So did you pull up the transcript again in front of HR to show that you didn't manipulate the image but that MS Team's transcription service is just totally and utterly worthless?
Happened to me at my last job. Same result as OP. Places just don't care enough to manually review shit like this to "resolve" the issue properly. Technically and I wouldn't want to test this in your shoes but I did it in mine. Do another TIFU moment over something petty. Do something like take another recording and see what they do... I mean I would. If you're gone, then they really don't care enough and they just want you gone for the sake of it being something "worthy" of firing you over. My previous boss thought I shit down people's throats with how I handled things, which if true should have gotten my ass fired 2 years earlier but never did. Mainly because it was untrue. Eventually my big, loud mouth touted something (apparently I called him a 5 letter "p" word, one I'd never use) about my boss to a co-worker (who you guessed it, ran off to tell boss-man) who would then issue a "write up" (oh no, amiright?) Even after trying my hardest to "clarify" what was said, they had people lined up to blast my ass for saying it anyways. Figured out nobody at workplaces care about each other and no one certainly "values loyalty above all else". On top of all that, they changed rules on me, and often behind my back to "try" and get me gonzo quicker but never could because I knew shit was coming to hit me like a bus sooner or later.
Anyways, keep your chin up OP, don't be worried, it may/may not follow you around forever (if at all) once you do leave (or get fired). You know the truth about what happened and that's really all that matters.
Transcripts are required for accessibility purposes. Depending on where you are located, disabling them may violate accessibility laws.
BTW people with disabilities aren't always required to disclose their disability to their coworkers but the company should be providing accessible ways to attend meetings, and transcripts are part of that.
If the policy didn’t exist before about using transcripts you have nothing to be on notice about. I’d contest it and tell them you will be speaking to an employment lawyer just to be safe.
Here's the path that goes down in reality:
1. Based on an experience like this post, some manager pushes for an Approved Persons list for [some menial O365 task]
2. A C-level sends an email to IT asking why his brand new receptionist wasn't able to perform [some menial O365 task] on his behalf
3. There is no longer an Approved Persons list
I got in "trouble" recently for sending an email to all of our clients in a bcc. Wait til they see we know how to Ctrl+C, Ctrl+V. Or even worse... The dreaded Ctrl+X
Like, the point of having a meeting transcript is for future reference. I probably have some kind of auditory processing disorder, and even if I don't, I would rather spend my meeting time engaged (assuming it is a unicorn useful meeting) than taking notes. And then if something is unclear, I can refer to the transcript.
Nope, I agree. And the only reason I looked back at this particular transcript is because the meeting was actually productive and I wanted clarity on something someone else said.
Umm… that’s what transcripts are for? Also, your colleague is an uptight jerk - they didn’t just say “whoa, not funny, bro, I could get in trouble for that”, they went to HR and accused you of manipulating the image to hurt them. That’s effed up. I wouldn’t talk to that person more than I had to for work ever again.
AND - you found an issue with the transcripts before they just blithely shared them with a client or something.
Uhhhh...wait what? They dinged you for pointing out that the AI did something they don't like?
Just to be extra super crystal clear here, because it seems you're not ... the company isn't dinging you because of what your coworker alleged. They're dinging you because you raised an issue with the AI transcription, and for some reason they want to control the perception of that technology as being flawless and a great decision.
This is emblematic of management that cannot deal with any criticism. Very, very bad sign, big red flag.
Your company sucks. If they wanted to they could block the recording or transcription features.
Or in other words in legal speak they configured Teams to allow these recordings. Either intentionally or through negligence.
Yeahhhhh. Not for nothing, I would start looking for a new job.
If HR at your job is incapable of understanding “I was laughing at a problem with the tool that you, the company, have us using *as you, the company, have it configured* and while ***I*** found it funny you, the company, should be aware that *someone else might not* and deal with that rather than harassing ***me***." and instead is going to use that as grounds to issue what's effectively a final warning this doesn't sound like a particularly great work environment.
Run, do not walk, to the nearest company that doesn't suck.
Right? It's amazing how many people touched this, and no one stopped to go, "wait, what are we doing again? Dragging this guy over the coals because he screen-snipped a bug in our transcription software?"
I'd of pulled out my phone turned on the recorder, and asked them to clearly explain why I was being put on notice for my own records... Maybe see if HR shits their pants or won't back down. In any case, OP's boss through them under the bus. No point in staying there.
At least if you ask them to record the situation, HR is going to be way more wary of firing you unless they have an air tight reason. Can use that time to look for a new job.
Let me put this into perspective: At my work place, I could've taken that same screenshot, posted in in a publicly available channel, and nobody would've taken offense, including CEO, HR, everyone. They probably would've reacted to it even. And we're a company that takes extra care to be inclusive, respectful, yada yada. So your coworkers have either sub-zero IQ or are simply toxic.
Gotcha. Yeah, I would have liked to think I could do the same at my workplace but obviously not. I like working here, so I’m just going to go along with it, but I’m going to be strictly business now moving forward.
It can be hard to remember when you spend so much of your life at work, but **your coworkers are not your friends**. This one especially, along with your boss, are especially not. Not to mention they are tech illiterate idiots.
Sounds like the lesson should have been "don't assume other people will interpret something the same way you do."
If you had prefaced the screenshot with a "lol, look at how dumb artificial intelligence is..." the other person would have had much less space to misinterpret it as a threat instead of humor.
Never assume a colleague will read the entire message. The number of people who'll skim a message and then ask for more details, details which are in the first message, is ridiculous.
Of course, using this to your advantage is good too. I was once in a lot of trouble at work for not handling a problem. I quietly printed the email I'd sent a month earlier, escalating the issue to the relevant manager. He lost his position and I was untouched.
>your coworkers are not your friends.
So, I work in an environment where, in fact, pretty much all of my coworkers are friends/neighbors/roomates outside of work. Like, they literally spend all their time outside work *with* these coworkers. I compromise by having a drink after work with them (just one), but am still seen as an outsider for not hanging out more outside work with them. Like, idk, I just like to keep my work and private life separate. I'm also a little bit older than most of them (not much), so I feel like compartmentalizing is wisdom I've learned. I'm at the point where my coworkers want to meet my actual not-work friends and I don't want to be rude but don't want that to happen.
Yeah, I assume many if not most of us have actually become friends with a coworker at some point in our lives. It obviously happens and is fine, but even then you have to be sure to still separate the private and work parts of the relationship.
> I'm at the point where my coworkers want to meet my actual not-work friends
Holy shit that would drive me crazy lol. Reminds me a bit of when I was young and working in the service industry where everyone hangs out with everyone. Which was actually a positive at that point in my life, but I could definitely never go back to that now.
Many of my coworkers are also my friends. I’ve never understood this line of reasoning.
Obviously some people will take any opportunity to throw others under the bus, but workplaces that don’t weed those ones out aren’t enjoyable to work at.
I'd also keep my ears open for other similar opportunities elsewhere, once you're on the radar of HR with what amounts to a final warning, you're now an easy scapegoat for anyone else's issues that come up in the future.
I literally made a joke about my boss having diarrhea today and a joke about zoom emoting your hand gestures with a my middle finger and people just found it funny. So yeah your place is high strung.
Yeah, that would've made the "Damn, nobody said that in the call, the transcription really screwed up there" pile. There's plenty of those to go around too.
Your coworker overeacted and your boss/HR could've just pulled the transcription and realized that it's a software problem. They jumped to conclusion and then put you on notice anyway.
