My department is fairly small-there are only 10 of us and our boss is pretty easygoing. However, everyone in our department and in the larger company has voiced disgust with one of the women in my dept. "Estelle" is a very large woman who wears copious amounts of perfume to cover up the fact, that well she doesn't wash her butt. Seriously, you smell her before you see her. The perfume wafts about 20 feet ahead of her and then when she walks by your desk, you get a whiff of funk and I don't mean the funk that emanates from a Pfunk bass line. I mean, it smells like she has caked up poop that she has not washed away. This smell has gotten much worse and my boss' boss told her she had to tell "Estelle" that she had to resolve her personal hygiene issues. Well, my boss has passed the buck to me, since she will be attending a memorial service tomorrow and will be out of the office Friday as well. I have to do this by Monday. What do I say?

She might have a medical problem and cannot help it.

I know, but that is not the concern of the higher ups.

I know revealing medical history is a touchy subject, but if it is a medical condition with her, I almost feel like maybe she should've divulged that to management, even if she waited until after hiring. Now everyone else is placed in the awkward position of wanting to say something, but not knowing how to or if it is even appropriate to do so. And of course there's the dealing with the funk.

Anyhow...good luck with that.

Don't be putting a bar of soap or body wash on her desk

That would be cruel

Check some HR websites for help...

HR STUFF

talk to your legal dept. (if you have one)

and then break it down for "Estelle"

(and if it is a "medical condition" then she needs to get that shit checked because it just sounds unsanitary and it could be a health concern for others.)

scriptgirl said:

My department is fairly small-there are only 10 of us and our boss is pretty easygoing. However, everyone in our department and in the larger company has voiced disgust with one of the women in my dept. "Estelle" is a very large woman who wears copious amounts of perfume to cover up the fact, that well she doesn't wash her butt. Seriously, you smell her before you see her. The perfume wafts about 20 feet ahead of her and then when she walks by your desk, you get a whiff of funk and I don't mean the funk that emanates from a Pfunk bass line. I mean, it smells like she has caked up poop that she has not washed away. This smell has gotten much worse and my boss' boss told her she had to tell "Estelle" that she had to resolve her personal hygiene issues. Well, my boss has passed the buck to me, since she will be attending a memorial service tomorrow and will be out of the office Friday as well. I have to do this by Monday. What do I say?

I just asked a Human Resource Professional about your issue....he said that you need to sit down with her and say that you need to talk to her about a delicate issue, and bring up her personal hygiene issue. You need to explain that there has been complaints concerning the amount of perfume she wears to cover up the body odor and the body odor itself. You need to explain to her in a kind way that she needs to address these issues.

He said that if by possible she brings up that she is on medication that is causing the issues or it's because of her weight, that she needs to either prove that she is on this medication with documentation from a Dr. or get any medical issues resolved that might be causing the issue.

If you have a Human Resource Dept in your company it might be a good idea to talk to them as well before you talk to her. You wouldn't want to do or say something that could be used against you.

Wish you the best of luck on this delicate matter.

You could leave this on her desk. Leave one for everyone in fact. Then there's no discrimination.

Thank you SOOO much! This has been weighing heavily on me.

scriptgirl said:

Thank you SOOO much! This has been weighing heavily on me.

One more thing he said you should have a female witness ( not a male, so this woman is more comfortable) with you when you speak to her, like a female in your HR Dept. that way you have a witness to what is said so you cover your tracks as well. An HR issue could come up if you don't handle this delicate matter in a way that doesn't cause this woman to become hostile.

Well, that is a problem. Too many catty women at my job. I can't think of one who wouldn't be snickering or making the wrong kind of face while I talk to "Estelle".

that would b a very hard n awkward thing to have to do..... u just need to b tactful, diplomatic and as nice as possible i guess..... esp if she starts to cry!!!!

Good Luck, but don't forget the peg

scriptgirl said:

Well, that is a problem. Too many catty women at my job. I can't think of one who wouldn't be snickering or making the wrong kind of face while I talk to "Estelle".

Do you have someone in the HR dept? Acting like that could cause them a huge issue if this woman wanted to take it to the HR dept. These woman must be professional at all cost!

Technically, we don't have an HR. I work in entertainment and it's kind of unorthodox. I think I will have to ask my boss's boss to sit in with me.

scriptgirl said:

Technically, we don't have an HR. I work in entertainment and it's kind of unorthodox. I think I will have to ask my boss's boss to sit in with me.

That sounds like a good idea. I wish you tons of luck!

BklynBabe said:

ooh I feel ya! I had one employed as a front desk person. Rank smell and personality. Breath hummin', ass, pits and cooch odor....and the type to get all in your personal area. I bought some febreze and some mints for all "front staff" to use. Hinted. Said it direct. Even clients were complaining. HR people on the opposite coast knew about this chick. Why did she try to hug on me after we fired her? I was like...I don't do hugs.... Had another job, same issue with people and severe breath odor. Screw mints, binaca blast anyone? Manager had to talk to one woman several times before she got it straight. Why does it always have to be the folk who love to talk and be in your face? My nephew got the kickin' hot breath too. I try to tell him. He's a mouf-breather....ewww. Just sits, gets unfocused, and lets his mouth hang open. Combined with neglectful hygiene because of the adhd....Hell I got electric toothbrush, grown folk heavy duty toothpaste, and mouthwash. At least his teeth look good! ANYWAY....some folk just stink. just try to be nice. You don't want me to tell it lol.

@ the first half of your sig.

