Quit When Work Is Making You Ill, Columnist Says; Be Direct About Minor Office Annoyances

A reader working in a satellite office told the New York Times that a first‑time manager has spent three years usurping the reader’s role, undermining them in front of the team and enjoying the support of upper management. Morale and productivity have fallen, and the reader reports high blood pressure, eczema and anxiety as they count down the months to leave.

Columnist Max Read answered plainly: quitting is the right move. Read argued the reader should have left earlier, saying the company’s embrace of the new manager signals that the reader’s role is effectively being phased out. He used a sports analogy — Mohamed Salah and Liverpool’s management choices — to illustrate how organizations quietly push long‑serving employees aside when leadership backs a newcomer.

Read noted that loyalty to colleagues is admirable but not worth serious harm to one’s health. He urged readers to recognize when remaining is a losing fight and to prioritize their wellbeing over trying to salvage a situation that company leadership has already decided. In a separate question, office workers complained about a junior colleague who constantly hums and taps in an open‑plan space and asked how to raise the issue without being rude.

Read’s advice was simple: be direct and polite. He suggested approaching the co‑worker, saying something like, “Can I ask you a favor? I’m not sure if you realize this, but you’re humming and tapping while you work, and it’s distracting.

Key Topics

Sports, United States, Business, Workplace, Management, Career, Mental Health