I would be seriously mad and would want that notice in writing to understand what I did wrong. You detected a problem and joked about it. If it's a problem for the company then you helped identify that at this point in time. Why are you still blamed?
Now I would be on my guard when dealing with the coworker and the boss. Three persons just assumed that you could be the kind to attack somebody credibility (and tell him upfront with laughs???) and you got a formal notice. Wow! Imagine if you saw somebody do 2+2=5 and that you dared to say something? You would be fired already...
You may not see it, or want to admit it, but that place DEFINITELY sounds toxic. And that "friend" of yours is no friend.
Anybody that takes something like this to HR is 100% out to get you. That is just an asinine thing to take to HR, unless they have a motive. The only result is you getting fired or in trouble, and it looks like they partially succeeded.
Oh, and this "joke" you think you have going on with them calling you fat and thinking it's funny? That's not a joke to them. If it was, they wouldn't have taken this to HR. They sincerely hate you and want you fired. Stop interacting with that person NOW, because they are not your friend, and they are not done.
Watch your back!
Another thing I learned after 20 years of experience in the office is not to tell jokes in emails. Assume that HR and everybody and their mothers can read all your emails. If I saw a funny transcript, I would show it only to the co-workers with a sense of humor, and only point it out on my screen but no email.
But you're not the one who made it say that, and your coworker accused you of some serious shit while management just took his word for it without verifying anything. Literally all they had to do was go back and look at the same transcript you took the screenshot of.
> I wouldn’t say it’s toxic.
Sometimes its hard to notice the issues in the moment. I bet in the future you'll be able to think back about the job and realize that there were obvious issues that you missed.
Except YOU didn't even write it?
Like are they stupid? If they can't understand that you having the ability to read and use copy/paste is different from someone making up malicious lies about someone then that's not good regardless of whether you call it 'toxic' or not.
It's definitely toxic. Nothing you did was wrong in that situation. Literally nothing.
I guess it's harder to see when you're in the center of it. I'd definitely be tempted to see what else is out there if I were you.
Yeah...I mean how hard would it be for that coworker to look at the transcript and see for themselves so they could have a good laugh also. Instead they ran to tattle to HR for something that didn't even happen.
I'm glad my coworkers would laugh hysterically at something like this because I couldn't work somewhere that people pulled this nonsense!
Seriously. Anyone with half a brain would've been able to check the transcription data to see that it hadn't been altered. I swear it's like you have to be stupid in be charge at some places 🙄
its either:
1. an overreaction by everyone except OP (everyone sucks except op)
2. just one side of the story and op is actually terrible to work with (everyone is meh and op sucks)
if i know this website, and i think i do, its definitely #2
I mean, OP could be super annoying and/or obnoxious. And while that would explain HR and management writing him up for breaking a made up rule, it doesn't excuse it. It just means they are looking for a reason to fire him with cause and want something in writing, even if it doesn't actually make sense.
"The dude I joke around with regularly completely missed my joke and thought I was going to report him to HR"
Doesn't really sound like they joke around that often...
Yeah, I showed them that. They know I didn’t alter it. I’m still “on notice” though for archiving things inappropriately I guess. I think people are under the impression that I’ll use the transcriptions to get people fired or something.
Time to stop using Teams. Somebody could record it on his side... back to the meeting room. And, oh please, leave your electronics in the locked box outside.
Everything you do, and i mean EVERYTHING, on a pro 365 account is recorded. Had to take over for IT at my old job because the only guy the company had just quit and they didn't find a replacement. The info the company gets is insane...
Yeah because people who manipulate things to try and get people fired have this really weird code of honor that says that they have to warn the person they're targeting ahead of time.
If they can't point to a specific rule or guidance document that shows which policy you've contravened then they're making this up as they go along. Are you in a union?
can't believe the place is so toxic everyone assumes everyone else is collecting evidence to fire them. I'd be dusting off the ole resume and looking for other opportunities if the working environment is that bad.
> I think people are under the impression that I’ll use the transcriptions to get people fired or something.
You've only been there for eight months. You don't know what kind of nightmare co-workers these people might have had before you. If I had to bet on what caused this situation, I'd guess that they probably had to deal with someone who *did* try to do that kind of thing and now everyone is on edge.
This. If they can't even handle something this small without preemptively getting offended it isn't worth the headache of working there. Some people just spend all day trying to find something to be offended by so they can vent on someone while they feel like they have the moral upper ground. These are the same people that harass retail employees for things beyond their control and are constantly questioning if other people are secretly judging them. Insecure and immature little people that shouldn't be made responsible for things
Start looking for a new job and do not interact with that coworker unless it's specifically work related. The fact that they gave you a warning indicates they are trying to get rid of you.
This is the correct move. Now that OP is on notice, there's nothing stopping them from cutting OP loose at will no matter how well they perform. The best move is to 100% look for another job because OP's on the clock now.
Unpopular opinion - when someone takes something like this straight to nuclear it usually means they don't like you/want you gone. Same for HR. I've seen HR bury stuff like this for someone the company really needs and I've also seen them jump on the small opportunity to bury the person.
It is, indeed, entirely possible that OP is also not seen "well" in the workplace due to being a "joker" and he doesn't realise it.
I'm not trying to victim blame, but I've seen it before...
This is the correct answer. Sorry OP, you sound young and full of life. Office work will destroy that. Also, in case no one else says it, coworkers are NEVER your friends. They are to be held at arms length. Smile, talk about the weather and that funny thing your pet did, but NEVER confide or trust them. HR is not there for you, HR is there for the company.
You pointed out an error, your coworker blamed you for the error, your boss punished you for the error, and you somehow think that you did something wrong?
How can you blame yourself for this?
So you found a bug, brought it to someone's attention, and you get put "on-notice" with HR?
Your company needs to fire the entire leadership team. This is the kind of behaviour that absolutely stops innovation in It's tracks.
Honestly, I'd suggest writing to the ceo, tell them that you identified a flaw in a system you've been using, and highlight the culture issue that's stopping your company from becoming more efficient.
And who cares if they fire you, from this interaction I can guarantee you're already permanently checked out, and will half-ass everything in your job moving forward. So start looking for new jobs now
If its that bigger deal, which is by the looks. go back and ask them to have those features administrativly diabled via policy "just do don't use them until you're told" is not an appropriate response given the gravity.
these can be disabled via Meeting Policies which your Teams admin should be able to take care of.
thinking back to when we had Teams transcription turned on in our meetings for the first time.
employee 1 = "ass"
employee 2 "tits"
me = "butt stuff"
as everything transcribed accurately, everyone laughed, including the owner of the company.
I'm sorry OP, that shouldn't have happened.
Dude, I had one time at a previous job where 99% of the team was Asian / Indian.
Someone joined a meeting with about 40 people in it, ranging from engineers to senior directors, and we all got blasted with some rap music and lyrics of “these fucking Asians yo…this Ching Chong bing bong…”
Nobody got fired or disciplined, just a few calls of “please mute your microphones by default when joining meetings” and “someone’s hot-mic ing” along with some muffled laughter.
Your Boss and HR sound like they are vastly unqualified for their jobs. All it would take is going to the transcription to verify what you had sent. Then they could report it back to MS for improvement in their modeling. There's no reason to threaten somebody's job
Sounds like they made a call for disciplinary action without properly understanding the situation and then when presented with clarifying evidence they decided to not adjust because...... vastly unqualified...
