Do you have a Weasel at work?

SmilingBluEyes · Apr 27, 2005

there is one in EVERY crowd.

Marie_LPN, RN, LPN, RN · Apr 27, 2005

On what grounds?

Playing the supervisors (i.e. when he didn't get the answer he wanted from one supervisors, he just went to the other one next), stealing, making LD phone calls and trying to blame it on other people. And a few other things.

AngelSpirit · Apr 27, 2005

Playing the supervisors (i.e. when he didn't get the answer he wanted from one supervisors, he just went to the other one next), stealing, making LD phone calls and trying to blame it on other people. And a few other things.

Interesting. To get fired one would think you would have to violate a written policy or risk getting sued for wrongful termination unless of course you are a contractor working at the the pleasure or convenience of the employer. But then again you did say "stealing" and that is a crime....

-AS

Marie_LPN, RN, LPN, RN · Apr 27, 2005

Interesting. To get fired one would think you would have to violate a written policy or risk getting sued for wrongful termination unless of course you are a contractor working at the the pleasure or convenience of the employer. But then again you did say "stealing" and that is a crime....
-AS

He did violate a few portions of written policy. :rolleyes:

Dalzac, LPN, LVN, RN · Apr 27, 2005

We have a unit secretary that I have a secret name for and it is the "Weasel". This name reflects the fact that she spends a great deal of time weaseling in with people in managment positions. Knows them all by name, jumps up to glad hand them every chance she gets. She also does a lot of personal favors for managment people especially the nurse manager. Everyone knows to be careful what is said in front of her because managment will hear it from her and again carrying tales is a way of weaseling in with managment. I would be very impressed with a manager that was not fooled by this stuff but I have yet to meet one that wasn't. It does a lot of damage because inevitably the weasel will dodge real work every chance she gets. Everyday when she leaves charts with orders stacked a mile high sit waiting for the next shift. She loves the phone but not to do unit business. She is yacking to family and friends constantly and her children seem to think they can call anytime about the stupidest things. Even when she takes her two hour lunches they continue to call and the staff had to take the calls. These behaviors pay off because she is in as tight as you can get with the bosses. They like being kissed up to so much they are not about to do anything about her. :stone

I gotta say this and will probably get flamed for it but here goes:

I was called a brown noser for something others did not understand. My old manager and I used to hang together quite a lot but the deal was she and I became really good friends. we used to do lots of things together like taking our kids camping stuff like that. And it was hurtful to hear the things the rest of the staff said. Upper managment eventually said something to her and socially we had to back off and I felt like I had lost a close friends because of it. I just thought it was petty and underhanded the way it was handled.

Okay that is all I have

SmilingBluEyes · Apr 27, 2005

I think it's very inappropriate to hang out with your manager; it creates bad feelings for the rest of the staff, even though you don't mean for it to. This may just be me, but, I don't like workplace fraternization between a manager and one nurse she/he directly supervises......we had one a manager who made friends with one of our young nurses, and it did not earn her respect from the rest of the staff.

Now, going to lunch or dinner or some other social event, as a group, I can see. Hanging out and making best friends with one nurse is not a good idea for any manager. I know you did not mean to be a brown-noser, being her friend, but that is the perception other staff get anyhow, when such relationships form in the workplace. It's not fair, but it is business.

If you are that close to your manager, -----you are truly friends, it's probably best for everyone, for you to move a another unit where she/he is not directly supervising you. Then, no one would care if you were friends or not. I am sorry you were hurt. Upper management/administration probably DID say something to the manager, as you suspect. It's about what is appropriate in the workplace, and what is not.

stevierae · Apr 27, 2005

there is one in EVERY crowd.

So true. We had one--a nurse--who was very lazy and not a very good nurse. She always got the easiest rooms, when she wasn't busy wearing a lab coat and assiting one of the managers with one of their "projects." We had a chair in the lounge that we called the "spy chair" because it was very deep and turned in such a way that you could not see anyone sitting in it. Many is the time when you would vent about something to a colleague in the lounge, thinking you were the only 2 there--and then she would arise from the "spy seat" with a smirk on her face, and leave with nothing said to either of you.

Soon after, you'd be called into the boss about your "attitude--" and the conversation was brought up, after having been relayed verbatim to management. We got to the point where we checked the "spy seat" before saying a word in the lounge. We also, if called into management, got into the habit of stating, "If you have an issue with the way I deliver nursing care, then let's hear about it. If not, there is no need for a conversation here." If management stated that, no, what they wanted to talk to you about was your "attitude" then you turned around and walked out.

Weasels. Yeah, there's one everywhere.

I figure what goes around, comes around.

fluffwad · Apr 27, 2005

I was called a brown noser for something others did not understand. My old manager and I used to hang together quite a lot but the deal was she and I became really good friends. ...

Getting close personally to someone who is your supervisor can be dangerous. Not only because of how others might see it. It can put the supervisor in a tougher than usual position if he /she has to reprimand the friend; and its easy to get complacent / sloppy if the other one thinks boss isn't going to write her up because she's her pal.

I made the mistake of getting too close with my last ADON. She got canned for some things I had no idea she was doing, and now the new DON seems to have some reservations about me because of my association with the old ADON. It also pulled the rug right out from under me when all this went down.....too emotionally attached.

SmilingBluEyes · Apr 27, 2005

.
Weasels. Yeah, there's one everywhere.
I figure what goes around, comes around.

From your lips........

lord knows, they deserve what's coming to them.

redwinggirlie · Apr 27, 2005

When these things happen, like the calls and two-hour lunches, it needs to be documented, a copy made and then given to the manager of the unit. Every infraction needs documentation. Tell your manager of your concerns, and keep telling until something gets done. People like this make it hard to want to come to work and do our best. Has anyone tried talking with your weasel?

Unacceptable. Write everything down. Be well and good luck.

barefootlady, ADN, RN · Apr 27, 2005

It has been my experience to have not just one but several weasels on a unit. Poor things, seems like after awhile they don't seem to get all of those important messages. What someone put a sign on your car? It said "B****!

No, I just did not hear what that doctor, nurse, family member said to you, was it really that bad? Poor thing. :uhoh3:

danu3 · Apr 27, 2005

We had a chair in the lounge that we called the "spy chair" because it was very deep and turned in such a way that you could not see anyone sitting in it. Many is the time when you would vent about something to a colleague in the lounge, thinking you were the only 2 there--and then she would arise from the "spy seat" with a smirk on her face, and leave with nothing said to either of you.

Have anyone thought about putting superglue or something on the spy chair?

-Dan