MoniGram said:

scriptgirl said:

My department is fairly small-there are only 10 of us and our boss is pretty easygoing. However, everyone in our department and in the larger company has voiced disgust with one of the women in my dept. "Estelle" is a very large woman who wears copious amounts of perfume to cover up the fact, that well she doesn't wash her butt. Seriously, you smell her before you see her. The perfume wafts about 20 feet ahead of her and then when she walks by your desk, you get a whiff of funk and I don't mean the funk that emanates from a Pfunk bass line. I mean, it smells like she has caked up poop that she has not washed away. This smell has gotten much worse and my boss' boss told her she had to tell "Estelle" that she had to resolve her personal hygiene issues. Well, my boss has passed the buck to me, since she will be attending a memorial service tomorrow and will be out of the office Friday as well. I have to do this by Monday. What do I say?

I just asked a Human Resource Professional about your issue....he said that you need to sit down with her and say that you need to talk to her about a delicate issue, and bring up her personal hygiene issue. You need to explain that there has been complaints concerning the amount of perfume she wears to cover up the body odor and the body odor itself. You need to explain to her in a kind way that she needs to address these issues.

He said that if by possible she brings up that she is on medication that is causing the issues or it's because of her weight, that she needs to either prove that she is on this medication with documentation from a Dr. or get any medical issues resolved that might be causing the issue.

If you have a Human Resource Dept in your company it might be a good idea to talk to them as well before you talk to her. You wouldn't want to do or say something that could be used against you.

Wish you the best of luck on this delicate matter.

Ron has had to deal with this on a few occassions in his line of work. It is extremely delicate. We all like to jump to conclusions, and run at the mouth, but this is not to be taken lightly. It could indeed be an issue of an individual who is just plain nas-tay, but it could be a very legitimate issue that she just does not know how to handle properly.

Good luck.

RenHoek said:

Check some HR websites for help...

HR STUFF

talk to your legal dept. (if you have one)

and then break it down for "Estelle"

(and if it is a "medical condition" then she needs to get that shit checked because it just sounds unsanitary and it could be a health concern for others.)

HR and Legal first is exactly what I was going to say. I'm not sure it's your place to be saying such things if you have either of those at your disposal. Beyond that, there's nothing you can say that's going to make it easy. If she doesn't know, it will probably hurt her feelings and be uncomfortable. If she does know it will just be uncomfortable. I think, after sitting here thinking about it for a moment, that if you haven't already gotten this instruction from your boss in writing that you should do so before you speak to her. And if your boss asks why you are well within your rights to tell him straight up that you are protecting yourself (you may want to do that in writing, too).

[Edited 1/12/11 22:25pm]

MoniGram said:

scriptgirl said:

My department is fairly small-there are only 10 of us and our boss is pretty easygoing. However, everyone in our department and in the larger company has voiced disgust with one of the women in my dept. "Estelle" is a very large woman who wears copious amounts of perfume to cover up the fact, that well she doesn't wash her butt. Seriously, you smell her before you see her. The perfume wafts about 20 feet ahead of her and then when she walks by your desk, you get a whiff of funk and I don't mean the funk that emanates from a Pfunk bass line. I mean, it smells like she has caked up poop that she has not washed away. This smell has gotten much worse and my boss' boss told her she had to tell "Estelle" that she had to resolve her personal hygiene issues. Well, my boss has passed the buck to me, since she will be attending a memorial service tomorrow and will be out of the office Friday as well. I have to do this by Monday. What do I say?

I just asked a Human Resource Professional about your issue....he said that you need to sit down with her and say that you need to talk to her about a delicate issue, and bring up her personal hygiene issue. You need to explain that there has been complaints concerning the amount of perfume she wears to cover up the body odor and the body odor itself. You need to explain to her in a kind way that she needs to address these issues.

He said that if by possible she brings up that she is on medication that is causing the issues or it's because of her weight, that she needs to either prove that she is on this medication with documentation from a Dr. or get any medical issues resolved that might be causing the issue.

If you have a Human Resource Dept in your company it might be a good idea to talk to them as well before you talk to her. You wouldn't want to do or say something that could be used against you.

Wish you the best of luck on this delicate matter.

Very good advice. But if her company has a good HR department they would/should be handling it themselves. I don't know what scriptgirls position in the company is, but for a boss to pass this to a boss who then passed it to her to talk about is not what I would call approaching it as a delicate matter. I'd call that passing the buck.

Not handling this sort of thing properly and professionally opens a whole legal can of worms.

luv4u said:

She might have a medical problem and cannot help it.

So? She still stinks.

JustErin said:

luv4u said:

She might have a medical problem and cannot help it.

So? She still stinks.

You bitch.

johnart said:

JustErin said:

So? She still stinks.

You bitch.

She's right. I just think the way it's being handled is suspect (legally and structurally).

Cerebus said:

johnart said:

You bitch.

She's right. I just think the way it's being handled is suspect (legally and structurally).

Oh yeah, totally. In the instances where Ron's had to deal with this sort of thing, whether the problem is legit (medical) or nasty-ass-ness it needs to be dealt with and the person, once aware (if they weren't) needs to address it.

[Edited 1/12/11 22:45pm]

FauxReal said:

You could leave this on her desk. Leave one for everyone in fact. Then there's no discrimination.

I would love to hear this album

Just have everyone put a clothespin on their nose the next time she walks in. That way, you won't have to say anything, at all.

phunkdaddy said:

FauxReal said:

You could leave this on her desk. Leave one for everyone in fact. Then there's no discrimination.

I would love to hear this album

it's his best work imho

i can't wait to hear the outcome of this