No team work in work places

[Punterperson1971]

Been on my mind for a while regarding where I work but has anyone else noticed that nowadays there’s no teamwork or helping each other out in work places,does my head whether it’s from management down to the staff it seems everyone is out for themselves and stitch people up just to get further ahead or avoid trouble.

[Blackpool Rock]

I've been working for 34 years and not noticed any change, never had any teamwork or cooperation in the places i've worked.

I could tell you some horror stories from over the years, not only a lack of teamwork but orchestrated efforts to go out of their way to fuck things up so it's impossible for you to do your job 
When the shit hits the fan and you report the problems you are facing management then not only fail to sort it out but turn on you 

I reached a point a few years back when I stopped giving a fuck, I figure i'm not going any further up the chain so just seeing my time out until early retirement next year still mid 50's
What it did do is focus my mind on investing as much as I could to provide me with financial security so I can stick two fingers up and get on with enjoying my life in early retirement.

My advise is to get yourself an exit plan and as you inch towards it the warm glow increases that the shit you put up with won't be forever   

[Punterperson1971]

I've been working for 34 years and not noticed any change, never had any teamwork or cooperation in the places i've worked.

I could tell you some horror stories from over the years, not only a lack of teamwork but orchestrated efforts to go out of their way to fuck things up so it's impossible for you to do your job 
When the shit hits the fan and you report the problems you are facing management then not only fail to sort it out but turn on you 

I reached a point a few years back when I stopped giving a fuck, I figure i'm not going any further up the chain so just seeing my time out until early retirement next year still mid 50's
What it did do is focus my mind on investing as much as I could to provide me with financial security so I can stick two fingers up and get on with enjoying my life in early retirement.

My advise is to get yourself an exit plan and as you inch towards it the warm glow increases that the shit you put up with won't be forever 

Good point thanks mate

[ulstersubbie]

I've been working for 34 years and not noticed any change, never had any teamwork or cooperation in the places i've worked.

I could tell you some horror stories from over the years, not only a lack of teamwork but orchestrated efforts to go out of their way to fuck things up so it's impossible for you to do your job 
When the shit hits the fan and you report the problems you are facing management then not only fail to sort it out but turn on you 

I reached a point a few years back when I stopped giving a fuck, I figure i'm not going any further up the chain so just seeing my time out until early retirement next year still mid 50's
What it did do is focus my mind on investing as much as I could to provide me with financial security so I can stick two fingers up and get on with enjoying my life in early retirement.

My advise is to get yourself an exit plan and as you inch towards it the warm glow increases that the shit you put up with won't be forever 

Great post BR, my thoughts exactly. I could count on one hand the number of fellow employees I genuinely liked or got on with over the years, you just become immune to the shit as the years go by.

[Watts.E.Dunn]

This is the main reason why i started my Own firm 30 years ago and now past retirment age - still enjoy working:)...

As odd as it might  seem;!..

[Watts.E.Dunn]

Been on my mind for a while regarding where I work but has anyone else noticed that nowadays there’s no teamwork or helping each other out in work places,does my head whether it’s from management down to the staff it seems everyone is out for themselves and stitch people up just to get further ahead or avoid trouble.

Best in class, i.e. fucking useless, BRITISH Managment;!....

[shed]

Companies have spent fortunes on hiring outside consultants to provide training and development on teamwork over the years. With little or no improvement. It's dog versus dog in the workplace. From shop floor through to the top management. Always has been and always will be. Work is a very competitive environment and the only way to survive is to perform in your job. Or outperform your colleagues. It can be a battlefield. If one understands that common culture and knows how to play the game and just accept it, then you can survive. Sad state of affairs really

[petermisc]

I think it depends on the type of work environment you work in.  I have mostly worked in places where it needs the team to pull together to achieve the goal.  Any fucker out for themselves soon gets seen through by the others.  In the few places I have worked that have not needed teamwork, you generally need support from your peers at some time or another. Again, anyone who takes without ever giving soon gets seen through, and treated accordingly.  As the saying goes, you get out what you put in.

[Thephoenix]

I guess it largely depends on your profession.
I spent most of my working life in a profession that completely relied on effective team work often in emergency life or death situations.
Having said that some teams were better than others.

[PepeMAGA]

Dunno, all my team get on fine and work well as a team

[Kev40ish]

I tend to find that the people who tend to complain are generally not team players or shit at their job and use it as an excuse for their own failings.
Yes there are shit Managers but they get found out at the end..
If your good you will be recognised or change to find something that does work for you..

[Punterperson1971]

I tend to find that the people who tend to complain are generally not team players or shit at their job and use it as an excuse for their own failings.
Yes there are shit Managers but they get found out at the end..
If your good you will be recognised or change to find something that does work for you..

