▲ 2 r/work

How to make peace with insecure coworker?

I've worked at my current job about a year, engineering job working on a quoting system. My coworker Jonathan has been positive, energetic, and very gung-ho about our project and working with him was great for a long while. He does talk a lot during meetings and tries to steer most discussions, which makes meetings drag on longer than needed, but that has been fine.

A few months ago he sent me a private message giving me a "professional courtesy" that I should speak less during meetings and try to be more team-oriented and not climb over my colleagues to get promotions. This caught me totally by surprise, because I have always been mindful and open when working with others. I called him and we talked for about an hour about it. I guess he had coworkers in the past who took credit for his work and he's pretty sensitive to that, but after listening to him and explaining my motivations for how I work, he totally changed his message. He actually said that nothing was wrong, to disregard what he said, and he said he was grateful to have someone like me on the team. It seemed to me like he just needed to feel listened to and understood.

Then things were fine for a few months, until I worked on a task that he had wanted to work on. It was 30 minutes, very simple, and it didn't occur to me that he would want to be the one to do it. He gave me another private "professional courtesy" message not to "take action items from team members" and that he didn't need someone "doing his work for him" or thinking that he "wasn't capable" of it.

I apologized and tried to call him to understand his expectations better, but he refused to have another conversation like the first one. It's been a few weeks now and he's been acting out in frustrating ways. He pushes back on my work now, is intentionally vague and difficult when I have to get information from him, and acts condescending when I try to have discussions with him.

My other coworkers have noticed and have asked me if something is going on, so I know it's not just me.

I was asking for more details on a task he gave me, and when he was being difficult, I messaged him saying he was being more abrasive than was necessary and he said it was because I was "asking questions about things that had already been approved", as if that would even be a valid reason to be rude and aggressive.

I don't know, the vibe is totally different now and it's making me dread going in to work. I feel like I have done everything I can to repair the relationship, but it seems like he is insecure and has decided to target me and sacrifice a year of relationship over a 30 minute task that he interpreted as an attack or something. I think he's intimidated or jealous of me and I don't know how to handle that.

It's at the point that I'm probably going to bring it up to my supervisor soon, but is there anything else I can try to get back to at least a working relationship? Once it becomes a workplace issue or he gets disciplined, I don't think there's any salvaging the relationship.

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u/splinterbl — 10 hours ago

How to financially survive new parenthood?

Me (35M) and my wife (36F) had our son about a year ago. I am an engineer in Oregon making 85K a year and my wife is now a stay at home mom. Our budget is tight and we have debt to pay off. I need advice on where to adjust:

Income

Take home pay: +$4100

3% Roth IRA (max employer match)

Max FSA contribution

Low-ish health insurance coverage

Monthly Costs:

Rent + water + garbage: -$2020

Electricity: -$125

Internet: -$55

Phone: -$30

Auto Insurance: -$95

Groceries + home supplies + baby supplies: -$1000

Debt min payment: -$800

Debt:

20K Credit Card @ 27% apr

4K Credit Card @ 27% apr

4K Loan @ 27% apr

2K Credit Card @ 27% apr

The debt is in my wife's name and was from before we were together. We are trying to prioritize it according to the prime directive.

Here's a few next steps we are considering:

- Debt consolidation loan (most of our payments go to interest at this point)

- Me changing jobs (I landed my current job after 8 months of job searching, not eager to jump back in)

- My wife getting a part time job (not likely to make enough to justify childcare, not sure it's worth it)

- Moving to a lower cost-of-living area (I live super close to my work, which saves on gas and stress)

It doesn't seem like there are any easy options, where would you prioritize change? Our rent is already 50% of our take home pay, but we are already outgrowing our apartment and there aren't many cheaper options where we live.

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u/splinterbl — 3 months ago

I work as an engineer in manufacturing. In my plant, the bathroom and the break area just have Dawn dish soap in the dispensers, and it's tearing my hands up. They're cracked and bleeding every day while working at my computer.

I've considered just bringing in my own hand soap, but that seems excessive, and even asking that they replace all the soap feels like painting a target on my back, as people who complain are viewed as "non team-players".

How can I approach this without creating a big deal about it, and if I have to, do I have any grounds to stand on? I haven't heard anyone else complaining about it, so maybe my skin is just sensitive to the dish soap?

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u/splinterbl — 4 months ago