Deep Breaths...I Cannot Quit...I Cannot Quit

[diznygirl]

Oh yes, email is great, as well as those duplicate phone message pads.

Don't confront - I did that and got punished. Just CYA!

Hang in there!

 

[It's A Happy Day]

I agree with previous posters.....

as for what to put in her Diet Coke.......ex-lax

 

[kaw1218]

I agree with previous posters.....

as for what to put in her Diet Coke.......ex-lax

hmm....wouldn't a diet chocolate cherry Dr Pepper work better for that?

 

[Biscuitsmom31]

Definitely time to look for a new job!

If calls are routed to me and its not one of my cases my standard line is "I'm sorry, I don't know how this call got to me but I know nothing about your case as I work in a completely different section of the firm. I'd be happy to take a message and get it to the right person." Then make sure you take a message on a pad that either has duplicates or photocopy the message slip and give it to the right person. Keep all your copies so if you're ever questioned you can pull them out.

The thing is that I work at a very small firm. I am often asked to take calls from upset clients to give the receptionist a break. I just tell them that I understand their concern and that their matter is being handled, etc. This usually works fine.

It was also one of our firm clients - not one of her outside jobs. She asked me to take the calls and that is part of my job. My biggest complaint is that I gave her crappy excuses to the client and then she turned around and blamed me.

It's not a question of documentation of the calls. There is no internal controversy about that. Everyone knows I had to deal this guy all day. She just used me as an excuse to the client.

 

[LisaZee]

Banana in the tail pipe of her car...

Hey man, I ain't fallin' for no banana in my tailpipe!

 

[tiggerwannabe]

She's not a coffee drinker. What can I put in her Diet Coke?

salt.


seriously.

 

[mickeyfan2]

Start looking for a new job. Do the best you can at this job and only resign when you have all the paperwork signed and a start date. Companies like to hire people who are employed first. They want what another already has (think women going after a married man).

BTW just changing jobs does not mean it will be all milk an honey. It is possible that the same stuff will go on at a new place. You will also be the low man on the totem pole, so more grunt work.

 

[tiggerwannabe]

salt.


seriously.

we did it to the owner of the company
(he drinks diet coke)

pretty funny


it's alot like a "Beverly" face

http://i8.photobucket.com/albums/a42/MousMManiac/FL1207wAidz/DSC_0400.jpg

 

[Coolio]

She just used me as an excuse to the client.

So? She's your boss. Why do you care if the client thinks you're the slack one? You don't work for him.

 

[Coolio]

we did it to the owner of the company
(he drinks diet coke)

does he know you're posting his picture online?

 

[tiggerwannabe]

does he know you're posting his picture online?

that's my son drinking Beverly, and yes - he knows

 

[Mr. & Mrs. Smith]

You really need to talk to your boss about the extra work load this woman has put you under and how it's compromising your ability to perform the work that needs to be done. Answering her client's 50 calls yesterday because she couldn't be bothered to return a call is not the best use of your time.

Haven't you talked to your boss yet? I thought that is what you decided you were going to do? I don't think you should be looking for another job until you at least try to work things out here.

She'll stop using you if you stop making it so easy for her to do so.

This is exactly what I was thinking.

 

[Biscuitsmom31]

So? She's your boss. Why do you care if the client thinks you're the slack one? You don't work for him.

Yes, and if I never have to talk to the guy again I won't care. However, if she continues to make me answer his calls, I certainly do not want to take an earful from him over something I didn't do.

Also, I don't like the trend there. If she will double cross me like this to the client, who knows what else she tells other people. I may have to find another job in this town at some point. I don't want her ruining my reputation.

 

[Biscuitsmom31]

Haven't you talked to your boss yet? I thought that is what you decided you were going to do? I don't think you should be looking for another job until you at least try to work things out here.

I finally got the chance to talk to her today. She has been sick and I haven't had the chance until now.

She understands the situation. I don't yet know what she is planning to do, but I did make her aware.

As for the associate not doing this to me if I didn't allow her... That would be nice, but it is my job to do what she tells me. In my law firm, any one of the attorneys can ask me to do things. It's hard to explain but the partner is my main boss and the other attorneys are my semi-bosses.

 

[barkley]

does the associate have a 'boss' that you have communication with (or is there an office manager?). reason i ask is you could approach that person and explain that occasionaly you've had a situation (and you can name the current one) wherein a client has gotten very upset with you over what they perceived to be your fault in connecting them with their attny. you could ask what you should do if faced with that situation again-and what spec. to do if a client states they want to make a complaint about you or their attny. in this way if you know that an attny is purposely ignoring a client's calls such that it's causing the client and yourself distress you may be able to defuse the situation by offering them the option of speaking to someone else who can intervene in the matter. the advantage would be that you are taken out of 'the middle', and 'the powers that be' can be made aware of the manner in which the attny is conducting themselves (any time i've dealt with an attny i've at least gotten a call from the sect or an associate if not the actual attny stating they had gotten my msg and would contact me when they had the info. nesc to discuss).

i had a boss who would pull this kind of garbage-left us to deal with the irate clients who repeatedly called and she never followed up on. after a few times of listening to a client vent to me, then telling them that i could totaly appreciate their frustration and 'reminding' them that our agency was very much committed to customer satisfaction such that if they felt we were not meeting their expectation they could discuss their concerns with 'x' (my sup's sup)-my boss got the message in no uncertain terms that it was part of her job to at the very least communicate that she had nothing to communicate with someone in a timely manner (and god bless voice mail-we finaly realized we could offer to the client to transfer them into our personal voice mail to leave a message from which we could send a copy to both our sup and her boss-plus have a copy retained in ours, so she could'nt deny that she had'nt gotten the messages or that the client had hung up and not left her a voice mail when we transferred ).