I suppose it depends on the job I can see it happening before my eyes and these are managers but then they are also young kids given responsibility that maybe they can’t handle or can’t be bothered

[sparkus]

I've definitely noticed a degradation in what you might call a team spirit or work ethic not just during the pandemic with WFH but in the run up to on account of top tier management cutting costs by outsourcing functions to the lowest bidder with no incentives for anyone to cooperate or think beyond not even their next paycheque but next job interview to get the fuck out.

WFH also destroyed the essential post work bonding process whereby you not only repaired the damage caused by frustrations at work and found a common enemy in certain bosses but also formed alliances across teams.  It's not replicable on MS Teams.  Not only that but work social functions for whole departments gone, the attempts at things like annual awards online with drinks in your kitchen quite lame as well.

Even then, in the past few years I've worked with younger people who don't drink or more ambitious types who frown on others socialising after work.  I didn't last long at one place as when I asked about that I was told "it's not that kind of company".

[sir wanksalot]

I tend to find that the people who tend to complain are generally not team players or shit at their job and use it as an excuse for their own failings.
Yes there are shit Managers but they get found out at the end..
If your good you will be recognised or change to find something that does work for you..

Not in my experience.

Shit managers have shit supervisors in turn and on and on it goes.

One thing I have observed is managers avoid confrontation like the plague. I have worked in several places where 1 or 2 employees were taking the piss but instead of dealing with them directly the company would either send a memo out to EVERYBODY or call everyone into a meeting and talk about the problem as if it's a generic one.

[RedKettle]

One thing I have observed is managers avoid confrontation like the plague. I have worked in several places where 1 or 2 employees were taking the piss but instead of dealing with them directly the company would either send a memo out to EVERYBODY or call everyone into a meeting and talk about the problem as if it's a generic one.

Yep one of my pet hates which I tried very hard to avoid when I got into a management position. But you see it all the time from very senior people.

[Blackpool Rock]

I tend to find that the people who tend to complain are generally not team players or shit at their job and use it as an excuse for their own failings.
Yes there are shit Managers but they get found out at the end..
If your good you will be recognised or change to find something that does work for you..

Sorry Kev but if you'd walked in my shoes you would appreciate how crap the workplace can sometimes be, i've subsequently had a conversation with someone about what went on and they described it as a "Toxic" work environment.

Just to give you a flavour and bearing in mind that this was the late 80's and I went in as a keen; fresh faced 19 year old but hey -
1st day on the job and my approach was "I'm going to get on with everyone", I get taken into the warehouse as part of my job needs me to do tasks in this area and crucially I need their help moving pallets around etc.
A group of 10-12 warehouse men are standing around chatting and I get introduced "This is Joe Blogs" he's the new team member, I smile and say "Good morning" only to have one reply "Who the fuck are you looking at cunt", nice introduction 

Basically it never changed, everyone knew what a shambles these fuckers were but just stuck their heads in the sand, they could have operated with half the staff but would stand around doing little or nothing all day then stop on for a couple of hours overtime to do what they should have done during the day.
Something urgent would arrive, everyone knew it was urgent, they would process it on the system so it looked like they had done their bit as it was registered on the computer but it would then be hidden or blocked in or put high in the racking so that I couldn't access it to do what i needed to do.
If you asked for the pallet to be lifted down then suddenly it wasn't the job of a warehouse man to move pallets or it wasn't the right type of stock they only did finished products now raw materials 
Asking a group of 3 or 4 together would result in 1 suddenly announcing they were going on their break; another didn't move those type of goods; another suddenly had something else they needed to do and the 4th would just tell you to F off; turn and walk away 

When I wasn't then able to do my part it would be questioned as to why I hadn't done it, the explanation was never accepted and it just came back that it was "My job" to make sure they did what they needed to do.
The supervisors and Managers actively encouraged this behaviour and the Directors claimed it didn't happen

This was a daily occurrence, eventually I left and heard the person who took my job had the same problems

[Punterperson1971]

Sounds a bit like my place of work BR a lot of that is very relatable and just read RK post and same there too.
My place they giving people jobs that managers should be doing and they end up on a power trip it goes to their head

[sparkus]

Not in my experience.

Shit managers have shit supervisors in turn and on and on it goes.

One thing I have observed is managers avoid confrontation like the plague. I have worked in several places where 1 or 2 employees were taking the piss but instead of dealing with them directly the company would either send a memo out to EVERYBODY or call everyone into a meeting and talk about the problem as if it's a generic one.

Couldn't agree more.  The most pernicious thing which I find permeates all businesses and corporate structures and ultimately kills team spirit and undermines profit in the long run is the manager who defends a bad hiring decision of his to the hilt, even to the point of shedding better staff to keep them.

