Is this harrassment? What to do?
Caroliso
352 Posts
A female administrative assistant has been receiving these wierd playing cards in her mailbox every day for the last week and a half.
They're really just goofy, gag things -- tips on how to act in the workplace, except the suggestions are meant to be funny.
Examples:
"To liven up meetings, gradually push yourself closer and closer to the door on your chair."
"To liven up meetings, drop meaningless and confusing executive jargon into conversations, such as "What's the margin, Marvin", "When's this egg going to get laid?", "If we don't get this frog hopping, we're all going to end up looking like constipated fruit-bats."
They look like the sort of thing that would be marketed as a deck of cards entitled "Tips to Make Your Co-workers Crazy." They would be funny if handed to someone with the comment "read this, it's a riot!" Placed anonymously in a mailbox, it takes on a more sinister tone.
So, what can be done here? She is feeling singled out, if not yet actually haraassed. She doesn't have any idea who might be doing this, or so she says. She's had some run-ins with her supervisor, who has his own issues, but I really can't see him doing this. i have asked her if she wants to try to find out who is doing this, but she said no for the moment. i don't know what I would have done if she'd said yes, frankly, except ask her project team-mates if they knew anything about it.
I thought I would re-circulate our harassment policy with out any specifics, in the hopes that the Card Shark would get the message.
Is there anything else I can or should do?
They're really just goofy, gag things -- tips on how to act in the workplace, except the suggestions are meant to be funny.
Examples:
"To liven up meetings, gradually push yourself closer and closer to the door on your chair."
"To liven up meetings, drop meaningless and confusing executive jargon into conversations, such as "What's the margin, Marvin", "When's this egg going to get laid?", "If we don't get this frog hopping, we're all going to end up looking like constipated fruit-bats."
They look like the sort of thing that would be marketed as a deck of cards entitled "Tips to Make Your Co-workers Crazy." They would be funny if handed to someone with the comment "read this, it's a riot!" Placed anonymously in a mailbox, it takes on a more sinister tone.
So, what can be done here? She is feeling singled out, if not yet actually haraassed. She doesn't have any idea who might be doing this, or so she says. She's had some run-ins with her supervisor, who has his own issues, but I really can't see him doing this. i have asked her if she wants to try to find out who is doing this, but she said no for the moment. i don't know what I would have done if she'd said yes, frankly, except ask her project team-mates if they knew anything about it.
I thought I would re-circulate our harassment policy with out any specifics, in the hopes that the Card Shark would get the message.
Is there anything else I can or should do?
Comments
Anonymous playing card person: Stop. (Signed) HR.
Maybe that would get the person to stop? x:-)