Would have you said something?

[Indianadisneyfan]

I guess I am the odd man out here, because I would have said something. She just got away with a free money. She was paid for time that she didn't work. That's the same as stealing in my book.

I'm with you, I'd call her out and would have said something to someone about it.

 

[babieemelly]

I wouldn't have said anything. The odds are slim, but there may have been some other circumstances that made her leave rather than just being bored. It's really none of your business, and "telling on her" could backfire and make you look bad. As others have said, you may someday need something that you learned that day and she just won't know it and then karma will bite her in the butt I wouldn't worry about it.

 

[paigevz]

HAD I noticed, which is VERY unlikely, since I spend such meetings making plans for everything from dinner menus, to WDW trips to seating charts to lessons..............I would not have said anything. It's no skin off my nose if she goes home, shopping, is in the bathroom the whole time, or what.

 

[grlpwrd]

I work part time at a school. Although we are off in the summer and inservice days and such, we are required to attend a workshop during one inservice day each school year. Today was the day that we were to do it. And yes it can be helpful, but it can also be a drag for those of us who only work three hours a day. Its tough to have to extend our normal work day by three hours, but it is only one day a year.
We are randomly put in workshops with people who do our similar jobs at different schools in out district.
The only way the district knows we attend is by the sign in sheet.
One woman who walked off the elevator with me signed in ahead of me then took a seat. We were all about five minutes early so the instructors were talking to some of the other participants. The woman who signed in ahead of me came over and asked to my sheet with the list of people who were expected to attend this workshop. Once she scanned the list she said she had to go to the bathroom and left, never coming back and never taking her name off the list.
So she signed in and is getting paid and credit for doing something she didn't do. I could believe the nerve.
I was so tempted to say something to the instructor during the break but figured I should mind my own business.
Just wondering if I did the right thing. I mean I didn't really want to be there either, yet I fufilled my obligation.

I wouldn't assume. She may have left for other reasons, such as conflict with someone on the list or some other problem.

Plus, don't they take roll anyway?

 

[JR6ooo4]

Apparently you have not been to many seminars. Many people do this... So have I when I realize the title does not match the content at all. I leave to go to another or to check out the new products while the exibition hallis not so crowded.

Mikeeee

 

[klmall]

I worked in a school system for more than 30 years as a teacher, trainer etc. and this is a fairly common problem for trainers in our district. I think the other posters are correct. I'd probably keep quiet too. The person who left may have had her reasons. If this had been a session I was responsible for running I would have also had name tags etc. so that there was some kind of cross-checking for attendance. But the reality in any mid to large school system staff training is that people do slip through the cracks and personally this irritated me; I eventually learned to just let it go just as I learned to ignore the fact that our teachers who were coaching got double pay by 'skipping' faculty meetings and starting their paid practices with students while I sat through boring meetings. Our contract prohibited this double pay situation but it happened on a mass scale so we got over it because kids benefitted.

We always had a few adults in my different schools and work situations who squeezed through the cracks illegally and I'm sure that this happens in the outside world too!

 

[Keli]

You know, there's just too many 'if's' in this situation to compare it to someone putting an item in their purse in a store.
You cannot be sure exactly what she was doing or why and also that she didn't already inform the powers that be of her need to leave.
When someone is putting a store's item in their purse you can be awfully sure they are stealing it. And if by some far-fetched reason they weren't security will totally understand why you thought they were.
I'm not sure the coordinator of the seminar will understand why you are 'tattling' on someone else, especially if it turned out the person leaving had said something to someone else already.
I think you did the right thing in keeping quiet because you didn't know if you knew all the facts or not.

 

[Sherri]

I wasn't the only one that noticed it because the ladies next to me were talking about how they should not just require people to sign in but out as well since that other person just got paid for nothing.
As far as being in the wrong room, highly unlikely since we sign in next to our names and she signed in right infront of me next to a name on the list.
I don't know who she is personally since she doesn't work at the same school as me so I can't say anything at this point, but maybe someone else will that knows who she is.
But I guess in our district taxes are high enough to make me get irked by the fact that there are probably many that cheat the system like this woman did and though we are talking about a measly 3 hours of pay for the afternoon session, I wonder how many others do that type of thing.
Plus the fact that it is drilled into us that this is required and many of us have better things to do, yet we stayed as required.
If she was going to leave then she should have crossed her name off the list, that is the one and only list that goes to payroll, so i'm thinking that if she was going to do that then her opportunity passed.

 

[Sherri]

Apparently you have not been to many seminars. Many people do this... So have I when I realize the title does not match the content at all. I leave to go to another or to check out the new products while the exibition hallis not so crowded.