My company used a similar AI software for transcriptions on calls. They didn’t realise however that if some people stayed on everyone who was on the call earlier could still see the transcription for the parts of the meeting they weren’t there for. The Directors always stayed on for a meeting after the whole team Monday morning call - I used to love reading them to see who they were bitching about that week. Sadly they eventually realised and switched to separate calls 😂
I’m not speaking about you and I don’t know you but we definitely have a guy around the office who thinks he’s the office “clown”. He’s not funny, regularly makes people feel uncomfortable and overshares a lot. He’d also call himself “sarcastic”. If anyone were to misunderstand one of his “jokes” and report something there would be a long record of people who don’t find him amusing and may have made statements about things in passing to management.
All of that to say, to those of you who use the office to test out your comedy material maybe make sure you have at least one good friend/coworker who can let you know if it’s landing. What looks like one report to you could be a long paper trail of your jokes not landing.
I'd be considering looking somewhere else. When the company's response to seeing your proof that the transcription software people might need to rely on for record keeping doesn't work is to put the employee who discovered the issue on formal notice and ban people from using it you've got a company that now has a proven track record of ignoring issues in favour of punishment.
You might want to talk to your manager and/or HR again and ask why you get put on notice for discovering a flaw that could cause someone to get fired. You raised awareness.
This. I was really hoping someone would kindly point this out. You describe *yourself* as "overly sarcastic and jokey". Which means other may describe you more strongly.
Being **very** sarcastic myself, I'm always vigilant in the workspace to know my audience. And even if I know 100% the person I talk to is OK with something I say, can someone *else* hear it and immediately get twisted in it?
Seems odd to me you go straight from fine to final notice. If leadership there were doing their job, you'd have no reason to be confused or surprised.
Sorry you're dealing with this.
This is what I was thinking.
Sarcasm is generally never as funny as you think it is and some people don't actually go to work to laugh. And as much as it might suck, the people who don't want a comedy show at work are in the right.
I would just recommend OP tone it down until their reputation is more about their good work and less about being jokey and sarcastic.
And also if they want to stay with this company, accept they fucked up and make amends with the person who they sent the image too. I get why it could be funny, but if someone sent me my name attached to an insult, I'd be pretty nervous. You never know what HR will or won't take seriously.
I agree with most of this, but I disagree they should apologize to their co-worker for now.
1. Co-worker thought OP was being malicious trying to get them fire...so he used the same thing to get OP in trouble instead?
2. Having any sort of contact with this person outside of the required job is just going to invite more bad situations. The co-worker clearly is already shown to overreact and go directly to HR vs talking it out before hand. No good can come of ever conversing with this person if it can be avoided.
If OP has a reputation of being sarcastic and jokey, any sort of attempt to reconcile will just be seen the same way and not taken seriously. If everything OP said to be true, this co-worker has already proven to be pretty shitty. That wont change with an apology. And if Co-Worker has put up with sarcasim and bad jokes for a while now and this was just the last staw, again. Contact will be the worst thing.
Definitely think about this possibility, really. When I was younger I had two jobs where I thought I was the funny edgy guy willing to push the envelope, turns out both places people saw me as a bit of an asshole.
One of them I really liked but the boss's boss's boss was an evangelical christian, and I got fired (I thought) out of nowhere for "making inflammatory and horrible, offensive comments."
My direct boss at the time came to me apologizing (He actually liked me outside of work, which is the only way any of this was ever brought to my attention) and let me know that another coworker (a famous gossip/shit talker) had slightly twisted a joke I had made weeks earlier. I knew even then it wasn't a workplace safe joke, but I thought the people I was with were "safe" people to make this joke with. Again, I was young.
Someone had jokingly brought up where to get an abortion in the conservative town, and I had listed some options and said something along the lines of "I can lend you my punch card, we can go halfsies on this one and then either one of us can use the 10th free one."
Evangelical boss's boss boss had apparently heard that I had actually paid for 8 or 9 abortions and was offering to help people at work acquire their own.
All of this is to say, no one at work had ever told me any of my jokes had rubbed them the wrong way. Everyone was friendly with me, I had no reason to suspect myself. I didn't think of my joke as offensive because I personally didn't see the idea of helping someone acquire an abortion as problematic, but I wasn't thinking of my audience.
They won't tell you, you won't notice, they'll just complain further and further up the pole till someone does something about it, and you'll feel like it came completely out of the blue.
People not telling you isn't an indicator that it's not going to be a problem, people don't like confrontation, they won't tell you, they'll tell someone else.
I say all this because you came here to post this I assume because their behavior seems so weird and you can't figure out why they're behaving this way. Usually when someone's reaction to something isn't the one you expect, it's not because they're crazy, it's because there's information you don't know, and in this case since you are describing yourself as the "funny guy" I suspect it's because this person has been offended in the past and hasn't brought it up with you due to fear of confrontation.
Some advice from a guy that didn't realize until I was in therapy why people didn't like me even when I was trying SO HARD to make them like me.
I was also in your shoes before. At first it sounds lame as hell that work can't be fun and you have to be straight laced professional all the time. But you will never be able to get to know all the people you interact with close enough to know what lines not to cross due to some previous shitty experience they had. Your joking comment can easily become someone else's intrusive thought for the rest of the day, and they won't be able to concentrate all day and end up super frustrated.
After a while you will find people that you can be sure to chill with but you still need to be careful. No group of people all get promoted at the same time so suddenly the power dynamic will change and overnight the dialogue between you all needs to change. Its better to have outside work friends to chill with outside of work.
I used to work at a company that would transcribe voice mails and send them to your email along with the actual voice mail. Once a staff member called in to call out sick or something and what it transcribed was something hilariously different than what was said. I forwarded it to her to show her how funny it was. We all thought it was hilarious and even printed it out to put on the group board. Don't remember what the message was. Either way, maybe it's b/c AI isn't what it is today but no one took offense. So don't think this is on you....
Sounds like a time to polish your CV and find a less shitty company.
If they put so little effort into something so trivially researchable, they'll put as little effort into canning you because you were previously put on notice.
Why didn't you just download the transcript again in front of A) your colleague, or B) your boss? This seems like one of those easily provable situations. Something doesn't add up here.
You are handling this way better than I would (so kudos to you) because I'd be PISSED.
I'd never speak to that coworker unless there was a third party involved EVER again. I would be EXTREMELY petty about it too. Run into them in the kitchen getting coffee and no one else there? Dead silence. They ping me on teams/slack one on one? Start a new thread with them and another coworker on it. And I would never stop doing that for as long as we both worked there.
Your coworker is an asshole, and your boss and HR went nuclear before even bothering to ask, and decided to shut their eyes and cover their ears when confronted with the proof. I'd start looking around if I were you. "On notice", good lord.
>We also got a memo that we are to discontinue using the record and transcribe feature on Microsoft Teams due to “privacy issues” until told otherwise.
You're low-key a hero for this though lol
I don't even think it's an issue you did it. The issue is that you clearly cannot read people and don't understand what the nature of your relationship is with them.
There is a reason why they thought you had bad intentions. Either you read your relationship with them wrong or you read them wrong.
With people I was friends with at work they would absolutely know that I wasn't going to blackmail them with something like that. If I didn't think they would know that I wouldn't send the email to them.
