What Would Bing Do?

Dear Stanley,

I work for the state but am paid by a senior-citizen employment agency. In two years on the job, I’ve done some serious tasks that required trained skills in the administrative area. I make charts, write memos, keep records, and do other jobs of that nature. I make everyone look good to the state. But while they’re making state money, I only get minimum wage — and to top it off, when it’s time for recognition and they receive their little award, there is no mention of my contribution. I feel used and abused and also frustrated because I have been waiting for them to possibly hire me permanently and I have not heard anything from them. Am I asking too much?

Signed,

At Wits End

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Dear Stanley,

I work for a charitable organization, but my boss is everything but charitable. Besides stealing, he’s unbearably rude. I am a very hard worker, but he does everything to make my job harder. My boss never says anything good about my performance on the job, and it’s obvious he doesn’t like me. My co-workers respect me and the customers love me. I spoke with our supervisors about my problems, and since then everything has gotten worse. What should I do?

Signed,

Non-profit Pete

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Dear Stanley,

I work for the largest bank in the world, and like all things it has its ups and downs. What strategies can I use to effectively “manage up”? I am hoping to differentiate myself from the pact, and my hard work seems to go unnoticed.

Signed,

Ambitious

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Dear Stanley,

My boss (the company VP) keeps putting off my performance review. She’s always complimentary about my work and keeps giving me more to do, knowing that it will be done conscientiously and efficiently. I’ve reminded her once, and she responded that I had my start date wrong, while implying a “talk to me later” attitude. She later realized I was right about my start date and said we’d get together in two weeks. It’s now been a month, and I haven’t heard a word from her. I don’t want to be a nag and doubt in these crucial times that I’ll get a raise. What should I do?

Signed,

Needing Feedback

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Dear Stanley,

I am currently employed in the financial services industry and my boss recently decided to bring up my bad traits (and how unhappy he is with me) to my colleague who is out for a leave of absence. The thing that I’m not sure he realizes is that I’m getting all of my colleague’s emails. Is he crazy or does he really want me to know how he feels about me?

Signed,

Knows Too Much

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Dear Stanley,

I took a travel sabbatical a while back. When I returned to work last year, I took a job for a large and stable company that is doing well in the economy. The job gives me a lot of freedom, but it’s way below my last position in both title and pay. The good news is that my co-workers are amazing. Now, a year later, the head hunters have approached me for a new position with more money and a better title. It’s a boring job, one I’ve done before with a boring medical company. Should I move for the money? Or should I stay here where I am appreciated and underpaid?

Signed,

Loved One

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Dear Stanley,

Why do so many bosses seem to live for holiday parties, barbecues and picnics while the average worker would rather get shot in the ass with a .22 than endure one of those hellish bouts of “informal fun”? Is it all just about ego gratification for the poster boy in charge? Or are there other more sinister forces at work here?

Signed,

Party Pooper

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Dear Stanley,

My boss recently saw me updating my resume at work. Obviously this is my fault; given the way my cubicle is set up, I should know that anyone who walks up behind me can see what I’m working on. However, I’ve been so frustrated at work lately that I felt I owed it to myself to update my resume and poke around for new opportunities. I tried to convince my boss that I was just capturing my experience at my current job, but he was obviously skeptical. He dropped the subject after that, but do you have any advice for me if it comes up again in conversation? Should I be worried?

Signed,

Hiding in Plain Sight

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Dear Stanley,

My company sends us out of town for business travel including conferences and parties that we’re required to attend. They problem is that they want us to share a hotel room. Is this legal in this day and age of sexual harassment? Even if it’s a same-sex roommate, it just doesn’t seem right. What if you have some kind of weird nighttime ritual, or you just don’t want your coworkers seeing you in your PJs?

Signed,

Dr. Denton

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Dear Stanley,

Most people have some complaints about their manager, but how can you tell when your boss is a truly bad one?

Signed,

Clueless

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