Ask Experts Questions for FREE Help!
Answer   ||    Advanced Search

Ask your question or search...
International Sites: Nederlandse experts vragen
User Name 
Password 
Join   Forgot password? 

Home > Business & Careers > Ethics   »   I tried to complain about boss who is incompetent and it got me demoted

Question
 
 
#1  
Old Apr 29, 2009, 11:04 PM
Snowgoose
New Member
Snowgoose is offline
 
Join Date: Dec 2006
Posts: 7
Snowgoose See this member's comment history on his/her Profile page.
I tried to complain about boss who is incompetent and it got me demoted

My new boss has a brain injury from Iraq. He's a nice guy. I have vets in my family, I admire his service. but, point blank, he's incapable of doing his job. He's given wrong answers to the folks who work under him and I and I had to straighten out his mess, I guess because I felt responsible to get the work done properly for fear I'd be blamed. I tried to tell him discreetly--right when it happened--so he could straighten it out, but he's so easily distracted and went on and on and on (about non-work related stuff) that I couldn't get a word in edgewise. I gave up and fixed the problem myself that first time. then it appeared everyone in the office was bypassing him and coming to me. I'm not getting paid to do his job, but he is. BIG bucks compared to mine. So after a few weeks, I went to his supervisor and very uncomfortably told him I'd never been in this sorta position before and I wasn't sure how to handle it and I hadn't had any luck broaching the subject with my boss because he was so very often in his own little world (I didn't say this, but, for example, I tired to call him once via cellphone about a question I'd been given from a worker under us both that should have gone to him and he went on and on and on about personal stuff of his own that after a solid 30 minutes using my cellphone minutes listening to him ramble on, I hung up on him and pretended I'd lost the signal.) THAT is NOT me. I'm not usually dishonest.) Anyway, I told the upper-level guy examples of situations where my boss had given out wrong answers, where my boss had wasted everyone's time in a 2-hr meeting where he talked endlessly about his personal business and never stayed on-topic of the job and afterwards the workers came to me w/ all the questions they'd tried to raise at the meeting that my boss never handled because he didn't hear them. I was being uncomfortable around the workers because they filled my ears with how much they felt they were going to be blame for lack of productivity when it was in reaity my bosse's fault. People started blowing off the meetings. I told them they had to come even if it they felt it was a waste of their time. I also (maybe this was my mistake?) told them that I would see if I could have anything done about it and I asked them to tell me all their complaints so I could know what to address....NOW I got a call from my boss telling me that because I went to his supervisor to complain about him (I honestly didn't know what else to do--what SHOULD I have done??) I was insubordinate and I've been demoted to the level of the other workers, losing my extra pay. How should I ahve handled it differently? Is there anything I can do now?

Reply With Quote
 
     

Answers
 
 
Old Apr 30, 2009, 08:58 AM   #2  
Über Member
twinkiedooter is offline
 
twinkiedooter's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jan 2008
Location: Shoveling snow from my driveway into your driveway.
Posts: 8,326
twinkiedooter See this member's comment history on his/her Profile page.twinkiedooter See this member's comment history on his/her Profile page.twinkiedooter See this member's comment history on his/her Profile page.twinkiedooter See this member's comment history on his/her Profile page.twinkiedooter See this member's comment history on his/her Profile page.twinkiedooter See this member's comment history on his/her Profile page.
Sure there is something you can do now - get another job if you don't like the one you have. Basically anytime you complain about a superior, get ready to take the consequences whether you feel you deserve it or not. Sometimes the best way to handle that type of situation is to do nothing and say nothing and let the higher ups see who messed up and why. Sometimes the higher ups have "reasons" why the incompetent was hired in the first place. Maybe he's somebody's brother, brother in law, uncle, second cousin, etc. and needs the job and other times the higher ups just like his phony banter that got him hired in the first place. I've seen it both ways and the best way to handle this is to say nothing and not get involved in trying to straighten out their mistakes. I know you meant well, but you must remember higher ups don't like to be told they hired an incompetent employee.
  Reply With Quote
 
     
 