I've also been in an 'underperforming' team where it was one individual responsible for the drag and as a consequence three teams were broken up and moulded into two with no logic just put them out of harm's way, even though it was massive disruptive.  All because manager from Country X had hired some idiot from Country X and wouldn't fire them.

[Moby Dick]

or put high in the racking so that I couldn't access it to do what i needed to do.

I’m surprised they didn’t tell you to get a long stand from stores to help get that down. 

[Thephoenix]

Teamwork requirements were rather different in my ex profession.
We used to call it functional leadership, and would depend on the situation at the time.
We thought of it as either task needs, team needs or individual needs
In an emergency situation, the task in hand obviously has priority and so effective leadership and teamwork is essential.
That autocratic approach is referred to as command and control and is the only way the incident can be tackled safely and effectively.
The other needs of the team and the individual could be achieved in a more democratic manner when on standby.

[mr.bluesky]

I always found the shop floor workers worked well as a team,  it was just the managers who were as much use as a chocolate teapot

[Moby Dick]

I always found the shop floor workers worked well as a team,  it was just the managers who were as much use as a chocolate teapot

Yeah too busy brown nosing the MD.

[Doormatt]

Fuckin' hate arse covering emails. What happened to talking and trust?

[sparkus]

I’m surprised they didn’t tell you to get a long stand from stores to help get that down. 

Or tartan paint, though it's a painful schlep back when you're asked 'What clan?'

[petermisc]

In my fairly lowly managerial position, I always regarded my main role as making sure that my staff had what they needed to do the job (materials, training, etc).  Unfortunately that was not the view of senior management, who regarded my main role as providing senior management with what they needed.  Far more important that some bit of paperwork be filed on time, than I spend time explaining to one of my staff how to do a task.  And requests for training, tools, etc almost invariably fell on deaf ears.

They kept sending me on management training courses, and most of it was total bollocks.  Only the last one made any sense to me, when the instructor started off by saying "you can't motivate people to do a job, but you can quickly demotivate them."

That and the "If someone is useless at their job, it is better to sack them quickly and pay the compo, than keep enduring the disruption they will cause".  Our HR had a fit when I suggested that!

Again, my view that the HR department was there to serve me, was not one that HR seemed to believe in!  Apparently, we were there to do whatever the HR department wanted, and at higher priority than any work for customers.

And that is I think the problem with management in the UK.  The junior management have their hands tied behind their backs by senior management who do not back them up, and HR departments who insist that their interminable procedures are followed to the letter.

[DastardlyDick]

Or tartan paint, though it's a painful schlep back when you're asked 'What clan?'

Tin of elbow grease was a bit of a favourite where I used to work, closely follow by sky hooks 😂

I remember when management used to whinge about Unions and their "restrictive practices". Thatcher came along and emasculated the Unions which wasn't a totally bad thing. Now, many years down the line, and management bring in restrictive practices that Union Leaders would have wanked themselves into a stupor for!!!

[Punterperson1971]

HR are rubbish dont trust them and most certainly in it with the management at least that is my view of my work place

[petermisc]

Fuckin' hate arse covering emails. What happened to talking and trust?

Our large open-plan office used to have a couple of meeting rooms where you could take someone for a "quiet chat".  Unfortunately they were commandeered as extra office space for more senior managers. 

So how were we to have a confidential chat with someone, without the rest of the office over-hearing?  We were told we could book a meeting room if we needed it, but it would be through an outsourcing office-space supplier, who required paying (so we had to find the money from our already limited budget), we would need to give sufficient notice for all the paperwork to be processed, and it would be in another office across town. 

[County Militia]

Been on my mind for a while regarding where I work but has anyone else noticed that nowadays there’s no teamwork or helping each other out in work places,does my head whether it’s from management down to the staff it seems everyone is out for themselves and stitch people up just to get further ahead or avoid trouble.

Learn to pick your jobs better fella.

[Punterperson1971]

Learn to pick your jobs better fella.

Easier said than done mate and don’t think it’s just where I work speaking to other people it’s same in some places too

[jlike]

In my fairly lowly managerial position, I always regarded my main role as making sure that my staff had what they needed to do the job (materials, training, etc).  Unfortunately that was not the view of senior management, who regarded my main role as providing senior management with what they needed.  Far more important that some bit of paperwork be filed on time, than I spend time explaining to one of my staff how to do a task.  And requests for training, tools, etc almost invariably fell on deaf ears.

They kept sending me on management training courses, and most of it was total bollocks.  Only the last one made any sense to me, when the instructor started off by saying "you can't motivate people to do a job, but you can quickly demotivate them."

That and the "If someone is useless at their job, it is better to sack them quickly and pay the compo, than keep enduring the disruption they will cause".  Our HR had a fit when I suggested that!

