Poisoning Coworker

I will try to make this as short as possible but then answer any questions that require clarification.

Background
Started working a middle sized company(accounting , tax, property ). I tend to be a the run around guy.Its mainly women here who are not the best at some of the manual office tasks, eg lifting heavy stuff, a bit of pest control such as rat poison and driving company car( no one can drive the manual car).

We have this annoying coworker who is a busy body and will micro manage work that is outside of her scope and role. she often comes to my desk and looks over my work , even when im not there.really annoying person . She reported me to my manager for not being able to find a file.(it was in the storage records area being scanned). She does this just to seem relevant and important and i am sick of it.

Incident.
So being the office handyman i was asked by my manager to take the company car and card to get some pest control products for the mice in the downstairs garage area and to pick up some food platters. I picked up my lunch along the way from a sandwich deli shop.

I came back and put the platters in the fridge, put my lunch(deli food platter) on my desk and went downstairs to give the foreman the mice bait.

When i came back the coworker was in hysterics claiming that i was poisoning her because she apparently she had come to my desk to check my work and ate a part of my lunch . The idiot is allergic to something and had mistake my lunch for the staff lunch in the fridge and had some. Her face was red and didnt look well.

She was led away by the first aid officers. she had to take an insulin shot or something.

The manager wants me to write some incident report about her accusation of poisoning her.

Did i do anything wrong here ?
should i get some legal advice ?

Update
Ive had some relationship problems recently so i wasnt here that much but that story is for another time.

Workwise i completed in incident report .
HR was concerned that the food and rat poison got mixed up but assured them that i had the bunnings stuff in the boot and food in the front and didnt handle them together.

coworker had to go hospital for the food allergy her face was ugly af the next day so she looked her standard. she is ok now no injuries suffered , turns out she was allergic to some nut products that was in my platter.

However they said that this will be recorded for WHS reasons which i had no objection to because my contract only has a few months left on it.

i did bring up that she micro manages me and that should not have eaten my food , HR agreed and put aside 30 dollars for my lose.

yeah i also do eat deli platters because they are tasty and when type i can use one hand .

thanks again for all the help and support everyone.

Comments

      • -7

        Did i do anything wrong here ?
        should i get some legal advice ?

        If this isn't trolling I don't know what is.

        • +3

          I don't know

          Exactly, quit commenting.

      • sometimes the office politics is hidden. a friend was a bursar at a christian school and wanted to fire the obnoxious parent 'volunteer'. He got fired! turned out she was on some committee of the private school.

      • Yes, it is in the company’s interest for you to write exactly how it was; she stole your food. Don’t back down if she gets heavy with the dirty looks. When a manager used to come up behind, to see what I was working on, I would always stop working and ask “Is there something I can help you with?” He got the message when he saw his actions distracted me …

    • +3

      I'm the Queen of Fiji.

      Hello Your Majesty.

    • Yeah and I'm the Queen of Fiji.

      You are a Queen? is cool is cool.. I'm accepting

    • +1

      The post doesn't make sense because you lack basic comprehension skills.

  • +3

    Tough but i can't see how you could be held responsible for someone stealing you're lunch.

    Ask you're employer what the cause of her reaction was, nothing more, don't mention her stealing you're food. leave that alone and phrase it as accidentally ate my lunch thinking it was part of the food i picked up for everyone.

    Just be honest say it's causing you some stress and you're not sleeping after being accused of poisoning someone but you believe she didn't actually mean it, it was the fear talking when she started to react, and you want to ensure that if you ever bring food in with that ingredient in it's clearly marked on the bag as you never want to see this happen again. (providing a solution)

    The twist here is that although she stole your lunch was it possible that it was cross contaminated with the Poison that you picked up for pest control? that appears to be only mistake you could have made but it's ridiculous as it would have poisoned you had she not stole it. and would have required medical attention that was more than an epi pen or insulin.

    If you truely have nothing to be afraid of which sounds legitimate.

    Keep it brief

    Facts only in bullet points these are assumptions) based on your note Leave any accusations out of it. (person accused me of poisoning her)- (she stole my lunch)

    Picked up XXX
    Picked up Lunch
    Dropped of goods purchased as requested
    Went to bathroom washed hands
    Placed food platters in Kitchen
    Arrived at my desk to find person had "mistakenly" eaten part of my lunch.
    then the points from there if you called for help state that
    i.e noticed person struggling called for assistance and called 000

    tried to help other staff care for Person till help arrived.

    corrective solution as stated above as you wish no harm to come to anyone.