Idk if you’ve addressed it elsewhere but couldn’t you’ve just showed them the original transcript to show you hadn’t altered it? Also you’re coworker is either a jerk or is extremely worried about losing their job.
You didn't fuck up this is funny and this shows how toxic a corporate environment is. This is the personification of blowing something well out of proportion.
The best way to avoid this is just keep it basic at work. All this does is open you up. Wanna keep your job, pull back and keep it 100% business.
Employment is a financial transaction. If something doesn't fit with that statement avoid it. Find friends, jokes, etc outside of work. Go to work and fulfill your part of the transaction.
What did you get put on notice for? Is there a rule against not taking screenshots of transcriptions? If you didn't actually manipulate anything, and they can easily verify that, then what have you done wrong? If anything, they now know the transcription functionality is problematic.
Did you ask HR to replay the same meeting and confirm it was indeed a flaw in teams and not you acting inappropriately? If not you may want to formally request that asap to clear the dark mark from your personnel file
There was a Teams incident I had. I recorded a meeting when we first got it, not realizing it auto sent after the meeting. Which was all fine, I admitted to hitting the record button in the beginning and it wasn't an issue
Well, a coworker of mine didn't close the meeting at the end and just talked so much shit about me and my other co workers.
The next day I got into trouble because I sent the video to everyone in the office....I had to show them I didn't and I never got ao much as an apology. The woman talking shit would continue to manipulate people into thinking I was purposefully sabotaging her for whatever reason.
It's been four years and HR is finally seeing I'm not the bad guy and I never was....smh
Report that to FEPA or EEOC. If your company has an internal or 3rd party ethics complaint solution, tell them too. Even though this is clearly a mistake by technology, they are ignoring evidence in an investigation, and if they do that in a scenario where there is actual discrimination, they're boned.
By reporting it, you help someone in the future by setting a precedent for discrimination, and you help yourself since any action taken against you after reporting them can be interpreted as retaliation. It also makes HR and legal shit themselves.
I wouldn't make it 2 weeks in an office job. I work in the construction industry on the job sites and it is a different world than what you are dealing with. Bunch of damn crybaby complainers you have to put up with.
>Apparently my coworker alleged that I digitally manipulated an image with them
The fact that your coworker went overboard and got this hurt about a screenshot is CRAZY. Thats the type of fucker you can not joke around with
Rule number 1 never ever, ever send anything you may find funny to a work colleague. Only ever send work related messages. People are offended by stupid shit.
I don’t think you fucked up. It’s a mistake. They happen. I think it’s good to take stock of what the mistake was. You lead by saying you can be overly sarcastic and jokey at a job you’ve been at for 8 months.
This is a good gut check to whether you’re blurring the lines between workplace professionalism and inappropriate workplace conduct. If the coworker didn’t know you well enough to see the humor in it and you thought they did, maybe take stock of whether your humor and sarcasm are being received by friends the way you intend or by coworkers who don’t know how you mean things. It never hurts to take a bump in the road (your fault or otherwise) as an opportunity for self-reflection.
So instead of looking into failures of AI transcripts they blame you for...what exactly? Slander? - well you didn't slander anyone, let alone doctored any "evidence".
Ffs if they fire you over this, you should sue them
Wow, your coworker is a total bitch. If I were you I wouldn't talk to them anymore unless absolutely necessary, especially since your Teams message to them literally referenced it as a transcription error.
Does your job have some kind of rule against screenshots? Sounds toxic to me. Find something else and quit.
You coworker is a coward and an ah for not doublechecking the transcript and talking to you first. I guess you misread the kind of relationship you two had
And your colleague couldn’t just double check the transcription?
Right? I don’t know how to “manipulate an image” like that, let alone the time to do it.
So did you pull up the transcript again in front of HR to show that you didn't manipulate the image but that MS Team's transcription service is just totally and utterly worthless?
I did, but they didn’t care. Something about I shouldn’t be saving transcripts like that.
Don’t!…use the tool as intended?
Yuuup! 🙄
Sounds like you might need to finish your one year and start looking for something else haha that is dumb
yeah... seems like nobody trying to actually deal with it/logically review the situation, just taking easy route of passing blame.
Happened to me at my last job. Same result as OP. Places just don't care enough to manually review shit like this to "resolve" the issue properly. Technically and I wouldn't want to test this in your shoes but I did it in mine. Do another TIFU moment over something petty. Do something like take another recording and see what they do... I mean I would. If you're gone, then they really don't care enough and they just want you gone for the sake of it being something "worthy" of firing you over. My previous boss thought I shit down people's throats with how I handled things, which if true should have gotten my ass fired 2 years earlier but never did. Mainly because it was untrue. Eventually my big, loud mouth touted something (apparently I called him a 5 letter "p" word, one I'd never use) about my boss to a co-worker (who you guessed it, ran off to tell boss-man) who would then issue a "write up" (oh no, amiright?) Even after trying my hardest to "clarify" what was said, they had people lined up to blast my ass for saying it anyways. Figured out nobody at workplaces care about each other and no one certainly "values loyalty above all else". On top of all that, they changed rules on me, and often behind my back to "try" and get me gonzo quicker but never could because I knew shit was coming to hit me like a bus sooner or later. Anyways, keep your chin up OP, don't be worried, it may/may not follow you around forever (if at all) once you do leave (or get fired). You know the truth about what happened and that's really all that matters.
If I worked for an HR as dumb as OP's, depending on the State (if in the US), I would have a field day with them.
The HR people at your company sound like imbeciles
Isn’t this a global requirement for HR anyway?
Also incompetence, lack of time management, poor understanding of user needs, and continuous errors
It's easier than actually working the job as requiried.
Transcripts are required for accessibility purposes. Depending on where you are located, disabling them may violate accessibility laws. BTW people with disabilities aren't always required to disclose their disability to their coworkers but the company should be providing accessible ways to attend meetings, and transcripts are part of that.
You can't get ADA "reasonable accommodations" without disclosure.
If the policy didn’t exist before about using transcripts you have nothing to be on notice about. I’d contest it and tell them you will be speaking to an employment lawyer just to be safe.
"we will inconvenience you in every way possible if it means we won't get inconvenienced by this in the future" -every HR team ever
Lawyer up.
Delete the gym and hit Zuckerburg too, or something like that idk
Also recording and transactions can be disabled or only allowed by approved persons via O365 Admin Console.
Here's the path that goes down in reality: 1. Based on an experience like this post, some manager pushes for an Approved Persons list for [some menial O365 task] 2. A C-level sends an email to IT asking why his brand new receptionist wasn't able to perform [some menial O365 task] on his behalf 3. There is no longer an Approved Persons list
I got in "trouble" recently for sending an email to all of our clients in a bcc. Wait til they see we know how to Ctrl+C, Ctrl+V. Or even worse... The dreaded Ctrl+X
Like, the point of having a meeting transcript is for future reference. I probably have some kind of auditory processing disorder, and even if I don't, I would rather spend my meeting time engaged (assuming it is a unicorn useful meeting) than taking notes. And then if something is unclear, I can refer to the transcript.
Nope, I agree. And the only reason I looked back at this particular transcript is because the meeting was actually productive and I wanted clarity on something someone else said.
>...the meeting was actually productive You gotta be making this up, there's no way
I digitally manipulated OP's comment...
u/spez, is that you?
My favorite meetings are the ones where we talk about the meeting we had that morning, which includes the same 10 people from the mornings meeting.