 
Old Apr 30, 2009, 04:24 PM   #3  
Über Member
N0help4u is offline
 
N0help4u's Avatar
 
Join Date: Sep 2007
Location: dark side of moon, Pa
Posts: 16,921
N0help4u See this member's comment history on his/her Profile page.N0help4u See this member's comment history on his/her Profile page.N0help4u See this member's comment history on his/her Profile page.N0help4u See this member's comment history on his/her Profile page.N0help4u See this member's comment history on his/her Profile page.N0help4u See this member's comment history on his/her Profile page.N0help4u See this member's comment history on his/her Profile page.N0help4u See this member's comment history on his/her Profile page.N0help4u See this member's comment history on his/her Profile page.N0help4u See this member's comment history on his/her Profile page.N0help4u See this member's comment history on his/her Profile page.
Send a message via Yahoo to N0help4u
My son complained about the unfairness at work and they treated him really rude to the point he quit. Either live with it or leave.
  Reply With Quote
 
     
 
 
Old Apr 30, 2009, 06:04 PM   #4  
Christianity Expert
Fr_Chuck is offline
 
Fr_Chuck's Avatar
 
Join Date: Nov 2005
Location: Georgia
Posts: 36,930
Fr_Chuck has disabled reputation
Lucky you were not fired, that normally happens, and still may of course

at the end of the day, the boss is the boss, you document it all in writing as much as you can.
  Reply With Quote
 
     
 
 
Old May 27, 2009, 08:41 AM   #5  
New Member
felgar is offline
 
Join Date: May 2009
Posts: 26
felgar See this member's comment history on his/her Profile page.
Before making any action about your boss, think twice. A boss is always a boss. In the first place, he should not have been hired if he is incompetent. If you were in his shoes, you wouldn't like what you did. It is just but normal to be charged of insubordination if you don't follow instructions from your superior. It's not for you to shouldler the problem, leave it to them. Just work the best you can to the interest of the company. As long as your salary was not decreased with your unwanted action, don't bother. What is improtant now is you still have job.
  Reply With Quote
 
     
 
 
Old May 28, 2009, 03:03 PM   #6  
New Member
Snowgoose is offline
 
Join Date: Dec 2006
Posts: 7
Snowgoose See this member's comment history on his/her Profile page.
Quote:
Originally Posted by felgar View Post
It is just but normal to be charged of insubordination if you don't follow instructions from your superior. .... As long as your salary was not decreased with your unwanted action, don't bother. What is improtant now is you still have job.
But...i didn't disobey anything from this boss.
and...my pay was cut when i was busted down to lower level. It's not right.
Just saying....
  Reply With Quote
 
     
 
 
Old May 29, 2009, 10:34 AM   #7  
New Member
felgar is offline
 
Join Date: May 2009
Posts: 26
felgar See this member's comment history on his/her Profile page.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Snowgoose View Post
But...i didn't disobey anything from this boss.
and...my pay was cut when i was busted down to lower level. It's not right.
Just saying....
The best thing that you should do is to bring the matter to the grievance committee (if there is any) or the personnel manager. I am not an attorney but it is not right to cut down your salary even if you were assigned to a lower position, otherwise, if you were not qualified to the position, you should not have had been promoted as regular employee.
  Reply With Quote
 
     
 
 
Old Jun 28, 2009, 09:43 AM   #8  
New Member
kundang2 is offline
 
Join Date: Jun 2009
Posts: 2
kundang2 See this member's comment history on his/her Profile page.
Shoooo thats how it works
Focus on your area of control beyond your boss’s area of control there is frustration & nothing else.
This is how I would look at it it’s not a legal advice
  Reply With Quote
 
     

Your Answer
Email me when someone replies to my answer
Join Login



Thread Tools Search this Thread
Search this Thread:

Advanced Search
Display Modes
Ask your question or search...



Similar Threads
Geithner the incompetent
(9 replies)
get demoted and they lower your pay rate
(1 replies)
what to do? boss loves you boss hates ya girl?
(7 replies)
Should I be mad if I just got demoted in my best friends wedding?
(6 replies)
Boss firing employees after boss resigns
(1 replies)

Thread Tools
Show Printable Version Show Printable Version
Email this Page Email this Page
Search this Thread

Advanced Search

Bookmarks





Copyright ©2003 - 2009, Ask Me Help Desk.
All times are GMT -8. The time now is 07:53 PM.