    Your always entitled to peer support if you feel threatened.

    Americans Lawyer up at the hint of anything you and your boss want to ensure this is never repeated

    • +1

      duty of care. If you're going to put rat poison in your lunch you should take precautions against said lunch being stolen and consumed.

      • Lol that adds a whole new dimension if there was a regular lunch thief?

  • +4

    ignore - replied in wrong space

  • +4

    The Office Australian Edition… I like it

  • +20

    she jumped the gun and ate your lunch. Her fault

    I actually congratulate you for accidentally poisoning a co worker you hate

    FYI I am allergic to tomatoes, I wouldn't just go and chow down on someone's sandwich and then rip into them if I got sick. I am adult and double check first

    • +6

      "Hey Sue, is there tomato on your sandwich? Cos I'm allergic to tomato and about to eat your samich…"

      • +11

        I normally just pick them out and slap them on their monitor

    • Hey I'm allergic to tomatoes too, or do I just really hate them, can't remember.

      • +1

        Must be catching. My son cannot eat tomatoes, onion or vinegar … He eats tomato sauce frequently though. Wonder what they put in that stuff hey?!

        • +1

          yeh tomato sauce is ok for me, just tomatoes make me sick, weird but true

  • +1

    sounds like she ran out of windows to lick and got a bit hungry.

    i'd find out what she is allergic to and eat if everyday in front of her.

    go to HR about her stealing your lunch

  • +1

    i will mention again that i believe that she mistakenly thought my food was the company lunch or a small part of it so therefore she thought it would be safe.

    • +1

      Obviously she thought wrong, but I fail to see how that equates to poisoning (or anything like it)? She ate something off your desk, and you had no reason to know she would do that.

    • +14

      Dont say that, you dont know why she was eating it. Just say that you put the company lunch in the fridge & you put your own seperate lunch on your desk. And that you are unsure why she was eating 'your' lunch

    • +3

      I would never presume something to be public domain food when it's sitting on someone's desk, unless it was announced 'free monring Tea @ CapnKirk's desk'.

      She is a knob.

      If you have strict dietary requirements, it is prudent to avoid office catering unless it is specified gluten / nut / dairy / shelllfish free.

      • +6

        She shellfishly ate his. Allergy solved.

    • What did your lunch look like?

      I doubt it would look like something catering for multiple people and hard to mistake for her portion. And especially if it is on your desk and not a common area.

    • +2

      Maybe but since when would you eat the company lunch if it was sitting on a colleagues desk? Even if you thought it was for everyone, that is really bad manners to just get into it without waiting for it to be served in a communal area.

      Damn straight you should write that incident report - "I went to the shops and bought the company lunch and my lunch. I put the company lunch platters in the fridge, and put my lunch on my desk. I went downstairs to give the foreman the mice bait and when I returned I discovered my coworker had eaten part of my lunch from my desk and was having an allergic reaction". The end. Keep it simple. Don't speculate, facts only. And maintain your surprise that your coworker ate your lunch from your desk, hang onto that.

  • +2

    You never have a boring day in your life from freezing an allegedly dead cat to a smelly coworker to a gf that allegedly wanted to have a kid for your money. 😂

    • What's the kid story

    • +2

      that all happened in a year. not day after day.

      • +7

        And what a year it was. Love it, keep it up mate. :)

  • +3

    send her an account for your lunch that she ate.

  • +1

    Does your platter look like the company one………….that sounds sus……..and who eats deli platters for lunch……

    • +5
    • +1

      Yeah my thinking was along the same lines…

      • The company was obviously supplying food platters for lunch, and presumably your co-workers were aware.

      • Presumably your co-workers were also aware you were collecting these platters.

      • Despite the fact your company was supplying food platters for everyone, which I'm guessing includes yourself, you still chose to go to another location and purchase your own food platter, which just happened to contain something your least favourite co-worker is allergic to. I'm guessing her allergy was commonly know in the office too.

      • Company platters were placed in the fridge (out of sight), while your platter was placed on your desk (given it was known you were picking the platters up, your desk would be a pretty reasonable place for an impatient person to find them).

      • Unless you regularly buy your own food platters for lunch, I expect it will be hard to convince a realist this was just a coincidence.

      I'm not saying you set her up - but I can see given all of the above, how it could be seen that way.

      Good luck, assuming this was actually the accident you're suggesting it was.