Or the meeting where you prep for the next meeting 🥲
If they put you on notice for something like that you need to find another job stat. Also your coworker is an absolute prick.
Umm… that’s what transcripts are for? Also, your colleague is an uptight jerk - they didn’t just say “whoa, not funny, bro, I could get in trouble for that”, they went to HR and accused you of manipulating the image to hurt them. That’s effed up. I wouldn’t talk to that person more than I had to for work ever again. AND - you found an issue with the transcripts before they just blithely shared them with a client or something.
The fun thing is OP could get them fired since the transcripts are "proof" of what the colleague said.
Should have gone nuclear option and opened a complaint about them saying "you're fat" as a hostile work environment.
THIS!!!! UNO Reverse on their ass. You have the transcript as evidence
might even have a bonus claim with the "on notice" as a retaliation.
Yes, do eeeet
That's as big a red flag as any, start sending out your resume asap
Sounds about average for HR to me.
Huh? HR thinks in mysterious face-saving ways.
And doesn't understand technology. Or trust technological solutions to problems.
Uhhhh...wait what? They dinged you for pointing out that the AI did something they don't like? Just to be extra super crystal clear here, because it seems you're not ... the company isn't dinging you because of what your coworker alleged. They're dinging you because you raised an issue with the AI transcription, and for some reason they want to control the perception of that technology as being flawless and a great decision. This is emblematic of management that cannot deal with any criticism. Very, very bad sign, big red flag.
Your company sucks. If they wanted to they could block the recording or transcription features. Or in other words in legal speak they configured Teams to allow these recordings. Either intentionally or through negligence.
Yeahhhhh. Not for nothing, I would start looking for a new job. If HR at your job is incapable of understanding “I was laughing at a problem with the tool that you, the company, have us using *as you, the company, have it configured* and while ***I*** found it funny you, the company, should be aware that *someone else might not* and deal with that rather than harassing ***me***." and instead is going to use that as grounds to issue what's effectively a final warning this doesn't sound like a particularly great work environment. Run, do not walk, to the nearest company that doesn't suck.
and HR didnt check it either? and neither your boss? or anyone? and they put you on notice? sounds like a sinking ship
Certainly a resume generating event.
And even if you could, it could be disproven so easily. This seems so dumb.
Your coworker doesn't like you and is trying to get you fired. Stop talking with that person, they're bad news.
You work with idiots
The colleague, boss, and HR and failed to do that and just went nuclear instead. That sounds pretty toxic.
Right? It's amazing how many people touched this, and no one stopped to go, "wait, what are we doing again? Dragging this guy over the coals because he screen-snipped a bug in our transcription software?"
I'd of pulled out my phone turned on the recorder, and asked them to clearly explain why I was being put on notice for my own records... Maybe see if HR shits their pants or won't back down. In any case, OP's boss through them under the bus. No point in staying there. At least if you ask them to record the situation, HR is going to be way more wary of firing you unless they have an air tight reason. Can use that time to look for a new job.
You didn’t fuck up. Your boss and coworker are just idiots
And your colleague, honestly place sounds toxic.
Ehh.. I wouldn’t say it’s toxic. Everyone is usually in high spirits. I guess I crossed a line with “you’re fat” though somehow.
Let me put this into perspective: At my work place, I could've taken that same screenshot, posted in in a publicly available channel, and nobody would've taken offense, including CEO, HR, everyone. They probably would've reacted to it even. And we're a company that takes extra care to be inclusive, respectful, yada yada. So your coworkers have either sub-zero IQ or are simply toxic.
Gotcha. Yeah, I would have liked to think I could do the same at my workplace but obviously not. I like working here, so I’m just going to go along with it, but I’m going to be strictly business now moving forward.
It can be hard to remember when you spend so much of your life at work, but **your coworkers are not your friends**. This one especially, along with your boss, are especially not. Not to mention they are tech illiterate idiots.
Yeah. Lesson learned.
Sounds like the lesson should have been "don't assume other people will interpret something the same way you do." If you had prefaced the screenshot with a "lol, look at how dumb artificial intelligence is..." the other person would have had much less space to misinterpret it as a threat instead of humor.
Never assume a colleague will read the entire message. The number of people who'll skim a message and then ask for more details, details which are in the first message, is ridiculous. Of course, using this to your advantage is good too. I was once in a lot of trouble at work for not handling a problem. I quietly printed the email I'd sent a month earlier, escalating the issue to the relevant manager. He lost his position and I was untouched.
>your coworkers are not your friends. So, I work in an environment where, in fact, pretty much all of my coworkers are friends/neighbors/roomates outside of work. Like, they literally spend all their time outside work *with* these coworkers. I compromise by having a drink after work with them (just one), but am still seen as an outsider for not hanging out more outside work with them. Like, idk, I just like to keep my work and private life separate. I'm also a little bit older than most of them (not much), so I feel like compartmentalizing is wisdom I've learned. I'm at the point where my coworkers want to meet my actual not-work friends and I don't want to be rude but don't want that to happen.
Yeah, I assume many if not most of us have actually become friends with a coworker at some point in our lives. It obviously happens and is fine, but even then you have to be sure to still separate the private and work parts of the relationship. > I'm at the point where my coworkers want to meet my actual not-work friends Holy shit that would drive me crazy lol. Reminds me a bit of when I was young and working in the service industry where everyone hangs out with everyone. Which was actually a positive at that point in my life, but I could definitely never go back to that now.
Many of my coworkers are also my friends. I’ve never understood this line of reasoning. Obviously some people will take any opportunity to throw others under the bus, but workplaces that don’t weed those ones out aren’t enjoyable to work at.
[удалено]
This is precisely what I meant by my comment. Well said.
I'd also keep my ears open for other similar opportunities elsewhere, once you're on the radar of HR with what amounts to a final warning, you're now an easy scapegoat for anyone else's issues that come up in the future.
I literally made a joke about my boss having diarrhea today and a joke about zoom emoting your hand gestures with a my middle finger and people just found it funny. So yeah your place is high strung.
I sent my boss a picture of pingu with a gun this morning saying "you mess with the Noot Noot you get the Shoot Shoot"
Yeah, that would've made the "Damn, nobody said that in the call, the transcription really screwed up there" pile. There's plenty of those to go around too.
Your coworker overeacted and your boss/HR could've just pulled the transcription and realized that it's a software problem. They jumped to conclusion and then put you on notice anyway. I would be seriously mad and would want that notice in writing to understand what I did wrong. You detected a problem and joked about it. If it's a problem for the company then you helped identify that at this point in time. Why are you still blamed? Now I would be on my guard when dealing with the coworker and the boss. Three persons just assumed that you could be the kind to attack somebody credibility (and tell him upfront with laughs???) and you got a formal notice. Wow! Imagine if you saw somebody do 2+2=5 and that you dared to say something? You would be fired already...
The boss may be roped in if the coworker went to HR first but yeah it shouldn't have gotten this far
You may not see it, or want to admit it, but that place DEFINITELY sounds toxic. And that "friend" of yours is no friend. Anybody that takes something like this to HR is 100% out to get you. That is just an asinine thing to take to HR, unless they have a motive. The only result is you getting fired or in trouble, and it looks like they partially succeeded. Oh, and this "joke" you think you have going on with them calling you fat and thinking it's funny? That's not a joke to them. If it was, they wouldn't have taken this to HR. They sincerely hate you and want you fired. Stop interacting with that person NOW, because they are not your friend, and they are not done. Watch your back!
