So I feel stupid even posting this thread and asking this question, but I'm not a TL so I'm not really a "leader." But I am a GSA, so I am a supervisor, and my job is to function as one. But of course, I cannot coach.
I am currently dealing with a disrespectful fellow team member at the front-end. They have worked here longer than me, and I think they have an extremely bitter attitude especially regarding my recent promotion, going so far as to use the "You're not my boss" card on me, not tell me when they're leaving/clocking out, telling me I don't know what I'm doing, consistently making me feel like an idiot, and not listening to instructions. No one else behaves this way but them and it is very frustrating. I want to tell my GSTL but I'm not sure since this person has been here so long. It is getting to the point where I know I am going to have a bad shift if I have to work alongside this individual. I wanted to tell the LOD today but I'm not used to "telling on" people, and I know this person would give me shit if they knew I said something about them.
So really, what should I do? Is there a way to stop this person from giving me a hard time?
First and foremost, allow me to congratulate you on your promotion; I have read through your journey, and I am happy for you.
If I were your boss, and you told me, I would be having a conversation with that team member; if your leader isn't going to back you, then what's the point? That person is obviously not ready, or mature enough to be promoted, based on her behavior. In other words, the leadership was correct in not promoting that person. I had a similar issue with a subordinate giving the level one leader the same type of disrespect. If he/she were to retaliate, it would be automatic termination. I had to fire two people for retaliating against another co-worker/supervisor. You need to be sharing your concerns with the GSTL. This type of behavior is unacceptable in the workplace, especially when there are negative effects to external and internal customers alike. Not listening to instruction is insubordination, and is therefore, grounds for disciplinary action. If you have a good leader, then this behavior will stop.
You need to be careful that you're not over-stepping your authority. As a leader, you FORFEIT the right to abuse people; do NOT go on a power-trip, because YOU will be the one to blame (I'm not saying you are, but if you are......you need to change now). A bossy, power-tripping leader is no leader at all. I have a heavy dislike for such "leaders", as do 99.9% of the world. Make sure that you are not conveying that to them. The higher up you go, the more YOU have to sacrifice. However, they need to respect your position. In return, you MUST be respectful towards them. I would ask her if there are any concerns. If that does not work, I would respectfully tell her the expectations, and how it hurts the team. I like how the second response gave much detail in this. At the end of the day, Target is our customer; they are buying OUR time. We need to give Target excellent customer service, since they are our customer. That means, being respectful towards everyone, and following best practices, even if we don't agree with them. If she is disrespectful towards you after you've tried speaking with her, then you will need to involve a team lead, or even an ETL. If she retaliates, nothing short of termination is acceptable. If and when you need to confront your leader, you need to have documented a few examples of disrespect. Additionally, you need to state that you've tried to discuss the situation with that team member, but to no avail. In this case, you are expressing that using a leader is the last resort, and you will be respected for this, even if no one expresses it to you.
As a team member at Target, but a leader at my other job, I've ran into disrespectful team members. As a new employee at Target, I was all ears and learned the best I could. I became the best on the team. However, some of the team members have tried to "lateral micro-manage" me. I allowed this to happen for some time, as I was learning. However, as I understood the job, I eventually had to express my dislike for that behavior. Sometimes, I had to be quite harsh about it (i.e. "you need to worry about yourself, and not others", "you need to mind your own business", "stop telling others what to do, when you don't have the authority to"). People have to give respect to receive it. I am resented by a few team members because of my work ethic and leadership skills. I don't try to lead at Target; I lead by example, without using words. Some team members really like me because of those aforementioned traits. If/when I decide to be an ETL, I will use more of my leadership, but as of right now, I use leadership through service and example.
If you would like some insight on leadership, read this thread. I'm not perfect, but my input seems to be helpful. I am the last post on the page.
http://www.thebreakroom.org/index.php?threads/coming-into-target-as-etl-hr-tips.10916/
