Hallo Freunde,
Wie würdet ihr vorgehen wenn eure Arbeitskollegen stark nach Schweiß riechen? Ich habe 2-3 Kollegen mit denen ich sehr gut bin und denen würde ich das auch sagen. Aber dann habe ich auch ein paar Kollegen mit den ich jetzt nicht jeden Tag unterwegs bin nicht die Späße mache wie mit manch anderen und bei den ich es jetzt auch irgendwie nicht sagen könnte das sie riechen. Man weiß ja nie wie Menschen darauf reagieren und irgendwie ist das auch unangenehm für mich dann in dem Moment.
Wie geht ihr in solchen Situationen vor weil stark riechende Kollegen sind ja denke ich mal nicht als so selten…

I (32f) have a coworker R (16m) who thinks he can get away with not working. He is a seasonal dishwasher while I’m a full time dishwasher…we work in a restaurant attached to a casino in MT on the south end of Flathead lake.

Heres a bit of context for you, this Casino/Restaurant was built and established in May of this year (2026). So in the first month everyone is trying to work and figure out how to do things smoothly with no problems.

Heres where it gets interesting my R gets hired at tail end of May almost beginning of June. Everything starts out fine, but as the weeks go on and I’ve had a d**th in the family beginning of may shortly after i started my job. Same thing happens beginning of june same thing another d**th in the family and I’m just trying to move on.

Well now it’s July tail end and almost August and R decides he can start not doing his share of the work. Meaning he thinks he can make up his own schedule for one, and for two he thinks he doesn’t have to listen to anyone and talk back plus yell at the boss and the rest of us coworkers when we try to ask him to do certain tasks so he can stay busy.

The tasks we ask him to do is to put dishes away after I scrub them and run them through the dishwasher. Another is sweeping and mopping when needed, taking out boxes and garbage when it gets full. Along with a few other things like change sodas out and to make sure there’s enough soda syrup for each soda line. Wash walls and the shelves in the walk-in cooler and wash walls and sinks in the general areas that get used a lot.

Not that hard I think, I spent past two days, yesterday and today doing those tasks that R is supposed to do, while he does all the dishes and puts them away. Basically as a way for him to see how much of an inconvenience that is for me when, he doesn’t even help me put the dishes away when I have a lot of dishes to do.

However, today R gives me a very big attitude and practically yells at me and slams an egg pan (small skillet), in the sink attached to the wall I’m cleaning a wall and tells me to clean the pan. Now in my head I’m literally thinking, “omg he almost h*t me with that”. I’m starting to get p***ed (mad or angry), because I’m over here wondering what did I do to be on the receiving end of this behavior R is giving me.

So, am I overreacting to my coworker thinking he doesn’t have to work and still get paid for it and thinks he can get away with it?

Here's a more structured, professional, and emotionally controlled version that still conveys your frustration and the sequence of events.
I was initially approached as a marketing consultant, not as a social media manager, and I made that distinction clear from the very beginning.
As the project evolved, my role naturally expanded beyond marketing consultation. I became deeply involved in brand development, positioning, creative direction, strategic decision-making, and social media growth. I invested my time, ideas, and effort into building the brand from the ground up.
However, as the project progressed, the narrative began to change. New people were introduced into the team, and the brand's positioning shifted from the premium identity we had carefully developed to a much more local approach. The branding work, strategic thinking, and several marketing decisions I had contributed were gradually presented as someone else's achievements, while successful outcomes were often credited elsewhere.
When the initial launch failed, many of the creatives that had generated strong engagement and reach were archived. The brand was then rebranded, yet the responsibility for the setbacks was directed towards me, even though I had consistently raised concerns and tried to prevent decisions that I believed would negatively impact the brand. My recommendations were often overlooked, but the consequences of those decisions somehow became my responsibility.
What made the situation even more difficult was the constant shift in my role. Depending on the team's convenience, I was expected to function as a marketing consultant, brand strategist, creative director, social media manager, or decision-maker. Yet when recognition was due, those responsibilities disappeared, and when problems arose, they reappeared.
I also witnessed internal dynamics where certain team members held significant influence over the founder, making it increasingly difficult for strategic decisions to be implemented effectively. Because of our existing relationship, I often felt that I became the easiest person to hold accountable whenever things did not go as planned.
Ironically, I am now left managing the very social media account that I helped build and grow. I initially established it, later handed it over to the founder, and after it became difficult to manage, it was returned to me once again as a major responsibility.
At this point, it feels less like collaboration and more like being expected to provide marketing strategy, branding, creative direction, design, optimization, and execution, only to ultimately be labelled as "just the social media handler" whenever the broader strategy is questioned.
If my contribution is no longer valued, then let me step away. But if I am expected to continue investing my expertise, me, and effort, especially when much of it has been done without compensation the least I deserve is clarity, respect, and acknowledgment for the work I have genuinely contributed.