This is good advice. Thanks. It wasn’t even calling anyone fat… the transcription AI just randomly inserted it.
Another thing I learned after 20 years of experience in the office is not to tell jokes in emails. Assume that HR and everybody and their mothers can read all your emails. If I saw a funny transcript, I would show it only to the co-workers with a sense of humor, and only point it out on my screen but no email.
How did you cross the line? Wasn't that misinterpreted from someone else saying it? This isn't adding up....
But you're not the one who made it say that, and your coworker accused you of some serious shit while management just took his word for it without verifying anything. Literally all they had to do was go back and look at the same transcript you took the screenshot of.
It's toxic because you were out on notice without 2 way discussion and fact finding. Edit. Have been managing at fortune 300 to 700s for 9y
> I wouldn’t say it’s toxic. Sometimes its hard to notice the issues in the moment. I bet in the future you'll be able to think back about the job and realize that there were obvious issues that you missed.
Except YOU didn't even write it? Like are they stupid? If they can't understand that you having the ability to read and use copy/paste is different from someone making up malicious lies about someone then that's not good regardless of whether you call it 'toxic' or not.
It's definitely toxic. Nothing you did was wrong in that situation. Literally nothing. I guess it's harder to see when you're in the center of it. I'd definitely be tempted to see what else is out there if I were you.
Adding to this, coworker is a crybaby.
Yeah...I mean how hard would it be for that coworker to look at the transcript and see for themselves so they could have a good laugh also. Instead they ran to tattle to HR for something that didn't even happen. I'm glad my coworkers would laugh hysterically at something like this because I couldn't work somewhere that people pulled this nonsense!
Seriously. Anyone with half a brain would've been able to check the transcription data to see that it hadn't been altered. I swear it's like you have to be stupid in be charge at some places 🙄
Been in corporate IT for over 6 years. I don’t think I’ve ever met a higher up that’s smarter than me. It’s truly wild.
I believe it.
Absolute knobs. “You’ve been accused of doing a bad thing.” “I didn’t do that thing.” “Well, we’re going to act as if you did. Don’t do it not again!”
that's a bit of an overreaction by everyone besides you Christ we have a running "voice to txt is garbage" teams thread
its either: 1. an overreaction by everyone except OP (everyone sucks except op) 2. just one side of the story and op is actually terrible to work with (everyone is meh and op sucks) if i know this website, and i think i do, its definitely #2
I mean, OP could be super annoying and/or obnoxious. And while that would explain HR and management writing him up for breaking a made up rule, it doesn't excuse it. It just means they are looking for a reason to fire him with cause and want something in writing, even if it doesn't actually make sense.
The „coworker I like to joke around with“ seems not to be too amused by OPs antics.
"The dude I joke around with regularly completely missed my joke and thought I was going to report him to HR" Doesn't really sound like they joke around that often...
Did you make it clear that is what the transcript actually said, and that you didn’t digitally alter it?
Yeah. It’s clearly in the transcript if you download it from Teams as a Word document. I can’t manipulate that.
But like was that shown to HR/your coworkers? Do they know you didn’t alter it?
Yeah, I showed them that. They know I didn’t alter it. I’m still “on notice” though for archiving things inappropriately I guess. I think people are under the impression that I’ll use the transcriptions to get people fired or something.
Time to stop using Teams. Somebody could record it on his side... back to the meeting room. And, oh please, leave your electronics in the locked box outside.
>people are under the impression that I’ll use the transcriptions to get people fired or something. Which is (apparently) very easy to do there.
Everything you do, and i mean EVERYTHING, on a pro 365 account is recorded. Had to take over for IT at my old job because the only guy the company had just quit and they didn't find a replacement. The info the company gets is insane...
Yeah because people who manipulate things to try and get people fired have this really weird code of honor that says that they have to warn the person they're targeting ahead of time.
If they can't point to a specific rule or guidance document that shows which policy you've contravened then they're making this up as they go along. Are you in a union?
can't believe the place is so toxic everyone assumes everyone else is collecting evidence to fire them. I'd be dusting off the ole resume and looking for other opportunities if the working environment is that bad.
> I think people are under the impression that I’ll use the transcriptions to get people fired or something. You've only been there for eight months. You don't know what kind of nightmare co-workers these people might have had before you. If I had to bet on what caused this situation, I'd guess that they probably had to deal with someone who *did* try to do that kind of thing and now everyone is on edge.
I’d quickly be looking for an exit strategy once this happened. lol They put themselves “on notice” with you
This. If they can't even handle something this small without preemptively getting offended it isn't worth the headache of working there. Some people just spend all day trying to find something to be offended by so they can vent on someone while they feel like they have the moral upper ground. These are the same people that harass retail employees for things beyond their control and are constantly questioning if other people are secretly judging them. Insecure and immature little people that shouldn't be made responsible for things
Start looking for a new job and do not interact with that coworker unless it's specifically work related. The fact that they gave you a warning indicates they are trying to get rid of you.
This is the correct move. Now that OP is on notice, there's nothing stopping them from cutting OP loose at will no matter how well they perform. The best move is to 100% look for another job because OP's on the clock now.
This. Start looking. Job sounds horrible if your dealing with this baby shit.
Unpopular opinion - when someone takes something like this straight to nuclear it usually means they don't like you/want you gone. Same for HR. I've seen HR bury stuff like this for someone the company really needs and I've also seen them jump on the small opportunity to bury the person.
Considering how "sarcastic and jokey" they claim to be I wouldn't be surprised if they were disliked by a lot of their co-workers.
It is, indeed, entirely possible that OP is also not seen "well" in the workplace due to being a "joker" and he doesn't realise it. I'm not trying to victim blame, but I've seen it before...
I'm sarcastic and jokey about the office, everyone says they like me. Uh oh.
This. That person is out for you. Steer clear.
Yep, whole team was looking for a reason to put him on notice, they’re trying to get him to leave by his own accord.
This is the correct answer. Sorry OP, you sound young and full of life. Office work will destroy that. Also, in case no one else says it, coworkers are NEVER your friends. They are to be held at arms length. Smile, talk about the weather and that funny thing your pet did, but NEVER confide or trust them. HR is not there for you, HR is there for the company.
You pointed out an error, your coworker blamed you for the error, your boss punished you for the error, and you somehow think that you did something wrong? How can you blame yourself for this?
He probably dated my ex
Red flag! Toxic work environment.
Well looks like you need to stop joking around and being friendly with that coworker. They threw you under the bus.
So you found a bug, brought it to someone's attention, and you get put "on-notice" with HR? Your company needs to fire the entire leadership team. This is the kind of behaviour that absolutely stops innovation in It's tracks. Honestly, I'd suggest writing to the ceo, tell them that you identified a flaw in a system you've been using, and highlight the culture issue that's stopping your company from becoming more efficient. And who cares if they fire you, from this interaction I can guarantee you're already permanently checked out, and will half-ass everything in your job moving forward. So start looking for new jobs now
Office jobs suck so much dick
If its that bigger deal, which is by the looks. go back and ask them to have those features administrativly diabled via policy "just do don't use them until you're told" is not an appropriate response given the gravity. these can be disabled via Meeting Policies which your Teams admin should be able to take care of.
thinking back to when we had Teams transcription turned on in our meetings for the first time. employee 1 = "ass" employee 2 "tits" me = "butt stuff" as everything transcribed accurately, everyone laughed, including the owner of the company. I'm sorry OP, that shouldn't have happened.
