[mteja]

I have this job where i supervise a staff of 9 people.

The job is enjoyable and pays well. so problem..........

One of the guys under me is an african american dude who is extremely lazy. My company has this rule that you cant get fired until you commit a very big crime e.g. theft etc. anyway we give about 12 warnings before we have to let a jamaa go.

-everytime i get on this guy's case he kumbushas me that am a foreigner and i cant do ##### to him.
he calls me an illegal alien. (kumbuka i cant fire the jamaa yet) i have suspended the fool so many times lakini wapi.

-next is this mzungu chick who thinks i dont know how to do my job. she does the opposite of what i tell her to do every single time. she does not recognise my authority whatsoever.

so i go to my mdosi and guess what he tells me

" YOU ARE LUCKY TO BE A FOREIGNER IN A SUPERVISORY POSITION".

nitafanya nini?
if i quit this job i will probably lose about 4 to 5 bucks per hour

[Shanika]

In what ever you do, DO NOT QUIT. Try to ignore them if you can. That is the best advise that I can give you. But I know there is someone in a superior postition than you, and if you have proven yourself as an asset of the company, talk to him/her and tell them what you feel!
Good luck!

[waweru]

Keep a record of what they tell you. Secretly record them as they say these things. There are tiny affordable tape recorders that can be concealed in the pocket. This could turn out to be useful in a future showdown, especially if you have a right to be working in the country.

But if you don't have a right to be working, then just record them but also try and keep low.

[stupak]

Such stresses come with the job. You will never find a perfect situation where you supervise excellent people. Atleast you have only two!

[isso]

Depending on what your company policies are there's different ways of dealing with issues like that.

- The akata dude will continue to do what he's doing as long as you make him believe that you can't do jack shyt coz' you're a foreigner....Log all the small insubodinations dude does including being late, not completing work, whatever you can....A catalogue of these in most companies can be seen as grounds for incompetence and can lead to a disciplinary action, if not dismissal based on his history. I also assume that you're in charge of any review on wages or salary for this dude and any appraisals...Just make sure you professionally air your concerns and don't under any circumstances contemplate ever recommending a pay increase for the jamaa...This can be more effective if the other 7 people under your supervision are rewarded and he is aware of it.

- As for the babe, again document the actions she takes that contribute to your department being unproductive with the aim of following similar steps. Have no flexibility at all when it comes to things like excusing them for lateness, time off, holiday requests, etc. As long as you're following the rule book, there's jack she can do...Also, if you are responsible for reviewing her pay, make sure she don't get a rise at all until she starts playing ball with the team.

As for your boss...it usually isn't the last stop....Bottom line, his refusal to recognise your concerns amounts on incompetence on his part also and espcially for the reason that he has given....Follow the chain of command and go to his boss and explain that you do not feel that your concerns have been properly addressed...Please note, your boss will probably not be amused at all, but it may help informing him of your actions (to his boss), before and while you're taking them...He of all the people knows that if your department doesn't deliver coz' of these two reprobates, he's gonna get the msomo from his boss and this will be subsequently unleashed to you...But you can protect yourself by recording all steps you've taken to remedy the matter in the case where you might need to prove to his boss that you did your job and for any grievence hearings...Bottom line, your boss will have to take responsibility for being outright prejudicial and not listening and acting on your concerns professionally.

Also, note, depending on what action you take, not everybody will come out smelling of roses, but as a manager or supervisor, there are some decisions you have to take or some actions you have to resort to that will not please everyone and being seen as the bad guy comes with the territory, and I would put it down to experience.

Hope this helps.

[Shanika]

Waweru, you cannot tape somebody without their knowledge. It is illegal in most states. Remember Linda Tripp/Monica/Clinton?

[kerubo]

.
>
>As for your boss...it usually isn't the
>last stop....Bottom line, his refusal to
>recognise your concerns amounts on
>incompetence on his part also and
>espcially for the reason that he has
>given....Follow the chain of command and
>go to his boss and explain that you do
>not feel that your concerns have been
>properly addressed...Please note, your
>boss will probably not be amused at all,
>but it may help informing him of your
>actions (to his boss), before and while
>you're taking them...He of all the
>people knows that if your department
>doesn't deliver coz' of these two
>reprobates, he's gonna get the msomo
>from his boss and this will be
>subsequently unleashed to you...But you
>can protect yourself by recording all
>steps you've taken to remedy the matter
>in the case where you might need to
>prove to his boss that you did your job
>and for any grievence hearings...Bottom
>line, your boss will have to take
>responsibility for being outright
>prejudicial and not listening and acting
>on your concerns professionally.

My personal experience, Documented events are a huge rescue and Most Americans don't like any written documents. Before staging your grievances to the superior of your boss, I would strongly recommend that you write him a memo regarding the incidences..this way it's on file. Make your work manual your Bible. If you don't like his response, then write another memo to his superior and attach the previous memo. In your memos your voice should be well tonned, offer suggestions and possible solutions. These guys don't like complaints without any suggestions - you've got to prove your problem-solving skills here. Don't sound biased or lean only on the negative side of a person. You have to prove that you tried to resolve the issues with your 2 employees i.e you wrote them a memo of whatever means your organization uses to communicate such issues to employees. Give constructive criticism such as: Say the good things the akata does then end up with the bad...then offer a solution.

Trust me, an akata boss of mine tried to blackmail me after mentioning to me that: "Are you trying to take my Job away from me? Since then I kept and recorded every meeting with him and decided to use emails to follow up on his meetings and whatever he requested of me. He refused to train me, refused to give me assignments and when he gave me a project, he would give me an unreasonable deadline. Regardless, I completed my work on time and made sure it was accurate, always at work before him and made sure I spoke to him nicely infront of people especially the bigger fish, then I lodged my complaint.

Part of the trouble I got him resulted in his demotion after I took up the matter to the Director. The economy is bad and if someone has to leave, it shouldn't be you. Be familiar with how your organizational politics work.


NOTHING IN LIFE IS TO BE FEARED. IT IS ONLY TO BE UNDERSTOOD.

[waweru]

I never knew that

I guess you just have to document them manually then.

I remember I had a friend who was being mistreated by some people members of staff in a hostel he was staying in. These guy was an ex-military officer from Gambia who basically knew alot of things. When he felt that he could not take it anymore, he just casually mentioned to them that he was keeping a daily record of everything that happened to him. Guess what! The guy was relocated to a studio flat in record time (by the following week). But ofcourse each situation is always different.

The above piece by Isso is also good.

[wamuiru]

YOU KENYANS SUPRISE ME WHAT DID YA EXPECT THEM TO TELL YA THAT THEY ARE LUCKY TO BE WORKING WITH A NIGGA FROM THE CONTINENT KEEP LOW AMA URUDI JAMHURI.

[mwatu]

The best advice, which I say earlier is to keep some kind of a paper trail. Recording and maintaining written evidence is a good thing. This way, if it becomes a case of she/he said she/he siad, you have some solid evidence.

Another thing to do is try and ignore this people as much as possible. Confrontational people are everywhere in the work place and one way to deal with them is to ignore them.

And don't take your work home with you. Remember it is only a job, and it is not personal.