my job is now more bearable

Well, we had some good news on the job front this week.

After remarking to Natasha Sunday afternoon that I really didn't want to go into work on Monday, I got a call Sunday night from my boss. It turns out that my Crane's Ford reporter came in sometime over the weekend, cleaned out her desk and left a written resignation, effective immediately.

I could feel the crimp in my back and neck loosen as Tim broke the news.

Apparently my ex-reporter is disgusted with the flagrant disrespect I show her, the way I butcher her stories, expect her to write about things other than the Crane's Ford Township Committee and was especially put off by the way I deliberately have removed her bylines from several stories ever since we got a new computer system and the way I messed up the IPA awards announcements where they listed her awards.

She's also horribly upset that the editor in chief didn't drop everything Thursday afternoon to listen to her unending litany of complaints, and can't continue to work where she's not appreciated.

I haven't said it publicly, but good riddance. She's been nothing but unprofessional the entire time I've worked with her. She's subjected me to an endless barrage of verbal abuse, and not just me but every one of my predecessors as well. She even went as far this weekend as emptying her Rolodex, dumping a bunch of papers on my desk, and knocking over my family pictures as well. The company has sent her a letter demanding the Rolodex contents be returned since the resource belongs to the company and not to the reporter, and even threatened legal action against her if she fails to provide it. I understand she's also barred from passing the foyer at the front of the building.

I'm sorry it had to work out this way, but I'm glad it's finally over. She probably doesn't realize it, but she in all likelihood has saved the company a lawsuit I was considering for when I find another job. (There was a little problem of the company being aware of a hostile work environment and failing to do anything to remedy the situation, see, but now it's been resolved.)

I still hope to get another job -- I don't like the hours this one requires, and the pay isn't enough to provide for my family -- but at least the wait will be a little more bearable now.

The sad thing is, my ex-reporter is probably waiting for the newspaper to call her and beg her to come back. I don't see that happening any time soon. Her unprofessional conduct has been a longstanding problem at the company, and I believe it has caused us a few problems in the community as well. We've lost her knowledge of the community as a result of her decision to leave, but a new reporter who knows what she's doing can get into the community quite well within three months or so -- and probably do a more balanced job covering it.