Archived Scared of TL

[lrou98]

There is a TL at my store who loves to talk about running over cats and other various sick ways he likes to torture them. I overheard him one day and confronted him. I asked him to please stop discussing this at work since I could hear him from 6 aisles away. I explained how upsetting this was to me and it frankly disturbed me. I told him that he does not have to like cats or any other animal but please stop. I volunteer at an animal shelter and have seen horrible abuse cases. Now, when I see this TL and he knows that nobody else is around, he whispers things like,"I'm gonna kill the pussy." (and other crazy shit). He told me yesterday how a cat sounds when he runs it over. I'm sick over this whole thing. I feel scared and threatened when I see this TL now. Ive been at this store longer than he has but Im too frightened to go to my ETL or HR. I have no proof of him saying this.. If I have no proof, what can I do?. I have compassion for animals and I do not deserve this treatment. Please, only serious replies only....I dont need any more jokes or anyone telling me to "chill out" or "ignore it.". Thank you.

 

[NKG]

There is a TL at my store who loves to talk about running over cats and other various sick ways he likes to torture them. I overheard him one day and confronted him. I asked him to please stop discussing this at work since I could hear him from 6 aisles away. I explained how upsetting this was to me and it frankly disturbed me. I told him that he does not have to like cats or any other animal but please stop. I volunteer at an animal shelter and have seen horrible abuse cases. Now, when I see this TL and he knows that nobody else is around, he whispers things like,"I'm gonna kill the pussy." (and other crazy shit). He told me yesterday how a cat sounds when he runs it over. I'm sick over this whole thing. I feel scared and threatened when I see this TL now. Ive been at this store longer than he has but Im too frightened to go to my ETL or HR. I have no proof of him saying this.. If I have no proof, what can I do?. I have compassion for animals and I do not deserve this treatment. Please, only serious replies only....I dont need any more jokes or anyone telling me to "chill out" or "ignore it.". Thank you.

Go to HR...

 

[HRLady]

There is a TL at my store who loves to talk about running over cats and other various sick ways he likes to torture them. I overheard him one day and confronted him. I asked him to please stop discussing this at work since I could hear him from 6 aisles away. I explained how upsetting this was to me and it frankly disturbed me. I told him that he does not have to like cats or any other animal but please stop. I volunteer at an animal shelter and have seen horrible abuse cases. Now, when I see this TL and he knows that nobody else is around, he whispers things like,"I'm gonna kill the pussy." (and other crazy shit). He told me yesterday how a cat sounds when he runs it over. I'm sick over this whole thing. I feel scared and threatened when I see this TL now. Ive been at this store longer than he has but Im too frightened to go to my ETL or HR. I have no proof of him saying this.. If I have no proof, what can I do?. I have compassion for animals and I do not deserve this treatment. Please, only serious replies only....I dont need any more jokes or anyone telling me to "chill out" or "ignore it.". Thank you.

Tell HR. Chances are you aren't the only one who has had a problem with this TL. The ETL-HR is supposed to take care of these types of issues so give them a chance to solve the problem. If nothing gets solved, then call the hotline.

 

[redeye58]

Start setting your phone to record whenever he's around.
When you get a recording of him spewing his vile crap, tell him 'Thanks for the memories.' & play it for HR.
Even if you're in a state that doesn't allow recorded convo without consent, getting it heard by others will put him on notice.
He's creating a hostile work environment & you gave him the keys to pushing your buttons so I'd advise you not to share such info going forward.
He's pretty much proven he doesn't give a sh*t about your feelings or concerns.

 

[HardlinesGuy]

Start setting your phone to record whenever he's around.
When you get a recording of him spewing his vile crap, tell him 'Thanks for the memories.' & play it for HR.
Even if you're in a state that doesn't allow recorded convo without consent, getting it heard by others will put him on notice.
He's creating a hostile work environment & you gave him the keys to pushing your buttons so I'd advise you not to share such info going forward.
He's pretty much proven he doesn't give a sh*t about your feelings or concerns.

As much as I would love to say do it, DO NOT record it. I could be wrong but I’m like 90% sure Target has a stirct policy against unauthorized audio and video recording of other TM’s. I’ll double check the policy and edit this post appropriately.

 

[Kartman]

 

[redeye58]

I’m like 90% sure Target has a stirct policy against unauthorized audio and video recording of other TM’s.

Pretty sure Target has a strict policy against harassment & creating a hostile work place too but OP can turn the tables on him by letting him know that she's recording him whenever he starts his crap.
If she doesn't play it for HR, she can at least record him enough that he'll know what it's like to be harassed.

 

[pinkp2ie]

^I honestly think it's more risky to record people without them knowing...

 

[HRLady]

Even if you're in a state that doesn't allow recorded convo without consent, getting it heard by others will put him on notice.

Not sure if it is worth it to secretly record someone in states with two-party consent laws. In my state, recording someone without permission can lead to "a fine of up to $2,500 and/or imprisonment for up to a year. In addition, the violator may be subject to civil liability in the amount of $3,000 or three times the amount of any actual damages." (quoted from website) 😱😵

Even if OP manages to avoid prison, TMs don't make enough money to pay for any fines. 🙁

 

[Aredhel]

With Spot’s surveillance you may be able to document on store equipment. AP?’ In the mean time this person is antagonizing you for a reaction. Try not to feed the beast and be aware of others around you that will corroborate your complaint. The sad fact is there are some shit people in the world and often what shuts that down is being non reactive.

