Radio Wars

[The New Me!]

Hi, I'm experiencing some awful behaviour at work at the moment. We have a radio in our office and it's volume is frequently turned up whilst I find it difficult to concentrate. A compromise was agreed by our Manager to have the radio turned down low on a volume comfortable to me on the days I'm in and then turned up when I'm not in - I work part-time. They've now started to turn it up when I go out the office to do something after I've turned it down one! I come back in and ask politely if I can turn it down one. This happened Wed and Fri. Sick of it and despite speaking to my Manager again she's dismissive! Any advice please? Thanks...

[Rebel13]

Hi there The New Me! I'm sorry the people at your work aren't being more accommodating of your request. Is there anything that would help  that is in your control? For example, would noise-canceling headphones or earplugs help you concentrate even if the radio was loud?

Best of luck with this difficult situation!

[Catothecat]

Noise pollution seems to be everywhere these days, but it's especially annoying (and I think inappropriate) in an office where you can't get away from it if you don't like it.  Where I last worked, we could listen to whatever we wanted via our computers, but the offices/cubicles had enough separation that you never heard what another person was listening to unless you came close to their desk.  I understand the need to have some type of "relief" from the tedium of work, but that's an individual concern and shouldn't be imposed on the entire group.  I agree that perhaps wearing headphones might be the best solution, if your manager allows it or if it doesn't interfere with your ability to hear what else is going on/communicate with your co-workers.  Otherwise, this might be a case of passive/aggressiveness on the part of the people you work with.  They're letting you know they're accommodating you but don't like it.  So, they turn the music up as soon as you leave, knowing when you come back you'll have to repeat your request.  In that case, it isn't just the music that's the issue but the work environment itself. 

[The New Me!]

Hi Catothecat
Thanks for your reply. It is greatly impacting me and I think that when this happens again I'm going to highlight that I feel I'm being singled out and bullied. It is one woman in particular who's stirring the pot!