Mikeeee

Good point but different seminar. Each person is assigned to a morning classroom and afternoon classroom. Each person remains through the whole workshop. Believe me it was hard for me to keep still the whole time since I forgot to take my ADHD meds that morning, but I did.

 

[Sherri]

You know she may have gotten sick and had to leave, who knows? Perhaps someone in her family fell ill and she had to head out immediately.

As a participant it is not my job to monitor the activities of another.

So I would have not even thought it was my place to say anything.

The timing must have been great for her since she conveniently took not just her purse to the bathroom but all of the materials she collected on her way in for the class. So your right she probably got that call to go home immediatly as she exited to go to the bathroom and lucky for her she already had all of her things so she didn't need to come back in. And by the way, the bathroom was right outside the door, it would have taken a second for her to cross off her name.

 

[paigevz]

Taxes are high for income everywhere, so everyone thinks their taxes are high. Don't waste your energy worrying about what some stranger did with three hours of her life, is my advice.

 

[Sherri]

Taxes are high for income everywhere, so everyone thinks their taxes are high. Don't waste your energy worrying about what some stranger did with three hours of her life, is my advice.

I hear you, but as a tax payer it makes me wonder how it adds up if everyone thinks its okay to cheat the system. Our property taxes that we pay on our home that go to the school, not the taxes taken out of my check.

 

[PatsGirl]

If it doesn't affect you,it's not your business

 

[The Mystery Machine]

The timing must have been great for her since she conveniently took not just her purse to the bathroom but all of the materials she collected on her way in for the class. So your right she probably got that call to go home immediatly as she exited to go to the bathroom and lucky for her she already had all of her things so she didn't need to come back in. And by the way, the bathroom was right outside the door, it would have taken a second for her to cross off her name.

OK...so she skipped.

If they don't want to have people do that kind of stuff than they need to do something different about accountability.

Other's people's business is not something I give a hoot about.

I used to be that way....then I turned 40.Now I don't care. Systems in America are abused to the nth degree.

The things I get in an uproar about are the child molesters and murderers that are let out to kill/molest again.
Someone skipping out in a meeting just doesn't make the list of something to get worked up over for me.
Is it stinky..yea..lots of things stink....unfortunately.

 

[KariC]

I hear you, but as a tax payer it makes me wonder how it adds up if everyone thinks its okay to cheat the system. Our property taxes that we pay on our home that go to the school, not the taxes taken out of my check.

As soon as I read your original post, this is what I thought. It's not just that she skipped out, it's that she skipped out and is getting paid by the taxpayers for her dishonesty (and trusted that she's getting her continuing ed and trusted with the taxpayers' children). When I think of that going on in a large scale....yikes! It makes the responsible teachers look bad, too. And, then, here on the DIS (and elsewhere) people will just gripe about teachers' salaries, easy jobs, etc.....(keep in mind, this is not my opinion....)

 

[momof2inPA]

What was the subject of the seminar? Was it something important?

 

[Sherri]

What was the subject of the seminar? Was it something important?

This particular workshop was on bullying and what our roll is, luckily they didn't tell us to mind our own business as many people seem to be saying here. And personally as much as I can honestly say I didn't want to go, I did get a lot out of it. So hopefully if I come accross any of these situations I will be able to make a positive impact since I now have the knowledge.

 

[Disfan3]

If you knew for sure she was skipping out against the rules than maybe you should say something but I have to say...you don't know enough of the situaion to say anything.

I am a teacher. On the 19th we have in service. There is a meeting going on in the school. I got a letter saying I was to attend. The problem is, the team leader has no idea that I was asked to do a student learning center on early out days by my principal. I had to talk to the principal and my team leader about the issue but I would not tell EVERYONE in the room about it. I will go to the inservice for a bit BEFORE the learning center opens, and then head out when it is time. I doubt the meeting leader will feel it necessary to tell everyone why I am leaving. Depending on the size of the district and in service meeting agenda, there could be a lot of people in one room. There are other things that could be happening here...you have no idea.


The problem that I have is that if this employee was supposed to be in service getting some contact hours, then she needs to be there. Teachers, staff and administrators already have enough trouble with people thinking we don't do anything on days off. I would hope an employee in the educational system would see the value in training and learning something (maybe) new and innovative for the sake of the students and community.

 

[aprilgail2]

Nope, I would not have ratted her out. It is common practice where I work and no one rats on the other.

 

[Sherri]

Nope, I would not have ratted her out. It is common practice where I work and no one rats on the other.

Cool, hopefully you don't all skip out on the same day. Or do you draw straws to see which day you get to be sneaky and which day you get to cover?
Atleast in your company the tax payers don't lose, or the children you are supposed to be helping. I guess thats what irks me the most about this particular situation.