 

[Planosss]

has anyone else heard him say these things?

 

[Planosss]

The OP needs someone to corroborate the incident and then report it.
The TL saying he’s going to “kill the pussy” might be a way of coming on to her. #metoo?

 

[can't touch this]

lowkey record him so you can write down everything he says later, but don't tell a soul about it or you'll get shrekt by Spot and possibly the man

 

[IWishIKnew]

Not a hostile work environment, because that specifically applies to discrimination, and I'm pretty sure cats aren't protected by discrimination laws, but that's some fucked up shit.

If you can hear him 6 aisles away, so can other TMs and guests. Ask around to see if other TMs will corroborate, but any ETL worth their salt will take this kind of thing seriously. If it were me, it'd set off all kinds of alarm bells as animal torture is pretty classic anti-social behavior that can escalate and I'd be looking for ways to get him out as soon as I could.

 

[Dog]

You honestly don’t even need to record it, your HR probably won’t just assume you’re making the whole thing up. I’m sure other TMs would back you up, as that’s pretty twisted behavior.

 

[Planosss]

I would listen to @Dog , he appears to be from the animal kingdom, hence spokesman.

 

[WestLoggy]

Not only can this potentially be considered harassment but more seriously, it could be a warning sign of an unstable personality. As others have said - go to your HR ETL. Go to your STL. And yes, back that up with calling the hotline (this will ensure it is documented). This can potentially be quite serious. We have a rough enough time babysitting guests - you should not have to deal with this behavior at all. Period.

Make sure you document each and every time (date, time, location, what was said, potential witnesses) this happens. You need to be able to provide information to make a case.

There are crass, sh*tty people out there. There are also deranged individuals masquerading as crass, sh*tty people. Just my two cents.

 

[WalksforMiles]

Isn’t killing animals a pretty good indication someone is a homicidal psychopath?

 

[GoodyNN]

I do believe I've read that it's a warning sign. I've been wondering if and who outside the store this could be reported to.

 

[busyzoningtoys]

Tell the ETL HR and STL everything. Also, tell them that he said he’s going to kill the pussy to you in private and that you feel like it was a rape threat. He’ll be out quickly.

 

[Yetive]

I would involve AP as well, as this is threatening behavior.

 

[Logo]

Not a hostile work environment, because that specifically applies to discrimination, and I'm pretty sure cats aren't protected by discrimination laws, but that's some fucked up shit

If you can hear him 6 aisles away, so can other TMs and guests. Ask around to see if other TMs will corroborate, but any ETL worth their salt will take this kind of thing seriously. If it were me, it'd set off all kinds of alarm bells as animal torture is pretty classic anti-social behavior that can escalate and I'd be looking for ways to get him out as soon as I could.

Definitely a hostile work environment as the team expressed to the TM that their behavior made them feel uncomfortable. Their kitty comments dont have to be made to the offended TM just in a vicinity of.

 

[redeye58]

Not a hostile work environment, because that specifically applies to discrimination, and I'm pretty sure cats aren't protected by discrimination laws, but that's some fucked up shit.

Federal laws enforced by EEOC are related to discrimination but a hostile work environment doesn't have to include discrimination:
Hostile Work Environment defined and explained with examples - https://legaldictionary.net/hostile-work-environment/

 

[IWishIKnew]

No, I suppose I should rephrase, that hostile work environment isn't just about making someone uncomfortable, it's about harassing or otherwise making someone uncomfortable, specifically related to a class protected by anti-discrimination statues. I'm not sure where legaldictionary.net gets its information, but it's not particularly accurate. It states further down the page that federal labor laws relate to discrimination, then go back to stating their erroneously broad definition of "making someone uncomfortable" which is not part of the definition. Wikipedia has a better explanation of the US labor laws around hostile work environment: Hostile work environment - Wikipedia - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hostile_work_environment

In United States labor law, a hostile work environment exists when one's behavior within a workplace creates an environment that is difficult or uncomfortable for another person to work in due to discrimination

So, being an asshole, making someone uncomfortable, etc. doesn't constitute a hostile work environment as far as federal labor laws are concerned, unless you're being an asshole specifically because of someone's race, gender, disability, religion or (where protected) pregnancy status, sexual orientation, etc.

Pedantic, perhaps, but HR likely knows what an actual hostile work environment consists of, and you make yourself look like an idiot throwing around a term that doesn't actually apply.

A case could possibly be made, if the TL is male and OP is female that there is some sort of gender-based harassment going on, but I can't say that for sure from here.

It doesn't matter, though, as OP shouldn't need to throw around any special terms, as his behavior is alarming and threatening enough that HR should be investigating and dealing with the guy, regardless.

 

[can't touch this]

Tell the ETL HR and STL everything. Also, tell them that he said he’s going to kill the pussy to you in private and that you feel like it was a rape threat. He’ll be out quickly.

the R-word will for sure get him fired, out of a cannon, at escape velocity