Professionalism Issue (XP)

[viciouskittie]

Hey ladies. I posted this on the Careers board but this is really my home base and I'm hoping someone may have some ideas...

I work in a team of 10-12 people. There are concerns that there is an
issue of professionalism, particularly with one staff member (who is
well-liked by management). Mostly inappropriate use of office time
(personal phone calls with family, slacking) and having inappropriate
conversations with business partners (personal life stuff, gossip about
other business partners and their financial situations, etc). I am not
the only person with these concerns and several of us have gently told
our direct manager that there is a concern but he seems unsure of how to
handle it. It is getting worse and would like to bring it up with my
manager again, but if possible I'd like to bring some suggestions on how
it could be handled because, to be honest, my manager is sometimes at a
loss with this kind of thing. So, oh wise ones, any suggestions?

[ct]

Honestly? If it wasn't directly impacting me and my work product, I'd stay out of it. That type of thing will eventually show up in the employee's work which is the place for your manager to address - and the 'how to address' part is typically part of company protocol, whether it be a constructive converstaion or a written warning, ect.

[2brides]

I agree with CT. Unless it is directly affecting you/your ability to do your work, I'd stay out of it. It'll just make you look petty. Like CT said, it will eventually come to light.

[twotrue]

I like pp's advice, but if you still feel like some needs to take a next step, can you talk to HR? Is there someone in the HR department you feel comfortable confiding in? They would then be able to approach your manager and check on this.

[never2amazing]

Ditto on 2brides post.

[viciouskittie]

The problem is, it is impacting me (and everyone else on our team). It's bringing morale down a lot and causing a toxic work environment for everyone on the team. It's been on-going for a while (probably close to a year). Our HR is very hands-off and is located in a different part of the country so typically all concerns are handled through management. Our manager is very good at lots of things but "people" isn't always one of them.