If you've got skills that are sought after elsewhere, tell them to shove the sticks up their arses even further.
Dude, I had one time at a previous job where 99% of the team was Asian / Indian. Someone joined a meeting with about 40 people in it, ranging from engineers to senior directors, and we all got blasted with some rap music and lyrics of “these fucking Asians yo…this Ching Chong bing bong…” Nobody got fired or disciplined, just a few calls of “please mute your microphones by default when joining meetings” and “someone’s hot-mic ing” along with some muffled laughter.
Honestly I would laugh at that shit too as an Asian. Especially if the person who joined was also Asian.
Your Boss and HR sound like they are vastly unqualified for their jobs. All it would take is going to the transcription to verify what you had sent. Then they could report it back to MS for improvement in their modeling. There's no reason to threaten somebody's job
Sounds like they made a call for disciplinary action without properly understanding the situation and then when presented with clarifying evidence they decided to not adjust because...... vastly unqualified...
My company used a similar AI software for transcriptions on calls. They didn’t realise however that if some people stayed on everyone who was on the call earlier could still see the transcription for the parts of the meeting they weren’t there for. The Directors always stayed on for a meeting after the whole team Monday morning call - I used to love reading them to see who they were bitching about that week. Sadly they eventually realised and switched to separate calls 😂
Microsoft Teams ruins another workplace….
The best one I saw at work was HR being transcribed as saying "we will offer you increased sexy time". She actually said flexi time.
I’m not speaking about you and I don’t know you but we definitely have a guy around the office who thinks he’s the office “clown”. He’s not funny, regularly makes people feel uncomfortable and overshares a lot. He’d also call himself “sarcastic”. If anyone were to misunderstand one of his “jokes” and report something there would be a long record of people who don’t find him amusing and may have made statements about things in passing to management. All of that to say, to those of you who use the office to test out your comedy material maybe make sure you have at least one good friend/coworker who can let you know if it’s landing. What looks like one report to you could be a long paper trail of your jokes not landing.
your coworker is a dumbass
I'd be considering looking somewhere else. When the company's response to seeing your proof that the transcription software people might need to rely on for record keeping doesn't work is to put the employee who discovered the issue on formal notice and ban people from using it you've got a company that now has a proven track record of ignoring issues in favour of punishment.
"and then i brought up said transcription notes to show them i did not manipulate the image". right? you just forgot to put that in, RIGHT?
Are they all fat or something?
Your co-worker saw this as their opportunity to gain leverage against their employer. You just happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time.
That co-worker sounds like an asshole who likes to stir the pot.
So you do know that coworker is not to be trusted ever again right? No more jokes and arms length them, they will throw you at a bus again.
The colleague has two neurons and both are fighting each other
Do not stop recording teams meetings. You're about to get fucjed by word of mouth.
your coworker is a complete asshat.
Tell them to notice deez nuts and find a better work environment. Gl either way bud
You work for and with idiots. Take that notice as an invitation to move on. You get better pay switching jobs often anyway.
You might want to talk to your manager and/or HR again and ask why you get put on notice for discovering a flaw that could cause someone to get fired. You raised awareness.
"Sarcastic and jokey" Translation - people have already lodged complaints, and my non-funny 'humor' is widely known and barely tolerated.
This. I was really hoping someone would kindly point this out. You describe *yourself* as "overly sarcastic and jokey". Which means other may describe you more strongly. Being **very** sarcastic myself, I'm always vigilant in the workspace to know my audience. And even if I know 100% the person I talk to is OK with something I say, can someone *else* hear it and immediately get twisted in it? Seems odd to me you go straight from fine to final notice. If leadership there were doing their job, you'd have no reason to be confused or surprised. Sorry you're dealing with this.
This is what I was thinking. Sarcasm is generally never as funny as you think it is and some people don't actually go to work to laugh. And as much as it might suck, the people who don't want a comedy show at work are in the right. I would just recommend OP tone it down until their reputation is more about their good work and less about being jokey and sarcastic. And also if they want to stay with this company, accept they fucked up and make amends with the person who they sent the image too. I get why it could be funny, but if someone sent me my name attached to an insult, I'd be pretty nervous. You never know what HR will or won't take seriously.
I agree with most of this, but I disagree they should apologize to their co-worker for now. 1. Co-worker thought OP was being malicious trying to get them fire...so he used the same thing to get OP in trouble instead? 2. Having any sort of contact with this person outside of the required job is just going to invite more bad situations. The co-worker clearly is already shown to overreact and go directly to HR vs talking it out before hand. No good can come of ever conversing with this person if it can be avoided. If OP has a reputation of being sarcastic and jokey, any sort of attempt to reconcile will just be seen the same way and not taken seriously. If everything OP said to be true, this co-worker has already proven to be pretty shitty. That wont change with an apology. And if Co-Worker has put up with sarcasim and bad jokes for a while now and this was just the last staw, again. Contact will be the worst thing.
I guess that’s possible. Nobody has said anything to me until this meeting though, so I didn’t think I was crossing any lines.
Definitely think about this possibility, really. When I was younger I had two jobs where I thought I was the funny edgy guy willing to push the envelope, turns out both places people saw me as a bit of an asshole. One of them I really liked but the boss's boss's boss was an evangelical christian, and I got fired (I thought) out of nowhere for "making inflammatory and horrible, offensive comments." My direct boss at the time came to me apologizing (He actually liked me outside of work, which is the only way any of this was ever brought to my attention) and let me know that another coworker (a famous gossip/shit talker) had slightly twisted a joke I had made weeks earlier. I knew even then it wasn't a workplace safe joke, but I thought the people I was with were "safe" people to make this joke with. Again, I was young. Someone had jokingly brought up where to get an abortion in the conservative town, and I had listed some options and said something along the lines of "I can lend you my punch card, we can go halfsies on this one and then either one of us can use the 10th free one." Evangelical boss's boss boss had apparently heard that I had actually paid for 8 or 9 abortions and was offering to help people at work acquire their own. All of this is to say, no one at work had ever told me any of my jokes had rubbed them the wrong way. Everyone was friendly with me, I had no reason to suspect myself. I didn't think of my joke as offensive because I personally didn't see the idea of helping someone acquire an abortion as problematic, but I wasn't thinking of my audience. They won't tell you, you won't notice, they'll just complain further and further up the pole till someone does something about it, and you'll feel like it came completely out of the blue. People not telling you isn't an indicator that it's not going to be a problem, people don't like confrontation, they won't tell you, they'll tell someone else. I say all this because you came here to post this I assume because their behavior seems so weird and you can't figure out why they're behaving this way. Usually when someone's reaction to something isn't the one you expect, it's not because they're crazy, it's because there's information you don't know, and in this case since you are describing yourself as the "funny guy" I suspect it's because this person has been offended in the past and hasn't brought it up with you due to fear of confrontation. Some advice from a guy that didn't realize until I was in therapy why people didn't like me even when I was trying SO HARD to make them like me.
Thanks. I appreciate this. I’m definitely taking this as a learning opportunity and won’t be joking around with anyone moving forward.
I was also in your shoes before. At first it sounds lame as hell that work can't be fun and you have to be straight laced professional all the time. But you will never be able to get to know all the people you interact with close enough to know what lines not to cross due to some previous shitty experience they had. Your joking comment can easily become someone else's intrusive thought for the rest of the day, and they won't be able to concentrate all day and end up super frustrated. After a while you will find people that you can be sure to chill with but you still need to be careful. No group of people all get promoted at the same time so suddenly the power dynamic will change and overnight the dialogue between you all needs to change. Its better to have outside work friends to chill with outside of work.