  • +1

    My understanding is it's up to the person eating to determine whether the food contains an allergen they're allergic to. If she finds some food then she needs to read a label or ask someone to determine the contents. If she's presented food by someone she can ask that person. One would think someone allergic to a certain food is not going to randomly eat whatever they find.

    I think you'll be fine, but in the current political climate of workplace harassment claims by women against men I can understand why you're on edge.

  • -1

    Somehow I find this applicable to all your crazy stories.

    • like ive had 3 stories not that crazy over the course of a year

  • +3

    she had come to my desk to check my work and ate a part of my lunch . The idiot is allergic to something

    Instant karma.

    • How sweet it is.

  • Give her a break.

    1.. She may be a former Russian spy

    2.. Anaphylaxis can cause you to become quite neurotic.. One of the signs someone is having it is a'sense of impending doom'

  • Hilarious, if it wasn't so ridiculous. People being people! Look for a better job and immediately start using the milder 4-letter words on the micro-manager to demand your personal space.

  • At least you now know how to get rid of her. perhaps next time buy a footlong instead of the 6 inch.

  • +1

    Start by wording it to yourself correctly.
    You did not poison your coworker, your coworker poisoned herself.

  • Op, can you clarify who paid for your lunch? Was it out of your own pocket or were you allowed to add your own lunch onto the company card when picking up the platters?

    Maybe she's playing a long game wanting to accuse you of stealing from the company?

  • I think you are over reacting.

    Think about this scenario. Woman complains about being poisoned at work. Reported to employer who did nothing about it. Employee goes off on stress leave. Compensation eventually cut off. Employee sues for wrongful dismissal.

    Versus employer investigates thoroughly, asks both employees for their version of events. Investigation concludes woman was the architect of her own misfortune when she stole another person's lunch. Woman cautioned about stealing other employees lunch. No stress leave, no compensation, no wrongful dismissal, case closed.

  • Nice company who pays for a staff lunch. I would presume that a staff lunch would happen after a meeting or perhaps common time when the platters are put on a table and more than one person shares the platter. Nibbling at a platter (which is presumably sized for one person) is a no go. Filling in an incident report is standard practice at places do work. The incident will make her look like a fool. Stick to the facts as you have said above.

  • +1

    I don't think you need to lawyer up at this stage.

    Ultimately, it will be for your co-worker to decide whether she wants to report the incident to the police (who will then take a statement from you), or she might ask that your company investigate the matter (and HR will investigate, or retain lawyers to conduct an investigation). Until this occurs, getting a lawyer is premature.

    But you should definitely make some formal notes of the incident. If there is an investigation into this matter - either by the police or by lawyers retained by the company - those notes will be useful to refer to.

  • +6

    Tell them the truth - you were baiting mice and thought:-
    " I may as well kill the big fat rat while I'm at it"

    Get yourself a large rat trap , camoflauge with interesting reports ,
    and bait with a blueberry muffin for her next visit.

    • Those rats have expensive tastes.

      • +1

        Yes and have a little sign that says gluten and nut free ,
        kinda like in the roadrunner cartoons

        • Didn't know rats could read.

          What about an even bigger sign that says:

          Rats please read the other sign.

          Heard they are none to fussy but impartial to peanut butter.

  • +10

    I was going through my neighbour's trash can and spotted a pizza box. I opened it up and there was a full pizza in there. Untouched. It didn't look too stale and smelled OK. I took it home, warmed it up and ate it.

    I soon started to get pains in my abdomen with lots of gurgling sounds. A few hours later I had terrible, terrible gastro, and was quite sick for 36 hours.

    Is my neighbour trying to poison me? He knows I go through his trash on a regular basis. He knows I love pizza.

    Should I report him to the police?

  • +3

    ….as others have said, just write down the facts. Leave out emotion - just state what happened. An incident report does not mean you did anything wrong - it's just a means of recording what happened and use that info to reduce the risk of a repeat.

    The 'worst' thing that will happen is they will review this with OH&S and work out a way to prevent a repeat eg "All food must be clearly labelled with your name when left in the shared fridge. Do not eat any food that has been left unattended or has not been clearly labelled as being provided by the company for the employees. If you have a known allergy, please let management know so that if the company provides catering suitable foods can be provided with ingredients clearly displayed." They should also talk to your co-worker to advise them not to eat random food off people's desks, in particular given that she obviously has some sort of allergy.