Again, my view that the HR department was there to serve me, was not one that HR seemed to believe in!  Apparently, we were there to do whatever the HR department wanted, and at higher priority than any work for customers.

And that is I think the problem with management in the UK.  The junior management have their hands tied behind their backs by senior management who do not back them up, and HR departments who insist that their interminable procedures are followed to the letter.

Totally agree with this, so true of where I worked before retiring. If you had an under performing team member you had to be very careful how you dealt with it otherwise it was you that finished up in front of HR and your manager getting a bollocking ( sorry, warning) and being sent off on reprograming ( sorry training) courses. The main thing I learnt on these courses was that it was not just me dealing with problem team members, it was everyone else in the room as well.

[sir wanksalot]

In my fairly lowly managerial position, I always regarded my main role as making sure that my staff had what they needed to do the job (materials, training, etc).  Unfortunately that was not the view of senior management, who regarded my main role as providing senior management with what they needed.  Far more important that some bit of paperwork be filed on time, than I spend time explaining to one of my staff how to do a task.  And requests for training, tools, etc almost invariably fell on deaf ears.

They kept sending me on management training courses, and most of it was total bollocks.  Only the last one made any sense to me, when the instructor started off by saying "you can't motivate people to do a job, but you can quickly demotivate them."

That and the "If someone is useless at their job, it is better to sack them quickly and pay the compo, than keep enduring the disruption they will cause".  Our HR had a fit when I suggested that!

Again, my view that the HR department was there to serve me, was not one that HR seemed to believe in!  Apparently, we were there to do whatever the HR department wanted, and at higher priority than any work for customers.

And that is I think the problem with management in the UK.  The junior management have their hands tied behind their backs by senior management who do not back them up, and HR departments who insist that their interminable procedures are followed to the letter.

I think you may have a point there.

There are so many employment laws that if a company takes one wrong step in the dismissal procedure then the employee could have a very good case against them

[RedKettle]

In my fairly lowly managerial position, I always regarded my main role as making sure that my staff had what they needed to do the job (materials, training, etc).  Unfortunately that was not the view of senior management, who regarded my main role as providing senior management with what they needed.  Far more important that some bit of paperwork be filed on time, than I spend time explaining to one of my staff how to do a task.  And requests for training, tools, etc almost invariably fell on deaf ears.

They kept sending me on management training courses, and most of it was total bollocks.  Only the last one made any sense to me, when the instructor started off by saying "you can't motivate people to do a job, but you can quickly demotivate them."

That and the "If someone is useless at their job, it is better to sack them quickly and pay the compo, than keep enduring the disruption they will cause".  Our HR had a fit when I suggested that!

Again, my view that the HR department was there to serve me, was not one that HR seemed to believe in!  Apparently, we were there to do whatever the HR department wanted, and at higher priority than any work for customers.

And that is I think the problem with management in the UK.  The junior management have their hands tied behind their backs by senior management who do not back them up, and HR departments who insist that their interminable procedures are followed to the letter.

So in general I agree with your view of HR. However sometimes you find somebody who believes their HR role is to actually help you achieve your objectives and they are worth their weight in gold. Especially if they take staff issues off your desk rather than putting more work on your back.

[Blackpool Rock]

Fuckin' hate arse covering emails. What happened to talking and trust?

Unfortunately that's exactly why you now need to send out a "CYA" e-mail and when you're likely to get shafted every step of the way it's unfortunately crucial.
There are regular discussions in management meetings about "Too many" e-mails being sent and can't people pick up the phone or go and actually speak to someone 
In my experience it's the same people that complain about too many e-mails that are the same people who you need to make sure your arse is covered off by an e-mail.
With the best will in the world two different peoples recollection of an event / conversation / what was discussed and agreed 6 months ago will differ especially if something has gone wrong and the shit is hitting the fan 
Those same people then suddenly ask for "Proof", have you got an e-mail detailing this  When you point out it was discussed face to face they suddenly have selective memory, cunts 

[King Nuts]

Been on my mind for a while regarding where I work but has anyone else noticed that nowadays there’s no teamwork or helping each other out in work places,does my head whether it’s from management down to the staff it seems everyone is out for themselves and stitch people up just to get further ahead or avoid trouble.

You may well be right, and I'd say that the pandemic and people's very different responses to it haven't helped and have created divisions where none existed before.

I own and run by own business, and with only 8 employees right now, across two different offices, I have a different strategy to most. For a start, I don't micro-manage. I trust my staff to get on with the job at hand. In their employment contracts, I don't specify any working hours. They work the hours they need to in order to get the job done.

They get 'x' amount of holiday per year, but I've never actually bothered to keep a holiday diary because I know none of them take the piss.

It's worked well, for the best part of 20 years now.