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Original poster

Moving desk on mat leave

70 replies

MyPurpleHeart · 02/07/2024 11:21

Looking for some advice here

I manage an office of ten people

We have had an office extension and have had a shuffle around

One lady went on mat leave in February. Whilst she was away the lady that sits next to her confided in us that she was being picked on by the lady that had gone on mat leave and was dreading her return.

When the office was extended we decided to move all the teams around and it worked out that I can move the picking on lady further away from the picked on lady so that they aren't right next to each other. This seemed like a good solution as picking on lady is known to be very disruptive and loves a good chat during the day. Many people have mentioned that they can't get on when she's around

Picking on lady came into the office for a visit yesterday and I casually mentioned that the office was having a shuffle and showed her the shiny new desk we had bought for her. She has gone batshit and said she will not sit there and will only sit at her old desk. Her old desk has now been reallocated.

My MD is nervous because he doesn't want to upset her and be accused of making her leave on Mat leave (this isn't the case there is very much a job here for her when she returns and I've even agreed to let her come back part time to help ease with childcare)

Have I got this wrong or is it a storm in a teacup? It feels very primary school fighting over who we sit next to

OP posts:
Peonies12 · 02/07/2024 11:35

This is so childish. I’ve only ever worked in places with hot desking so can’t relate. That’s her new desk, if she leaves over it that’s her choice!

FanSaBhaile · 02/07/2024 11:43

She's being ridiculous, as is your MD.
My company moved to a different part of the city while I was in maternity leave (luckily closer to home for me!) - do I think this should not have done so in case I didn't like it? Not at all!

Original poster
MyPurpleHeart · 02/07/2024 11:51

Oh thank god. We have all moved and no one else has complained, I don't really care where I sit as work is work.

The way she reacted I really second guessed myself, wondering if I had made a big error.

Thankyou for the replies, I'm of the same opinion, it's not a big deal and a desk is a desk!

OP posts:
StripedTomatoes · 02/07/2024 11:55

She is crazy. She's lucky to have a desk of her own, everywhere I have worked for the last few years has been hot desking all the way. If she doesn't like it she knows where the door is!

Hobbes8 · 02/07/2024 12:04

I’m amazed that she expects to have the same desk after a year off. I’d be lucky to go back to the same desk after a lunch break.

MrMotivatorsLeotard · 02/07/2024 12:07

If she was the only person whose desk had changed whilst she was on mat leave then yeah that would be a bit off. But there’s been a whole office reshuffle and other people have changed desks so I can’t see an issue.

Is she still seated with other people in her team ?

katmarie · 02/07/2024 12:17

MrMotivatorsLeotard · 02/07/2024 12:07

If she was the only person whose desk had changed whilst she was on mat leave then yeah that would be a bit off. But there’s been a whole office reshuffle and other people have changed desks so I can’t see an issue.

Is she still seated with other people in her team ?

I agree with all this. If you'd singled her out, it wuld be an issue. But if everyone has been shuffled round, then it's not a maternity discrimination issue. She will just have to suck it up, same as everyone else, and you will need to convey that to her, in a professional way of course.

I will say though that you might need to do more than just split these people up if there is ongoing bullying. Be prepared to have to manage the situation more closeley when she does come back and support your employee who is being picked on if she wishes to make a complaint about this woman's behaviour towards her.

PandyMoanyMum · 02/07/2024 12:28

Does her new desk have the same benefits as the old one? I remember coming back from mat leave and I had been moved from my comfy corner at the far end of the office to a space by the door with my back to those entering. I was irked, but I sucked it up. If I felt vulnerable I guess I might have felt I was being ‘picked on’ for being on mat leave.

Original poster
MyPurpleHeart · 02/07/2024 12:30

Yes I am going to keep an eye on the bullying situation. I was off on Mat leave until December, then came back and she went off in February so I didn't see any of what went on. But the other lady has said she is happy to start afresh and see how it goes, albeit not sat right next to each other. So I will monitor the situation

Also she is still with her team, just on the other side of the room. We all moved so everyone's changed desks. It just seemed like a good idea to start with a bit of distance between them and see if things were any better that way. More-so to make the other lady feel less anxious about her return

OP posts:
iontheprize · 02/07/2024 12:31

There is a definitely a hierarchy of desks though. EG Was she by the window before and now by the bathrooms?

Original poster
MyPurpleHeart · 02/07/2024 12:31

PandyMoanyMum · 02/07/2024 12:28

Does her new desk have the same benefits as the old one? I remember coming back from mat leave and I had been moved from my comfy corner at the far end of the office to a space by the door with my back to those entering. I was irked, but I sucked it up. If I felt vulnerable I guess I might have felt I was being ‘picked on’ for being on mat leave.

Her new desk is brand new, in the newer part of the office so if anything it's even nicer. But it's closer to management and a little less out of earshot than her old one which I suspect might be the problem

OP posts:
Original poster
MyPurpleHeart · 02/07/2024 12:33

iontheprize · 02/07/2024 12:31

There is a definitely a hierarchy of desks though. EG Was she by the window before and now by the bathrooms?

