4 ms·

The people who enjoy the camaraderie of the office, signing birthday cards, gossiping by the water cooler and talking about their 10K run for charity never stru

The people who enjoy the camaraderie of the office, signing birthday cards, gossiping by the water cooler and talking about their 10K run for charity never struck me as the smartest people. It always struck me as a ridiculous waste of time.

dougmwne 5y ago
The entire thing feels like such a charade to me. Cute birthday cards and asking about each other's weekends. All signaling and no real human empathy. The moment someone needs actual support they are kicked to the curb. Not our problem! The person who sat in the cube with my Partner for years committed suicide. Poof, it was like he never worked there. Have facilities clean out the desk. This is not your family.
- okareaman 5y ago
  They encouraged us to dress up for Halloween. A coworker came in with a cowboy costume including a toy gun. HR sent him home for bringing a gun to work. It was one of those you used to be able to buy at the 5 and dime. It might even have been his toy gun when he was a kid. It was absurd. As soon as it was time to do layoffs, they let him go. The family friendly atmosphere evaporates quickly when it's time to do layoffs. Your description of what happens after a suicide sounds about like I would expect.
  - dougmwne 5y ago
    I managed a Black woman. She was being harassed by an executive. I tried to intervene. It got worse. It was racist. I saw it with my own eyes. My boss saw it with his own eyes. She went to HR. I supported her. My boss supported her. I was fired. My boss was fired. No one stood up for us. Everyone cut contact with us. The "work family" people really don't get it.
    - dkjaudyeqooe 5y ago
      That's shocking but not surprising. When people site "a feeling of belonging" for why they take full time jobs, it just plain creeps me out. It's the inverse of family behavior: people use their power over you solely for their own benefit, usually in an immoral way.
      - okareaman 5y ago
        Imagine your real family was like a corporate family. You're at a family gathering and your grandfather calls you aside and tells you, "we're sorry, we're going to have to let you go. We don't think you're a good fit for our family. It's just not working out."

dougmwne 5y ago

The entire thing feels like such a charade to me. Cute birthday cards and asking about each other's weekends. All signaling and no real human empathy. The moment someone needs actual support they are kicked to the curb. Not our problem! The person who sat in the cube with my Partner for years committed suicide. Poof, it was like he never worked there. Have facilities clean out the desk. This is not your family.

okareaman 5y ago
They encouraged us to dress up for Halloween. A coworker came in with a cowboy costume including a toy gun. HR sent him home for bringing a gun to work. It was one of those you used to be able to buy at the 5 and dime. It might even have been his toy gun when he was a kid. It was absurd. As soon as it was time to do layoffs, they let him go. The family friendly atmosphere evaporates quickly when it's time to do layoffs. Your description of what happens after a suicide sounds about like I would expect.
- dougmwne 5y ago
  I managed a Black woman. She was being harassed by an executive. I tried to intervene. It got worse. It was racist. I saw it with my own eyes. My boss saw it with his own eyes. She went to HR. I supported her. My boss supported her. I was fired. My boss was fired. No one stood up for us. Everyone cut contact with us. The "work family" people really don't get it.
  - dkjaudyeqooe 5y ago
    That's shocking but not surprising. When people site "a feeling of belonging" for why they take full time jobs, it just plain creeps me out. It's the inverse of family behavior: people use their power over you solely for their own benefit, usually in an immoral way.
    - okareaman 5y ago
      Imagine your real family was like a corporate family. You're at a family gathering and your grandfather calls you aside and tells you, "we're sorry, we're going to have to let you go. We don't think you're a good fit for our family. It's just not working out."