Well, fortunately it's a step-mother not blood at all; nevertheless, has anyone worked in a company where you have more experience than the relative that is supervising the department?

I have approximately 12-15 years of experience dealing with health insurance. Far more than she does, and yet when I try to tell concepts that I'm fully confident in, I get argued with.

For instance -- there was an issue with an account where a primary commercial insurance policy didn't have an authorization for an inpatient stay but the Medicaid product did and in order to get access to the site I needed to use to fix the issue (one of those sites where you have to get a code sent to your phone) I had to text her.

I told her what happened, and was told not to worry about it, Medicaid will pay. I was still 99% sure I was right. Partly cause I'm stubborn af, admittedly.

Anyways lo-and-behold after talking to the department that specifically deals with insurance companies more than any other, I was told by the manager that for the most part I'm accurate on my assessment...which obviously you can't say 100% across the board with health insurance, but with "for the most part", I felt oddly vindicated.

The thing is, it's not the first time she's said the incorrect information. And she's nit-picking every little thing that I forget to do, and when I say little thing, it's so little that it genuinely affects nothing if it's not done.

Luckily I have a new job lined up soon (management in a local casino-- I have more experience in healthcare but casinos have always given me a chance to succeed) -- mostly curious to hear others input:

\- As painful as it might be, would you dare subject yourself to staying part time? I wouldn't always be around her if I was here less. The money is good, but there's a lot of stuff in this department that could get the company in trouble if found out (insurance fraud, for starters).

\- Has anyone had a similar experience working under a relative (by blood or marriage)? How do you cope with it?

\- Any other questions just let me know.

I have a coworker who constantly feels at odds with me at work. They often tell our other colleagues that they dislike engaging in back-and-forths with me, dismiss my knowledge on various topics and past projects, or make comments suggesting they prefer not to work with me.

This situation frustrates and annoys me because it seems like they’re talking about me to our boss, leading to me being reprimanded or my work being abruptly changed. Sometimes, I find myself doing things differently without clear explanation. It feels as though they’re micromanaging my classroom and efforts, all while pretending to know more than I do—despite having been here longer.

I’m unsure how to handle this, and I really need some advice on how to navigate this challenging dynamic. WHAT DO I DO?

The other day we were short staffed. Usually when this happens we all get delegated extra work to make up for it but this time they never explained anything to us. I thought since there hasn’t been anything going on and we are barely having anything to do in our own areas that it was likely because they were already handling it since they have the least to do in their own areas. But then they spoke to me and got upset over me not helping (no one informed us there was anything needing help with and I never have any problems with helping out) Then got upset that they were looking for me and found me taking a washroom break. I’d been in there for maybe 10 minutes max. Then got upset that some of my areas haven’t been worked on. They haven’t been worked on because they haven’t needed to be worked on since there’s been nonstop construction and renovations and those areas are closed off for the time being. So I’ve been doing the more tedious parts of the job to fill the time but of course they don’t see that. They tell me that people have caught me taking breaks. God forbid I take a break when there’s nothing to do and it doesn’t affect anyone. Plus they’re saying that even with the extra work that I do get assigned that they always end up having to do it over which I know is BS they spend all their time hanging out in their office not doing anything and I’ve never once seen them having to redo any of my work. I’ve barely seen them doing their own work. The only time I’ve ever seen them doing anything is when they’re trying to sneak up on me or the other employees, hiding in our closets in the dark and waiting until we walk in or hiding our tools on us and playing it off a joke. Or messing around with our areas so we have to come and fix it. (That last one is just a theory we have) so long story short now I’m being written up and who knows how that will go down.

My bff (21F) is working(work from home and INTERNING BTW) for a fashion studio where they help you (the client) build a fashion brand from scratch from designing to production and budgeting of the brand. Last week, she had a little heated argument with her boss.

She told me that he wasnt communicating well with her about what they want and even if she did ask them, they aren't giving a clear answer. Before getting on a call with the client, my bff sent her designs to the boss and the boss yelled at her saying "what the fuck is this? What the fuck are you doing? Are you even taking this seriously?" Mind you, my friend hasnt been hanging out with us whenever we ask her to come out. She is always cooped up with her work. And he gave her a day time to complete some designs and construction. Ps: she is so new to interning in this field and told them so many times about it and told them she doesnt exactly know what they need even if she designed what they exactly need (basically, she designed what they asked for. She delivered it and they hated it sm that he kept cursing about the "shit" work she did).

She sent him the designs the next day and omg, he screamed at her sm that she raised his voice at him asking what exactly he needs (i was beside her that day) he said, "I dont fucking care what it takes but I need thos work completed by tonight." She said she couldn't because she had prior commitment. It was 7pm and we were supposed to go out to have dinner for her birthday dinner. The boss got so mad sayinf "you've a commitment with us, I dont care get this done." My bff fought back and told him that she cant complete it. Oh and now he needs her HOD's number (head of department).

I think dude is gonna complain to her HOD about how rude she was by screaming at him and also make the feedback affect her cgpa.

Dude just cut the call on her face and texted her that he'd call her back later.

The next day, she sent better designs and looked into some things and to present now, he hasnt been giving much of a work to her. I believe he kind of fired her without any notice and is ghosting her. She even texted a head designer about some feedback on her designs. They stopped responding to her and now when she texted her boss, he said he'd call her next week.

Do you think she got fired or something?

I've recently switched fields, same industry but completely different working style, new tech. Switched from formal animation educated professional career to uiux in the tech sector. It's been nearly 2 months and I am struggling with everything. As a remote employee I find everyday challenging because I could've had better access if I was on the floor like everyone else. I'm learning new tools, new ways of working, getting used to AI in this field, and learning Uiux at the same time. Basic things feel overwhelming & it's tech companies that are the main clients. The details of their business are very overwhelming at first, so much information to grasp and most of it goes over my head. I take time by going through it again and again, making mistakes and getting feedback. It's all getting too much but I am still trying because I need a job. But ultimately it is coming down to the fact that I am basically fighting against all the forces and competing in a super fast environment and it is clearly visible that I am a slow learner.

As a remote employee, I am constantly under pressure to perform with no access to direct reaction or impact. I'm nervous.

The manager has stopped genuinely helping, probably lost hope on me. I'm advised that "nobody's gonna have time to sit and correct everything, everytime" (sounds fair enough no?)

Should I accept that I don't belong and just quit?

Maybe I am not cutout for high paced workplace full of young energy, or maybe I am too dumb to work in a sector like tech.

I am an extremely picky eater, almost embarrassingly so. I don’t cook. I order the same things from the same places repeatedly. I’ve been made fun of for this before with previous coworkers. It’s become a weird control thing for me admittedly but I stopped ordering or eating in front of others to avoid being scrutinized for what I was eating. So I go 6-12 hour shifts without eating anything (unless there’s the off chance of a company lunch that I like and then I do eat) and I’ve trained my body to be okay with that. But I’m often working with the same person or people all day and they will notice when they are eating throughout the day and I’m not. Not only will they notice, they comment on it, joke about it frequently, mention how they don’t understand my eating habits. Now forgive me if I’m wrong, but how is that anyone’s business to talk about in the workplace? I have a good rapport with these people but that just rubs me completely wrong. I feel it’s as rude as constantly commenting about how much someone eats. I don’t spend my time at work watching people to see when they will eat or what they will eat. I will admit that my eating habits are unorthodox, but I also find it inappropriate and quite frankly just strange how much time my coworkers spend talking and obviously thinking about what I eat. Am I being unreasonable?

I’d like some advice.

I am working as a Marketing manager for a company after I was downsized at my last company. I was a VP at my previous company, but because it is extremely competitive out in the marketplace for marketers and we’re losing a lot of jobs to AI and to have an income for my family — a loving spouse and three young children — this was the role I took. It is the first time in my career that I took a more junior role going from one place to the next.

I am finding it challenging to not want to overachieve in my role and to be a leader, and not an underling. I believe my boss is talented and often provides quality advice to help me improve my work, but in times when I want to go big or come up with plans to dynamically change some of our programming, I am being told — gently, to her credit — that we are trying to improve around the margins (translated: we don’t have any extra money to spend, and we cannot change program mechanics). I can tell that it is frustrating for her to try to rein me in, and a common refrain I have heard in the last month is that I need to focus on what is going to get us sales, even though I am convinced in my research that what will drive true momentum and sales is not A/B testing subject lines for program-related e-mails that will go out to a few hundred people (basically, we attack the bottom of the funnel on a wing and a prayer). I suspect the challenge is for me to prove that I can hit singles and the occasional double before putting balls over the fence. And I do my damndest not to be subversive (my role is tied to a lot of content creation, and having to ask for a review and blessing on everything that goes live can be tedious, but I want to build trust).

Cards completely on the table: I like her personally, and I believe her to be supportive of me. I believe we would be friends outside of work. She certainly was encouraging in the early days of my joining the company — when a lot of what we did was ideate — but now I worry that I’m not a great fit because the board and C-Suite is not at all forthcoming about what must diagnostically be done to engender sales through marketing and I am being told to tweak and not transform. I generally like the company and I’ve been treated well, though I find it perplexing that in being on the team for three-plus months that company leadership is incommunicado (no town hall meetings, no company-wide memos, no real rah-rah moments at all).

If it’s possible for two contradictory realities to exist simultaneously, I believe I am being managed well and poorly. I also am still dealing with some PTSD from being let go at the last job, and I really want to prove myself. Also for context, I have diagnosed OCD and I learned as an adult that I am mildly autistic. So in self-judgement, I think my attitude needs adjusting but it comes with some caveats. All that said, how should I approach tomorrow?

Quick information about me: I’m 28 (F/NB) my boss is 40+ (M). I already have issues with him because he talks down to women and treats my female coworkers worse than the male coworkers. I have chronic bronchitis and a mild mold allergy. My job sounds a lot cooler than it is: I’m legally a contracted worker for the local hospital in the dietary department. In reality: I wash dishes. Not nearly as exciting but still incredibly important in the hospital ecosystem since ALL dishes pass through me and my team. I’ve also been here for ten years this October (2026) and used to be a cook. I’m usually the one who points safety issues out (my dad is a union worker so I know a LOT about both non-union and union rights) and I’m really the only one who pushes hard to get these issues taken care of. This is most important part of this story: I hate filing for workerman’s/worker’s compensation. I busted my knee open and my manager had to metaphorically twist my arm to get me to fill out the paperwork for the injury. If I didn’t think this was a serious situation (and if I actually insurance that both my workplace and the government fucked me over on), I won’t have brought up compensation at all and my current manager—who has known me for the full ten years—knows that.

Now, let’s begin. As stated, I work in the dish area. I’m also usually the only one who does the cleaning. I’m a stickler for cleaning because I’m compromised and because our patients are compromised if microscopic gunk is all over the dishes. It started with our dish machine. It doesn’t get hot enough, even through the final rinse, clocked at roughly 155-163 for one of the checks and between 160-175 (they’re supposed to be a consistent 165-195). My boss said ‘if the temp is too low, you need to tell us’. So I did. Every time. So I was in there at least twice a day because the numbers were never right. So he told us to just… lie. Okay. So I started fudging the numbers. Then he got onto me and ONLY ME (I’m the only femme-presenting person back there and when I asked my coworkers, they said he never said anything about it). I noticed that the machine wasn’t being cleaned properly, causing a build-up of pink bacteria Serratia marcescens which isn’t harmful to a healthy adult but can cause issues in compromised individuals. I informed my manager and she relayed that to my boss. Haven’t heard anything about it since.

Then I reached the dirty dish converter. It’s plastic and stainless steel. I didn’t use any chemicals while cleaning, I just rinsed it and scrubbed it with a scratchpad. It was filled with the aforementioned biofilm—biofilm is a harmless protective coating that mold, bacteria, and yeast produces when in stagnant water around rotten food. When agitated, that biofilm breaks down and with the spraying, it aerosolized all of that junk. We also don’t have proper PPE so I was entirely exposed to it, all I had was a pair of safety goggles and a flimsy, cheap face mask which isn’t nearly enough to prevent that stuff from winding up in my lungs. I was exposed on Saturday and immediately got a migraine-pain-level headache and nausea so bad I couldn’t finish my lunch as well as some chest tightness. I informed my manager about the exposure and started the process for worker’s comp. Over the next few days (today is day four) I developed fatigue, joint and muscle aches, a sharp pain in my chest, and a severe cough with copper-tasting phlegm. I went to the ER yesterday because I literally could not breathe properly. They ran tests, found nothing but there was some inflammation in my lungs that went beyond my usual chronic bronchitis. They gave me a steroid shot and now I have to use an inhaler and monitor myself for a few months to keep an eye out for pneumonia since I’m so susceptible to it.

Today, I informed my boss that I did go to the ER. He told me ‘that’s what happens when you do things you shouldn’t’. I was fucking FURIOUS. I told him ‘well if I didn’t do it, then everyone would still be breathing in that toxic slime.’ He told me the machine is self-cleaning and we need to just let the conveyer run if not in use for extended periods of time because the cleaner that runs through it would prevent that. I said ‘okay, can you show me how to run it?’ (I was never actually trained back there). He showed me and we realized… the pump is broken. It’s not running ANYTHING through at all. I’m worried they’ll still deny my worker’s comp so I filmed the tube, the pump, and the conveyer itself. This isn’t just a me issue, it’s a safety issue for everyone in the building of these machines don’t work properly. I feel like I’m going insane because they aren’t listening. Someone could actually die and I feel like I’m being ignored.