challenging colleagues over behaviour

[EmmaGrundyForPM]

I am getting very frustrated by some of my colleagues. One of them has always been quite "needy". I'm not her line manager but her manager works in a different office and is uselss so she always comes to me as I'm the most senior person around. She is constantly coming over and leaning over me/my desk to ask me things. I've asked her to keep 2m between us and she moves away but then forgets and comes over again 30 minutes later. I actually snapped at her yesterday when it happened for the 4th time and then felt really bad.

Also, theres been an office tradition for ages that Friday is a "bring and share" type of lunch. I wasnt in work 2 Fridays ago but assumed that no one was doing it any more. However yesterday I went into the staff room at lunchtime and everyone was crowded round the tiny table, chairs squashed together, taking communal food, double dipping (gross at the best of times) and sharing everything. I sat the other side of the room and ate the packed lunch I brought with me. No one said anything but I got the impression that the others thought I was being ridiculous. I felt like shouting at them but didnt.
I think because we are still going to work some staff are forgetting that it's not "life as usual" within the office.

That's very irresponsible of them OP. As a manager you need to enforce the distancing however unpopular. Is there no way of WFH?

I'm not a manager of anyone in the office. It's a complicated set up with most of the staff belonging to Organisation A but me and 3 colleagues. belonging to Organisation B.

I can wfh sometimes but there are days when I need access to parts of the system that you cant log into remotely.

It doesn’t matter if you’re the manager. You can still show some leadership here. Print of copies of the 2m guidance and display them everywhere.

Presumably you are only continuing to work as you’re providing an essential service. So how will your organisation continue if such rash behaviour spreads infection through the whole team at once. I’d report this behaviour to senior management as a serious risk to business continuity.

I’d also consider wearing a mask just to provide a visual reminder to everyone that we must all behave differently.

We’ve taken some of the chairs out of the coffee room and set a limit on how many people can be in at once, can you implement something like that?

Sorry, you need to be that person. You have to do it. Tell them straight. Irresponsible behaviour like that is how the virus is still spreading, even if slower than before.

I work across two other sites as well and one doesnt have a staff room, the other has implemented a "3 people at a time in the staff room" rule. But the office I spend most time in seems to be too laid back.

I will raise this with the SLT next week although they are already aware that people are squashed into the staff room.