Hi,

Our local office has some 20+ employees (UK), one of those being the UK HR/Office Manager.

The HR/Office manager works in a small room, with the Finance manager and Finance assistant.

The HR manager is contracted to work 3 days out of 5 - 7 hours each.

In the last 3 months - the HR manager has been noticeably absent, in that:

They will often leave work around lunchtime - due to 'a child's illness'
They spend a fair amount of their time without work to do, or looking for work.
This pattern has repeated almost every week for the last 3 months - I can't remember this person being present for a full week since Christmas.

How should I approach this? Blatant absenteeism annoys me, as they will still be picking up their full salary, while others are snowed under.

Their direct manager works from another country - so the majority of this goes unseen by a supervisor.

If it is reported to their supervisor, there is a high chance that one of the two finance members working in the same room will be wrongly identified as 'reporting' them.

Any suggestions?

You don't say what your position is.
The unwritten rule is to leave such complaints alone. Even if she doesn't have the direct authority to fire you, she will surely get you fired.
Full salary is for 21 hours, right? It's possible that her salary is quite small. It's possible that she has made arrangements for some vacation time here and there. It's possible that she is the owner's niece. Anything's possible, and it always backfires when you interfere.

You don't say what your position is.
The unwritten rule is to leave such complaints alone. Even if she doesn't have the direct authority to fire you, she will surely get you fired.

What can she get me fired for?

You don't say what your position is.
The unwritten rule is to leave such complaints alone. Even if she doesn't have the direct authority to fire you, she will surely get you fired.
Full salary is for 21 hours, right? It's possible that her salary is quite small. It's possible that she has made arrangements for some vacation time here and there. It's possible that she is the owner's niece. Anything's possible, and it always backfires when you interfere.

Full salary is for 21 hours - manager's salary.

No holidays/vacation time booked.

Not related in anyway to a manager.

I should have said she will surely try to get you fired or find a reason to fire you herself, or to make your job miserable in such ways that eventually you will either quit or slip up and then be fired. The work world has NO democracy to it, it is cutthroat, it is unfair, and a lot of backstabbing goes on, and I have a feeling that you are still quite innocent about all that.

I should have said she will surely try to get you fired or find a reason to fire you herself, or to make your job miserable in such ways that eventually you will either quit or slip up and then be fired. The work world has NO democracy to it, it is cutthroat, it is unfair, and a lot of backstabbing goes on, and I have a feeling that you are still quite innocent about all that.


I have just come through my annual review with the highest possible grade.

From her general attitude in the office - it is clear that she does not want to be here. If her supervisor was based in this same office it would be picked up in a second - but they aren't

While I thank you for your responses, I do not take the same view of "there's no such thing as democracy, everything is c**p"

I consider my original questions to be open, and would appreciate further replies from others.