How to deal with verbal abuse

DEAR WW: There is a person at work who is incredibly abusive to me. I’ve tried everything and nothing seems to work. ABUSED
DEAR ABUSED:
When I read your e-mail I though thought of Bob (no relation), an old elementary school classmate. Bob was the master of “The Mirror.” When someone insulted him, Bob would say, “Mirror, [...]

Should overweight employees be protected from discrimination?

DEAR READERS: I recently received this e-mail from A.C. talking about his struggle to get hired as a person who is overweight. I think his letter should be posted on every bulletin board in every office to raise awareness on this issue.
DEAR WORKING WOUNDED: There is a hidden job discrimination issue that is rarely discussed [...]

How to develop a privacy policy at work

DEAR WW: We’ve had a lot of questions recently about privacy in our company. I’ve decided to develop a policy, but I’m not sure where to start. SNOOP
DEAR SNOOP:
With privacy polices, it’s usually the case that you spend your time looking at it from one direction (what is best for the company) and you end [...]

How to fight back against harassment

Dear Readers: I get many emails and faxes from people complaining about abusive bosses. You can choose to fight, I tell them, but know that harassment is a tough fight to win. It’s usually easier to look for a saner boss. One woman wrote back, however, and chided me for tolerating harassment. She did fight-and [...]

How to provide reasonable accommodation at work

Dear WW: I’m hoping to hire a person who is blind but I’m afraid my boss will resist because he’ll think it will require costly changes to the office. I know the ADA requires workplaces to do certain things for handicapped people. Can you explain what’s required in plain English so I can convince my [...]

How to decide if you should sue your company

Dear WW: I think I have a good discrimination lawsuit against my company. But I once saw a coworker sue and lose everything-his job, home and marriage. Is there any way to tell when it’s worth the risk? A BOY NAMED SUE?
Dear SUE,
Speaking of lawsuits, did you hear about the Scottish woman who recently sued [...]

How to deal with being “on-call”

Dear WW: My company requires that I carry a beeper and be on-call most evenings. Shouldn’t I be paid for this time? ALWAYS ON DUTY
Dear ALWAYS,
I think prison inmate Timothy Marshall can teach you a thing or two. He recently asked a judge to let him out of jail. After all, he’d reached the release [...]