One person's absence should not stop a meeting from happening. Also, when the regular supervisor returns, the two of you can schedule a meeting with just the supervisor. Outline the problems and discuss what impact that has on the schedule of the project. Make sure you are not accusatory, angry or upset at the time. You are asking for advice on how to bring this critical project to completion. The supervisor may not be fully aware of the problems. They may be a supervisor who isn't used to dealing with a situation like this and it is being ignored. It is also likely that they may be aware of issues with the employee that you are not. A very flexible schedule could have been part of the employment agreement for various reasons both personal and professional. But asking for advice, before the problem becomes worse seems like a good idea. -- Dane F. Pollei Director Mabee-Gerrer Museum of Art 1900 W. MacArthur St. Shawnee, OK 74804 ph 405-878-5622 fax 405-878-5133 www.mgmoa.org On Wed, Feb 18, 2009 at 2:32 PM, Gayle <[log in to unmask]> wrote: > I've received a request for assistance and am protecting the identify of > the original poster. Please see the dilemma below and post to the list your > suggestions how to deal with this conundrum. Many thanks to those who can > offer guidance. It may be something some of you have experienced heretofore > and can provide creative solutions. > > > > I'm dealing with a coworker who is very unreliable and undependable. The > rest of us never know when she will actually be in to work or how long > she'll stay that day. When she is actually at work she is not a bad person > to work with by any means. My boss is aware of this issue and it's been > going on as long as I've worked there and from what I can gather, even > longer than that. Currently my boss is away on leave and our interim > supervisor is very clueless about all of this. > > I am in charge of a project involving her and another coworker. It's hard > to find time to meet as there is only 1 day a week when all 3 of us are > there together at the same time. This project has been stalled because she > repeatedly can't make meetings for one reason or another. > > I had a meeting scheduled for today to discuss the project and make action > plans for the upcoming weeks and months but she can't make it. I realize my > most pressing concern is timely and there may not be any instantaneous > replies, but I am in the "wrong" for going on with the meeting even though > it will just be me and the other coworker? I feel not working on this > project makes the institution look bad as it is related to our strategic > plan and goals for the year and it's in our best interest to move forward. > > Any thoughts on collaborating with this particular coworker? > > ========================================================= Important > Subscriber Information: > > The Museum-L FAQ file is located at > http://www.finalchapter.com/museum-l-faq/ . You may obtain detailed > information about the listserv commands by sending a one line e-mail message > to [log in to unmask] . The body of the message should read > "help" (without the quotes). > > If you decide to leave Museum-L, please send a one line e-mail message to > [log in to unmask] . The body of the message should read > "Signoff Museum-L" (without the quotes). > ========================================================= Important Subscriber Information: The Museum-L FAQ file is located at http://www.finalchapter.com/museum-l-faq/ . You may obtain detailed information about the listserv commands by sending a one line e-mail message to [log in to unmask] . The body of the message should read "help" (without the quotes). If you decide to leave Museum-L, please send a one line e-mail message to [log in to unmask] . The body of the message should read "Signoff Museum-L" (without the quotes).