Please Share Complaints Made About You

[SallySummerPop]

Hi,

I'm really sad that I've received a complaint against me today. Someone had complained that I lacked empathy in a meeting about their health. I feel others emotions and I am very empathetic but I struggle socially and I'm very aware of it, when I heard the complaint, it made me really punish myself and question if I'm right for the role. At the time of this meeting I was going through a really hard time mentally and so was probably being too process driven and not as sympathetic as I could have been but I meant well. Please share complaints you've received so I know I'm not the only one?

I get numerous complaints from women when I submit safeguarding and clares law referrals relating to their violent partners.

I was told today that it is annoying when sharing screen to collaborate on a document that I type fast

@Kawaii50 some people!

I had a written complaint (email) that my signature wasn't legible!

I got told they had a complaint I worked too fast 🤣🤣🤣🤣 it didn't get anywhere.

I wouldn't mind if someone complained about me working too fast 😂

For their own safety I'm guessing?

I had a complaint made against me about 15 years ago when I was starting out and to be fair it was a completely legit complaint...
Worked in a bank. Client came storming In absolutely furious that they had received a letter from a provider- say the AA, confirming cancellation of a direct debit because they had died. They obviously hadn't died they were stood right infront of me and were very angry at the inconvenience of the DD being cancelled on account of their death. It was a complete administrative error but at the time I just couldn't understand the clients rage and fury so I wasn't very sympathetic, and said well your clearly not dead so let's get that rectified and reinstate the DD, they were even more angry that I wasn't more sympathetic and I asked how exactly this had impacted them as...they were not dead? Looking back I should have apologised for the error and offered some form of compensation but to be honest I couldn't be bothered and the fact they started the interaction kicking off just pissed me off and showed I didn't care about this job and soon left! I'd handle it differently now. Kill with kindness

As a trainee solicitor, a client said (in earshot) that if he was seriously paying £150 an hour for that (me) he expected to fuck it as well.

Weapons grade misogynistic arsehole.

Vile.😠

This

I have had this said about me. My manager and I just burst out laughing when he told me. The complaint didn’t go any further.

When I was training to work as a Travel Rep over 30 years ago the training manager told me I "might scare old people"
Not quite sure what I was doing that was so terrifying for pensioners

Oh god, loads - from "doesn't smile" to potential legal / regulator action. Luckily I come from an industry where being noticed / disrupting / taking action / making change is applauded more than sitting quietly ticking off tasks. Sometimes the complaints are fair, sometimes not. Just learn to take them as they come and not let them affect your self-image. (I am good at my job btw).

My tip would be - focus on the action that arises from this complaint? Did your response trigger an HR process? Do you need to have another meeting with the colleague to address this concern? Do you think you need some training on reflective listening or the HR health policies? Or do you just need to write an email telling them that you don't give a shit that they think you lack empathy

Just be cold about it and don't take it personally. Easier said than done but 'lacks empathy' to me is just a whine / subjective. Unless your job title is Empathy Manager.

Someone wrote a complaint to my workplace to say that as he was shouting at my colleague I was looking at him. As such he intended to make a lampshade out of my skin. Which was nice.

I was working as a 19-20 year old in a clothing store, I had a complaint from the owner of the shopping mall that I triggered the fire alarm because I fell over while closing the curtain for a customer in the changing rooms and brought the entire curtain and pole and next door with me.
the boss thought it was an emergency and the shopping mall got evacuated.

reader, I slipped on an elastic band on the floor that rolled under my shoe.

mortified.

Sorry to hear that OP, it’s hard not to take these things personally.

I still remember a complaint that I was ‘speaking sharply’ to a patient by a relative outside the curtains.

The patient was putting all their weight on me and I was 6 months PG.

The baby I was carrying is 28 now and I still remember it.

I had a complaint that a dehumidifier that was sold dried out a leather sofa. So the product worked too well? No idea what I was supposed to say to that.

I was once called "obstructive and unhelpful" when I wouldn't extend the hours of the playscheme. The parent wanted us to open 9-5, but we ran 9-12.30 or 1.30-5. Apparently as we did whole day trips on the Friday we should open those hours every day. After explaining we didn't have the space in the building, nor the daily volunteers, nor the funding (we charged £5 a week at that point) they called me obstructive and unhelpful and said they'd be writing a letter to the chairperson to tell them so.

That was me. I was the chair.

I said someone was in a really good mood.

I had a complaint when I worked in Asda 21 years ago. I was serving a lady on the till and someone I hadn’t seen in years walked past and called my name. I said “oh my god, stay there and I’ll speak to you after this”, super happy to see her and then I put all the woman’s shopping through and packed every single item of hers, took her cash, give her the change said thank you etc. and she went straight to customer service saying I shouldn’t be paying any attention to anyone else whilst serving customers. What else did the bitch want me to do for her? Never forgotten that.
I had a few more from absolute dick heads, but my friends used to work on customer service so used to just tell me and we’d have a laugh.

As a teacher, parental complaints come
part and parcel of the job, but one that always sticks with me is a phone call with a dad who rang me to ask how he should go about complaining to the governors about me. I asked the nature of his complaint and he told me that his son went home upset the day before because another child had hit him on the playground, and the other child had just “got away with it” and not been in trouble.I told him I wasn’t aware of this, and asked if he knows which member of staff his son had told outside. His dad said “oh you know Johnny he doesn’t cause a fuss he didn’t tell anyone.” I asked if he had any injuries etc, dad said no, but kept reiterating how angry he was with me for not sanctioning the other child. Even after I re-explained that due to his son not telling any adult outside, or telling me once back in class, I had no idea of the incident therefore couldn’t have known to speak to/sanction the other child. But despite knowing his son hadn’t told an adult, he was still livid with me and wanted to complain to the governors about my terrible practice.

I’ve been told my uniform looks like a potato sack several times. Errr… well actually order me a new one rather than not doing so ?!

i worked in retail for years so there were always loads when I said no to refunds etc. I changed career and my particular recent favourite was that I was too efficient and was making the rest of the team look bad!

I've had a few over the years, however I recently had a grievance raised against me (Thankfully it never passed the informal stage) about a joke I made to a colleague. Granted I can understand why she may have been upset about it but she has said much worse to me!

A parent once raised a complaint against me as I had lost her child's jumper. I hadn't been in class that day and the jumper is her child's responsibility, he was 11!