 14:52

I'm not sure I possibly can be, but I feel like I need a rant anyway!

Colleague came in at 9am this morning feeling ill, she then proceeded to puke in her bin, on and off between sleeping with her head on her desk, for 4 hours!

I share an office with her, the office has no windows but is "climate controlled" and was stinking! I repeatedly told her she should go home, but she said she wouldn't unless someone came to collect her and she couldn't get a hold of anyone, so she continued to sit and puke (not emptying the bin at any point.

Finally I had to go and ask our acting manager to actually send her home as I couldn't stand being in the office any longer, or to at least go and sit in the sick room. But again she refused. Finally 4 and a bit after the first time she threw up, someone came to pick her up!

Now I am not the best with vomit, slightly phobic, but surely that is unhygienic and just horrible.

There were other people coming into our office finding her either puking or sleeping, which looks awful!

Colleague gets annoyed with people when they use sick leave as she feels you should be at work unless you are literally dying, I feel you should not come into work when that ill. I want someone to say to her that in future she needs to stay off when she is like that, or at least go home (work pay to send you home in a taxi if ill btw)

So am I horribly unsympathetic (to be fair i was sympathetic the first time it happened, 4 hours later, I wasn't!) and irrationally annoyed by this (as i said a bit phobic so not really rational) or do i have a fair point?

OP posts:
Original poster
ElizabethWakefield · 25/05/2010 14:39

She is salaried, gets paid sick leave and the company pays for a taxi to take you home, so we are very lucky, so her reasons for staying were not financial.

A few people have commented to her that she should not be in at all, but she has just said she feels better. We are mostly avoiding her to be honest!

OP posts:
WingedVictory · 25/05/2010 14:41

Oooh, do you think it could be a disciplinary matter, with the manager issuing a warning?

If she is H&S officer, and is warned this time, there will be no excuse for her to put people at risk again. (She admitted it was a bug, didn't she?)

WingedVictory · 25/05/2010 14:43

Your managers have a responsibility to look after the rest of you, and if they don't, you should complain formally. The more I think about it, the more wrong-headedly stubborn she is.

LilRedWG · 25/05/2010 14:45

Yeuch! I would be putting a formal complaint in about her - not something I would normally advocate. That is absolutely disgusting, selfish and vile.

for you. I hope you don't get it, but if you do - please post a tupperware container of your vomit to her (only joking emoticon).

OldMacEIEIO · 25/05/2010 14:46

It does make me wonder, if, as a H&S officer, she has been sounding off to the management about people skiving off, or about 'sick building' syndrome or something

and now she finds herself painted into a corner, much to your dismay

MadamDeathstare · 25/05/2010 14:47

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

Tiredmumno1 · 25/05/2010 14:48

Thats bloody disgraceful, thats how its passed about, has she thanked anyone for cleaning after her.

maybe you should gently mention for future info if you are sick stay off for at least 24 hours, or even 48 if possible.

squeaver · 25/05/2010 14:52

I would be tempted to make a formal complaint to HR about this.

BexJ78 · 25/05/2010 14:54

That is gross.

I can't abide people who come into the office when they're ill, making martyrs of themseves and in the meantime, spreading germs round the office Absolutely disgusting.

And how rude as well?

I am totally flabbergasted at this!

Rockbird · 25/05/2010 14:58

WTF?? How disgusting. She should have been in a taxi home after the first incident. If it was her wanting to be picked up that delayed it, tough tits. What an odd woman.

kitkatsforbreakfast · 25/05/2010 15:06

That woman has to be one of the foulest I have heard of. Words fail me.

nickschick · 25/05/2010 15:18

As adults if we are sick/poorly/ill then we must make the decision to go home - it was very stubborn and stupid of your colleague not to go home as soon as she was initially unwell-id of been furious.

Good job it wasnt me though I wee when im sick so that would have been one mighty fine mess.

StayingDavidTennantsGirl · 25/05/2010 16:46

That is absolutely gross and disgusting behaviour.

Has she at least had the grace to apologise for what she did, EW?

How about copying and pasting some of the comments from here (without the nicknames and thread title) and leaving it on her desk for her to find.

I would go and read her the riot act in person - tell her that she should have gone to the toilet to vomit, and the sickroom in between times if she wasn't prepared to go home, and that her behaviour was vile and inexcuseable.

legalalien · 25/05/2010 16:56

ok, well just for a different perspective, ,I have to confess that once I came down with food poisoning on the train home from a lengthy negotiating meeting. As I had to turn the draft that night (am a lawyer), I spent the hours between 6pm and 3am alternately drafting a contract and vomiting into my office bin (not a shared office, I hasten to say). And neither my supervising partner nor any of my work colleagues thought this was wrong (or even unusual). I was so ill that rushing back and forth to the bathrooms was out of the question - and frankly, the work needed to be done / couldn't be delayed or delegated.

So in SOME work environments, this wouldn't even result in a raised eyebrow. (with the benefit of hindsight, I have to confess, it does seem a bit odd...)

PrettyCandles · 25/05/2010 18:29

But legalalien you were working, she was sleeping, you were not inflicting your vomit upon your colleague, she was doing this in a shared office, and you were not expected to go home whereas she was and refused.

So, while your situtation was unpleasant (and, yes, more than a bit odd - inhumane would be more accurate!) it was not inconsiderate and antisocial.

WingedVictory · 25/05/2010 18:40

Also, legalalien, your manager didn't tell you to go home (and you didn't refuse)!

Ugh.

boredonasunday · 25/05/2010 18:48

I had a bug possibly norovirus last week and in between vomiting and shitting i could barely move. Perhaps she was too ill to get herself off her seat and someone should have insisted on getting a cab, arming her with some carrier bags and possibly accompanying her home. Norovirus is vile and it stops you in your tracks if you have it. Just sayin'.

legalalien · 25/05/2010 18:48

yes, true.

law firms are very odd places to work.

legalalien · 25/05/2010 18:50

and of course you are all correct about novovirus - DS and I copped that a couple of years ago and it was possibly the worst experience of my life. no way I would go to work if I thought that was a possibility (or send DS to school - but that's another whole thread in the making - grrrr!)

Original poster
ElizabethWakefield · 27/05/2010 15:03

Just to update the story, I was talking to someone else within my department who wasn't in on Monday, but she was saying that this is not the first time the woman has been sick in her bin! It is in fact the second occasion! I was shocked.

Bin lady was also moaning today about someone else being off sick, so I did comment I would rather people stayed away when ill!!

OP posts:
MPuppykin · 27/05/2010 16:49

this is truly amazing EW. Words fail me.

WingedVictory · 27/05/2010 19:57

What the hell did she say when you told her you would "rather people stayed away when ill"?

Sounds like it's disciplinary time!

SrStanislaus · 27/05/2010 20:18

I am definitely not emetophobic but his would have stressed me out completely. I cant imagine staying in the room while she chucked up and snored alternately.

Being harrassed by bodily fluids is just not acceptable and I would certainly put in a complaint.It needs to be recorded and I am sort of hoping (but not wishing it upon anyone)that the entire staff goes off with the same bug and leaves her all alone to cope.

Sibble · 27/05/2010 20:25

It's disgusting. I'm afraid I would have gone home and left her to it, I couldn't have sat there with her puking.

On another note as this is the 2nd time this has happened, the only time I've known anybody to puke in a bin at work and take hours to muster up the energy to go home was when she was severely hungover. Felt guilty about not going into work then felt too bad to get home again!

WhatFreshHell · 27/05/2010 20:38

That is revolting. YADNBU. You poor thing!