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A coworker stole my spicy food, got sick, and is blaming me (2016)

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Re: A coworker stole my spicy food, got sick, and is blaming me (2016)

#181

Post by rmason »

This story is a sign of the times. I was in second grade and some kid was picking my lock and stealing my lunch every single day. My Mother made a lunch laced with laxatives. Truth be told she overdid it.

As a result I found out who was stealing my lunch. The kid spent the entire afternoon in the bathroom. We never exchanged words but he told his friends that I wasn't someone to be messed with at all.

Today his parents probably would have sued and tried to get me kicked out of school but this was a much more innocent time.

Re: A coworker stole my spicy food, got sick, and is blaming me (2016)

#182

Post by sverige »

mathieuh wrote: post #142
sverige wrote: post #115

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I agree completely. Not only does theft make their work untrustworthy, their actions have a huge impact on the morale of their coworkers. I have fired an employee for stealing lunches (with plenty of evidence, of course). I would have fired the person in this story immediately if it were within my power. Similarly, I have also fired people for other obvious character failures, such lying about bereavement leave to ta…

I don't know if I would sack them right off the bat, but I would definitely keep a very close eye on them. The fact that they are adults in the workplace who steal from colleagues definitely points to their character simply being incompatible with societal norms, so who knows what other demoralising actions they are taking part in? Six-year-old primary school children who haven't been disciplined yet steal lunches. N…

When I was younger, sometimes I would hesitate to fire people even though they had crossed a bright line into fireable territory. With experience, it became very clear that it was never a good idea, so I stopped hesitating.

That sort of thing gets old, though, so I don't manage anyone now. Life is much less stressful that way.

Re: A coworker stole my spicy food, got sick, and is blaming me (2016)

#183

Post by FPGAhacker »

chipperyman573 wrote: post #153
FPGAhacker wrote: post #93

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Accidentally take, sure. Accidentally consume? Maybe one bite. Unless there were some odd circumstances, like mental deficiency, or nearly identical meals, beyond one bite is very difficult to believe.

Another HN user offered a story (that doesn't seem super unlikely) that would disagree with you: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=16944591

You don't consider that an odd circumstance? I do, but maybe it's more common than I expect.

Re: A coworker stole my spicy food, got sick, and is blaming me (2016)

#184

Post by tabtab »

jobowoo wrote: post #4

There's an update to the original post. What a lovely ending to the story. http://www.askamanager.org/2016/10/update-a-coworker-stole-m...

Re update link: "As much as I hate to go based on office talk, it seemed that the HR woman and the food thief may have been romantically involved."

That explains why it sounded like HR had an ulterior motive by appearing to side with the thief without seeming interested in the spice-fan's side of the story.

Re: A coworker stole my spicy food, got sick, and is blaming me (2016)

#185

Post by chipperyman573 »

FPGAhacker wrote: post #183
chipperyman573 wrote: post #153

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Another HN user offered a story (that doesn't seem super unlikely) that would disagree with you: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=16944591

You don't consider that an odd circumstance? I do, but maybe it's more common than I expect.

I mean I'd say it's odd but if you're going to have a rule that immediately results in people being fired you have to think of odd/edge cases.

Re: A coworker stole my spicy food, got sick, and is blaming me (2016)

#186

Post by zrobotics »

csomar wrote: post #156
lkrubner wrote: post #46

One mystery that continues to fascinate me is when people at work say things to me that are obviously irrational -- are they sincere or is it some kind of manipulative power play? I've had managers ask me things such as "When will the rebuild of the website be done" and I answer "In two months" and they say "You have two weeks" and I say "Maybe 6 weeks, but not 2" and then they repeat "You've got two weeks." I wonder…

I'd leave that toxic workplace as soon as I find a better option with the minimum pay I need. A dog is very friendly to everyone. But some street dogs are dangerous. It is not their fault. They have been abused and exposed to harassment when they were young. They think all humans are dangerous, so they'll bite anyone that approaches them. The same is happening for your boss. He had a bad relation with developers (or…

Slightly off topic, but a dog's default state is not friendly to everyone, harrasment/abuse is certainly not required for an unfamiliar dog to be unfriendly. It has taken a lot of work to domesticated them, but many dogs are only friendly towards humans through exposure and positive reinforcement.

Re: A coworker stole my spicy food, got sick, and is blaming me (2016)

#187

Post by AckSyn »

codingdave wrote: post #28
seattle_spring wrote: post #14

Kind of orthogonal to the story, but anyone who steals lunch or food from a co-worker should be fired immediately. There's a 0% chance that someone who steals others' stuff is a good, honest person in other parts of their life.

Firing someone for a mistake is a fairly extreme response, and should be reserved for extreme mistakes. This sounds like a correctable habit, with some mentoring and coaching.

"mistake"

you have to be a complete fool to not recognize the container you brought your lunch in (written with your name on it even), but the lunch itself. This is such a BS response.

Re: A coworker stole my spicy food, got sick, and is blaming me (2016)

#188

Post by gdy »

codingdave wrote: post #28
seattle_spring wrote: post #14

Kind of orthogonal to the story, but anyone who steals lunch or food from a co-worker should be fired immediately. There's a 0% chance that someone who steals others' stuff is a good, honest person in other parts of their life.

Firing someone for a mistake is a fairly extreme response, and should be reserved for extreme mistakes. This sounds like a correctable habit, with some mentoring and coaching.

Please correct your habit of downplaying deliberate theft by calling it a mistake. Do you need any mentoring or coaching for doing that?

Re: A coworker stole my spicy food, got sick, and is blaming me (2016)

#189

Post by blackbagboys »

sverige wrote: post #115
seattle_spring wrote: post #14

Kind of orthogonal to the story, but anyone who steals lunch or food from a co-worker should be fired immediately. There's a 0% chance that someone who steals others' stuff is a good, honest person in other parts of their life.

I agree completely. Not only does theft make their work untrustworthy, their actions have a huge impact on the morale of their coworkers. I have fired an employee for stealing lunches (with plenty of evidence, of course). I would have fired the person in this story immediately if it were within my power. Similarly, I have also fired people for other obvious character failures, such lying about bereavement leave to ta…

Can't say I blame the bereavement guy. Nearly every firm in the United States has an unacceptably stingy PTO policy.

Re: A coworker stole my spicy food, got sick, and is blaming me (2016)

#190

Post by lbeltrame »

mathieuh wrote: post #124
fasj82 wrote: post #67

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Can't compare coffee capsules to food you cooked yourself.

If they were in his drawer though... I don't know what it is about office spaces that causes latent kleptomania to surface with such regularity.

That was just the tip of the iceberg though. That place had some serious thefts going on. Once, a group leader's iMac was stolen one day: it was tied to the table with a Kensington lock, but the chain was just sawed off...
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