Would you have shared this information with your boss?
A while back, a friend of mine and I had an internet message board. We had issues with a couple of trolls who posted flame bait, caused trouble with other members and badmouthed our board and us throughout the site. Before too long it got very out of hand and we were forced to ban both of the members. Fast forward five years. I have moved to a new place – a city where I know for a fact this troll lived. I also knew the troll’s real first name, and a few of their interests. The place where I worked hired a new employee with the troll’s name. I didn’t think much of it until I met the employee and they seemed to have many of the same interests the troll shared on the board. I asked straight out and sure enough, it turns out this person was the troll. The odds are astronomical I know, but the troll knew all about the board, the board’s members and admin and all the things that happened without me saying a word. I never said anything to anyone at work. Now that the person has left my place of employment I told one co-worker who was absolutely convinced I should have told the boss. What do you think? Would you have shared the information or kept it to yourself?
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9 Answers
Unless they were doing something really horrible – like making death threats – I wouldn’t have. Everyone gets a bit weird at times on the internet.
I would not have ruined the troll’s real life without evidence of problems at work.
No, unless they were causing trouble at work. I’m glad they left as I’m sure that mustve been uncomfortable for you.
No you should not say anything as long as that person does not cause trouble.
It depends on where you work, the corporate culture and your relationship with your boss. If it is a small company with loose hiring practices and your employment atmosphere is more team oriented instead of hirearchial, it may have been appropriate to tell. If you had any doubt though, it’s always better to keep your mouth shut. I’m sure your instincts were right. Those who say, “You should have,” are the same people who also say, “I can’t believe you did that!”
I am on someone elses computer and I don’t have spell check. Please forgive any errors, I am sure there are a few.
I wouldn’t say anything unless it was something really serious, like if you knew he was a wanted felon or some other potential safety issue or something. Otherwise, it’s just not relevant to your job, really, and it makes you look petty and like you’re bringing personal issues to the workplace. You have to trust that if he’s a douche, he’s going to blow his cover sooner or later and the boss is going to find out anyway.
Nope. It’s not germane to the job. As @MissAnthrope said, I’d feel differently if it were a safety issue.
No. People say things online they wouldn’t act on at a job. Just because the guy was an ass, doesn’t mean he would be a bad employee.
All I have to say is thank you fellow jellies! I was fairly sure I had made the right choice, but it is good to know others agree. What was interesting to me was that it was pretty easy to tell she was keeping her distance for the first couple of months to see if I was going to share the information. Once she realized I wasn’t going to say anything we got along pretty well.
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