No definitely not, our office is a long box with windows up one end. She is pretty much a mirror image of where she was before. If anything it's probably a little bit nicer

OP posts:
YellowAsteroid · 02/07/2024 12:38

I should have thought that it's only maternity discrimination if she is treated differently, and less favourably, than equivalent non-maternity leave employees.

As you've ALL moved around, and she has indeed been given NEW office equipment, so her situation is compared with a woman not on maternity leave, it is not less favourable.

So, I shouldn't have thought there'd be an issue around discrimination on the basis of pregnancy/maternity (the 2010 EA protected characteristic).

InfoSecInTheCity · 02/07/2024 12:45

She is entitled to access to A desk, that is adequately provisioned for her to be able to fulfil the duties of her role, and provides for her Health & Safety needs.

It could be a different desk every day if hot-desking is best for the company, or it could be a fixed seat. It can be changed at your companies discretion to meet the company needs.

You do need to accommodate any reasonable adjustments to meet her H&S needs, but her WANTS are a different matter. They may affect her level of motivation, her satisfaction level etc but I suppose the question there is whether you are overly interested in making sure a bully feels motivated to stay.

QueenofHebdenBridge · 02/07/2024 12:46

To me this is a tail wagging the dog situation. Back down on this and she'll be on at you for ever more for anything she doesn't like. You've done nothing wrong unless she has specific heath & safety desk / chair issues which her new desk doesn't address.

Like you say there's possibly more to this than meets the eye. Stay strong, be firm, take advice from HR / ACAS if you feel you need some back up.

HiddenBooks · 02/07/2024 13:41

Crikey, she sounds like a nightmare. Good luck when she's back from mat leave!

She's had a terrible shock though... she's realised that when she's back at work, she might actually have to do some work... shock horror!

Original poster
MyPurpleHeart · 02/07/2024 16:33

Thankyou all! She's coming back in tomorrow to talk to us (no doubt about the desk) so I will update you when we have seen her!

OP posts:
thinkfast · 02/07/2024 17:04

"Everyone in our team has moved desks. We've got you a lovely new desk in a good location. The company is entitled to allocate desks as it deems appropriate. You're being treated exactly the same as the rest of the team".
Rinse and repeat.

thinkfast · 02/07/2024 17:05

Also want form did the going "batshit" take?

Do you need to remind her that she is in a professional place of work and needs to behave accordingly?

LadyCrumpet · 02/07/2024 17:33

thinkfast · 02/07/2024 17:05

Also want form did the going "batshit" take?

Do you need to remind her that she is in a professional place of work and needs to behave accordingly?

This

QueenOfTheLabyrinth · 04/07/2024 13:33

Did she come in @MyPurpleHeart ?

WillLiveLife · 04/07/2024 13:36

This reply has been withdrawn

This has been withdrawn at user request.

Thursdaygirl · 04/07/2024 13:39

Any updates OP?

LikeWhoUsesTypewritersAnyway · 04/07/2024 13:49

Why on earth is this bullying, disruptive woman being allowed to call the shots here @MyPurpleHeart ? Confused

She is running the place by the sound of it! You TELL her that the desk is staying where it was moved to, and it's not being moved back!

Also, inform her that there have been several complaints about her behaviour. If she quizzes it, say that you are quite happy to get reports from the people complaining about her, and will register it all in as a grievance against her that will go on her employment record if she doesn't pipe down!

Why does she think she is?! Hmm

Also, as several other posters have said, what did she do when she went 'batshit?'

The woman sound hideous. 😬

Original poster
MyPurpleHeart · 05/07/2024 18:46

She hasn't been in, I think she's embarassed, however I do think she will be in next week....

So when the subject came up and I showed her the new desk her face dropped and she eyeballed me. She said in a light jovial way, 'why can't I just sit where I used to, I don't want to sit there'. So I replied, light and breezy, that desk has been reallocated so you are over here now. And that was that. Or so I thought

She sat down and had a coffee and was going round the room chatting and, clearly simmering away, it came up again. And she started to argue. I said in a firm tone, this is the way it is and will be when you return in November. She looked me up and down and said 'you can't make me sit there when I come back I'm sitting over there'. I smiled and said I can make you and you will.

She left the office and went home. That night several people got texts from her absolutely kicking off, saying she will not move, she will only sit at her old desk and she will fight back. Some people didn't engage, the one lady that did try to calm her down got text after text after text of rambling abuse. Funnily enough it was picked on lady. She showed me the next day. She very much tried to diffuse the situation and ended up getting grief for most of the evening!

So she didn't go batshit in the office, just annoyed and shitty, she went batshit later on.

I've told picked on lady not to engage and not reply. I will speak to picking on lady when she comes in.

I think I might bite the bullet and move her computer and items to her new desk so that it really hits home. This is where you sit now!!

OP posts: