Tweet
I've posted a few times so I'm feeling bold enough to actually start a thread. And I thought I'd start with one of the worst / strangest things I've ever had at work - though I was more of a bystander in this.
I figured that forum members here might particularly like this story - so you all know what happens next when the sucky customer who is in the wrong threatens to report you or take legal action.
I'm an advice worker. I deal with people who are often very upset or angry, and with quite a lot of people with mental health problems. And I love my job, though I do get stressed sometimes. And 99.99% of the people I see really need and deserve someone on their side. I'll never criticise people for being ignorant (in a literal sense of not knowing rather than being unwilling to learn), or for mental health problems. I joined this site for the .01% who are pure and simple arseholes.
Three years ago (working in a different place) it was the last day we were open before Christmas. Normally one member of staff saw each person coming in and then arranged where necessary for them to have an appointment, but on this day we were all working and taking people straight through to be seen. It's all going well, there is no major crisis and everything is good. Until the loudest screaming and shouting I've ever heard started.
So everyone in the building rushes out to the source of the noise in case a colleague's in trouble (though our alarm hasn't gone - and all the rooms are alarmed) - one room over from mine my colleague is with a woman who has completely lost it.
Cast :
SW - the woman has taken out a credit agreement secured on her house to pay for double glazing. She is not happy with the quality of the double glazing and is determined not to pay the loan back, even though the loan is from a different company to the double glazing installers.
WC - (Weird colleague ) Generally a bit odd. Somewhat camp, very rude to customers while calling them Madam and Sir in a curiously surly way. Once stopped in a middle of a conversation with me to sniff his arm pits and rush off and apply deodorant. Not good at dealing with enraged people as he can only wind them up further. Has just, quite correctly, told this woman that if she doesn't pay up she'll lose her home.
Me - previously minding my business, became involved despite having no authority because I was more assertive than the manager.
SW is screaming incoherently while half the building is watching her. WC is for once speechless.
Me - Um, what is going on ?
SW turns and speaks to me in a perfectly normal voice - he is lying to me
WC - She...
SW turns back and is instantly at full volume - YOU ARE NOT BEAUTIFUL ENOUGH TO WORK HERE. YOU ARE AN UGLY MAN. YOU ARE LYING. YOU HAVE CUSTARD ON YOUR FACE. *repeats these statements in random sequence over and over*
Me - Excuse me, I'm trying to advise in the next room. I literally can't hear what the person is saying.
SW turns to me, perfectly normal voice and volume - Oh I'm really sorry.
SW turns back and is instantly at full volume - YOU ARE BEAUTIFUL ENOUGH TO WORK HERE. YOU ARE AN UGLY MAN. YOU ARE LYING. YOU HAVE CUSTARD ON YOUR FACE. *repeats these statements in random sequence over and over*
Everytime I spoke to her she was perfectly nice, spoke at a reasonable volume and seemed to understand what was wrong with her behaviour. Then 2 seconds later she would be screaming at this poor guy again, that he was not beautiful enough to work there, and had custard on his face. The beauty/ugly thing appeared to be internal as she didn't object to any of the rest of us (and he was physically one of the better looking of us I suspect). Even when we (myself and the manager) both confirmed the advice given she continued to yell at him, and be perfectly nice to us.
Eventually she wore herself out and stomped out of the building. Probably to lose her house because she was too stupid to listen to advice.
I was nice enough to make my colleague a cup of tea, but nasty enough to tease him for some time about the custard on his face. We were all very relieved when we got rid of the clients and got to leave for Christmas. (The Director of the centre was loathsome and treated the staff like dirt - but the building we were in closed for nearly 2 weeks, and he'd had to give us all the time off. Paid, and because we'd all used our holiday entitlement by then it was in addition to out leave. The look on his face when he told us was actually better than the time off).
Victoria J
I figured that forum members here might particularly like this story - so you all know what happens next when the sucky customer who is in the wrong threatens to report you or take legal action.
I'm an advice worker. I deal with people who are often very upset or angry, and with quite a lot of people with mental health problems. And I love my job, though I do get stressed sometimes. And 99.99% of the people I see really need and deserve someone on their side. I'll never criticise people for being ignorant (in a literal sense of not knowing rather than being unwilling to learn), or for mental health problems. I joined this site for the .01% who are pure and simple arseholes.
Three years ago (working in a different place) it was the last day we were open before Christmas. Normally one member of staff saw each person coming in and then arranged where necessary for them to have an appointment, but on this day we were all working and taking people straight through to be seen. It's all going well, there is no major crisis and everything is good. Until the loudest screaming and shouting I've ever heard started.
So everyone in the building rushes out to the source of the noise in case a colleague's in trouble (though our alarm hasn't gone - and all the rooms are alarmed) - one room over from mine my colleague is with a woman who has completely lost it.
Cast :
SW - the woman has taken out a credit agreement secured on her house to pay for double glazing. She is not happy with the quality of the double glazing and is determined not to pay the loan back, even though the loan is from a different company to the double glazing installers.
WC - (Weird colleague ) Generally a bit odd. Somewhat camp, very rude to customers while calling them Madam and Sir in a curiously surly way. Once stopped in a middle of a conversation with me to sniff his arm pits and rush off and apply deodorant. Not good at dealing with enraged people as he can only wind them up further. Has just, quite correctly, told this woman that if she doesn't pay up she'll lose her home.
Me - previously minding my business, became involved despite having no authority because I was more assertive than the manager.
SW is screaming incoherently while half the building is watching her. WC is for once speechless.
Me - Um, what is going on ?
SW turns and speaks to me in a perfectly normal voice - he is lying to me
WC - She...
SW turns back and is instantly at full volume - YOU ARE NOT BEAUTIFUL ENOUGH TO WORK HERE. YOU ARE AN UGLY MAN. YOU ARE LYING. YOU HAVE CUSTARD ON YOUR FACE. *repeats these statements in random sequence over and over*
Me - Excuse me, I'm trying to advise in the next room. I literally can't hear what the person is saying.
SW turns to me, perfectly normal voice and volume - Oh I'm really sorry.
SW turns back and is instantly at full volume - YOU ARE BEAUTIFUL ENOUGH TO WORK HERE. YOU ARE AN UGLY MAN. YOU ARE LYING. YOU HAVE CUSTARD ON YOUR FACE. *repeats these statements in random sequence over and over*
Everytime I spoke to her she was perfectly nice, spoke at a reasonable volume and seemed to understand what was wrong with her behaviour. Then 2 seconds later she would be screaming at this poor guy again, that he was not beautiful enough to work there, and had custard on his face. The beauty/ugly thing appeared to be internal as she didn't object to any of the rest of us (and he was physically one of the better looking of us I suspect). Even when we (myself and the manager) both confirmed the advice given she continued to yell at him, and be perfectly nice to us.
Eventually she wore herself out and stomped out of the building. Probably to lose her house because she was too stupid to listen to advice.
I was nice enough to make my colleague a cup of tea, but nasty enough to tease him for some time about the custard on his face. We were all very relieved when we got rid of the clients and got to leave for Christmas. (The Director of the centre was loathsome and treated the staff like dirt - but the building we were in closed for nearly 2 weeks, and he'd had to give us all the time off. Paid, and because we'd all used our holiday entitlement by then it was in addition to out leave. The look on his face when he told us was actually better than the time off).
Victoria J
Comment