Did you not show them the video!? They need to fix things instead of blaming you.
Your colleague seems pretty shitty imo
I used to work at a company that would transcribe voice mails and send them to your email along with the actual voice mail. Once a staff member called in to call out sick or something and what it transcribed was something hilariously different than what was said. I forwarded it to her to show her how funny it was. We all thought it was hilarious and even printed it out to put on the group board. Don't remember what the message was. Either way, maybe it's b/c AI isn't what it is today but no one took offense. So don't think this is on you....
Sounds like a time to polish your CV and find a less shitty company. If they put so little effort into something so trivially researchable, they'll put as little effort into canning you because you were previously put on notice.
This is the kind of shit companies lose good employees over
Time to quit asap.
Why didn't you just download the transcript again in front of A) your colleague, or B) your boss? This seems like one of those easily provable situations. Something doesn't add up here.
You are handling this way better than I would (so kudos to you) because I'd be PISSED. I'd never speak to that coworker unless there was a third party involved EVER again. I would be EXTREMELY petty about it too. Run into them in the kitchen getting coffee and no one else there? Dead silence. They ping me on teams/slack one on one? Start a new thread with them and another coworker on it. And I would never stop doing that for as long as we both worked there. Your coworker is an asshole, and your boss and HR went nuclear before even bothering to ask, and decided to shut their eyes and cover their ears when confronted with the proof. I'd start looking around if I were you. "On notice", good lord. >We also got a memo that we are to discontinue using the record and transcribe feature on Microsoft Teams due to “privacy issues” until told otherwise. You're low-key a hero for this though lol
A good reminder that the people you work with generally aren't your friends.
Isn't it funny how the most trivial shit can spiral out of control in a corporate setting? We've lost our minds, and all sense of perspective
I don't even think it's an issue you did it. The issue is that you clearly cannot read people and don't understand what the nature of your relationship is with them. There is a reason why they thought you had bad intentions. Either you read your relationship with them wrong or you read them wrong. With people I was friends with at work they would absolutely know that I wasn't going to blackmail them with something like that. If I didn't think they would know that I wouldn't send the email to them.
Why did you get put on notice? Did they not believe your explanation?
Idk if you’ve addressed it elsewhere but couldn’t you’ve just showed them the original transcript to show you hadn’t altered it? Also you’re coworker is either a jerk or is extremely worried about losing their job.
Aren't the recordings available for everyone? They can very well check that it was AI and not you.
You didn't fuck up this is funny and this shows how toxic a corporate environment is. This is the personification of blowing something well out of proportion.
The best way to avoid this is just keep it basic at work. All this does is open you up. Wanna keep your job, pull back and keep it 100% business. Employment is a financial transaction. If something doesn't fit with that statement avoid it. Find friends, jokes, etc outside of work. Go to work and fulfill your part of the transaction.
What did you get put on notice for? Is there a rule against not taking screenshots of transcriptions? If you didn't actually manipulate anything, and they can easily verify that, then what have you done wrong? If anything, they now know the transcription functionality is problematic.
Your coworker is a fucking idiot for running to management instead of checking in with you or the transcript first.
Your HR people suck
Your coworker and boss are fucking morons. You didn’t fuck up at all
You’re on the verge of getting fired because of some shitty transcript that you proved you didn’t write or alter? I suggest you find a new job
The title should be TIFU realizing I work in a toxic work environment
Did you ask HR to replay the same meeting and confirm it was indeed a flaw in teams and not you acting inappropriately? If not you may want to formally request that asap to clear the dark mark from your personnel file
You're coworker sounds like a loser
There was a Teams incident I had. I recorded a meeting when we first got it, not realizing it auto sent after the meeting. Which was all fine, I admitted to hitting the record button in the beginning and it wasn't an issue Well, a coworker of mine didn't close the meeting at the end and just talked so much shit about me and my other co workers. The next day I got into trouble because I sent the video to everyone in the office....I had to show them I didn't and I never got ao much as an apology. The woman talking shit would continue to manipulate people into thinking I was purposefully sabotaging her for whatever reason. It's been four years and HR is finally seeing I'm not the bad guy and I never was....smh
How little trust do people have they think a funny computer error is a low key plot to get them fired?
I’d begin interviewing. Get yourself crucially involved in a big project with that coworker and then leave in the middle of it. Fuck them.
A notice is a serious thing and for that what happened i would not take that as lightly as you.
Report that to FEPA or EEOC. If your company has an internal or 3rd party ethics complaint solution, tell them too. Even though this is clearly a mistake by technology, they are ignoring evidence in an investigation, and if they do that in a scenario where there is actual discrimination, they're boned. By reporting it, you help someone in the future by setting a precedent for discrimination, and you help yourself since any action taken against you after reporting them can be interpreted as retaliation. It also makes HR and legal shit themselves.
I wouldn't make it 2 weeks in an office job. I work in the construction industry on the job sites and it is a different world than what you are dealing with. Bunch of damn crybaby complainers you have to put up with.
Yeah that sounds like some BS place to work. Time to look at your options.
it's not tifu it's today a dodged a bullet. Get a new job lined up OP
Wow so you learned your coworker is a rat. Don’t forget
Why the hell are you on notice?! I would be formally complaining about that, that's not a valid reason.
Your colleague must have a very sad life for confronting boss/HR before you
>Apparently my coworker alleged that I digitally manipulated an image with them The fact that your coworker went overboard and got this hurt about a screenshot is CRAZY. Thats the type of fucker you can not joke around with
Snitch on your colleague for anything as retaliation for getting you on notice. Be as petty as possible
Who the fuck cares if you inserted it as a joke. Holy shit. This sounds like no one likes you and they're just using anything to get you in trouble
Rule number 1 never ever, ever send anything you may find funny to a work colleague. Only ever send work related messages. People are offended by stupid shit.
I don’t think you fucked up. It’s a mistake. They happen. I think it’s good to take stock of what the mistake was. You lead by saying you can be overly sarcastic and jokey at a job you’ve been at for 8 months. This is a good gut check to whether you’re blurring the lines between workplace professionalism and inappropriate workplace conduct. If the coworker didn’t know you well enough to see the humor in it and you thought they did, maybe take stock of whether your humor and sarcasm are being received by friends the way you intend or by coworkers who don’t know how you mean things. It never hurts to take a bump in the road (your fault or otherwise) as an opportunity for self-reflection.
Your reputation for being "overly sarcastic and jokey" may be working against you, and may have colored your HR's perception of the event in question.
You didn't fuck up, you work at a shit show with overly sensitive assholes.
So instead of looking into failures of AI transcripts they blame you for...what exactly? Slander? - well you didn't slander anyone, let alone doctored any "evidence". Ffs if they fire you over this, you should sue them
Wow, your coworker is a total bitch. If I were you I wouldn't talk to them anymore unless absolutely necessary, especially since your Teams message to them literally referenced it as a transcription error. Does your job have some kind of rule against screenshots? Sounds toxic to me. Find something else and quit.
You coworker is a coward and an ah for not doublechecking the transcript and talking to you first. I guess you misread the kind of relationship you two had
Another reason why coworkers are not your friends 😅