    You can't be blamed for what happened unless you are working at a childcare centre, bring in peanut butter sandwiches, and one of the kids eats some. If this is a standard workplace then it is usually up to the people who have allergies to alert people that they have them (in particular if they are severe) as well as of course make sure that what they eat does not contain items they are allergic to (tree nuts, seafood, whatever). People can be allergic to all sorts of things (even water - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aquagenic_urticaria) so it's not your role to make sure you do not include items someone may be allergic to in the food you bring in to consume.

  • +1

    I worked with someone like that before, I wish I poisoned her! But no, she was a dumpster… ate anything and everything, her’s or others

    • +4

      Why didn't you confront them like I did at my workplace?

      https://youtu.be/7E0QjtJz-tE

      • +1

        I love that movie!

        I bring my lunch to work, put it in a locked draw and only comes out when I reheat it to eat. She didn't have a chance with mine.

    • +2

      I'd have put some surprises in the lunch bag for that one

      • I was tempted to put a large fake spider in my letterbox to deter those mail theives. But I only think these things.

        • +1

          I couldn't do that, I'd forget about it every day and scare myself, then when I see one in the house, i'd assume that one was fake!

      • +1

        She was always a sucker for a free feed, especially cake. A colleague cooked a cake for their birthday on the weekend and brought in the left overs Monday morning.

        If she had spent 2 minutes actually getting to know them, she would know they were a chilli lover and they tried out a chilli cake! it wasn't well received at the party, so brought it in to give away (people were also intrigued in the idea of a chilli cake!). All she heard while eavesdropping was "I put the cake in the fridge, help yourself when you're free".

        I'm sure you can fill in the rest

  • +3

    So she ate your lunch that you paid with your own money that was sitting on your desk?

    I think she should reimburse you for your lost lunch.

  • +7

    Find out what she's allergic to and only eat that from now on. That'll teach her.

  • +3

    I have watched enough TV detective shows to feel well qualified to comment on this.

    Despite the opportunity presented with the rat poison to get rid of their "busy body micro managing coworker", they are not guilty.

    The fact is "I picked up my lunch along the way from a sandwich deli shop" would indicate the poison was from the shop and was meant for the OP.

    (Which I can understand)

    • I noticed “How to get away with Murder” was shown on TV last week. I think it is a serial, like “Murder; Let me count the ways.”

  • +18

    I open up ozbargain each morning hoping to read stories like this

    • +3

      I don’t even come for the bargains anymore. My favourite link is straight to forums.

  • This is the best story this year. Next time you should get a choc-chip muffin and leave it on top of a rat trap sitting on your desk.

  • +2

    Wonder why you end up having so many co-worker problems.

  • Is she hot though?

    • Sexist… Though shalt not find women attractive.

  • +5

    I know I'll probably get negged or abused, but I had this guy where I used to work that would eat my lunch from the fridge.

    So one day I brought some Oreos and removed the cream and replaced it with toothpaste.

    Then I pulled out some underarm pubes and put them in the middle and reconstructed the Oreos.

    He ate them, had me in tears the whole day.

    • +10

      I know I'll probably get negged or abused,

      Has that ever stopped you before?

      • I tried an (original, unmodified) Oreo once, didn't like it at all.

        Seemed like fake chocolate, colour, synthetic filler… you know, all those chemicals on the packet.

        But @scab, brilliant! You have me thinking about buying a packet, and keeping it with some toothpaste. Doesn't matter if they go stale waiting for a field deployment.

  • Something doesn't quite seem to add up. I feel like we are only getting one side of the story and the truth may be somewhere in the middle.

    • Of course we only have one side, he doesn't know what the other person is thinking.

    • +2

      What do you think the other side would say "Oh I knew we were going to have an office lunch, I saw some food somewhere and ate it without thinking".

  • Try poisoning her again

    • yeahh no.
      thats a crime.

      • +2

        Meh. Double jeopardy.

      • Only a crime if you get caught

  • +1

    Wot da f, seriously what the hell is wrong with people these days?

    • Too many; even for an open forum in here. "Let me count the ways …"

      REM sums it up and quite appropriate given the circumstances:

      https://youtu.be/OA_CndlBu0g

      🙃☹🙃☹🙃☹🙃☹🙃☹🙃☹🙃☹🙃

  • +6

    I was really expecting the rat poison to play a bigger part at the end. Anti Climax.

    • Like what I gave your mum last night. LOLOL

  • +1

    Do you regularly serve the company food platters from your desk?

    Even if it was the company platter on your desk, how does she know it was you trying to poison her? What if the catering company stuffed up?

    If you honestly think you need legal advise then there is more to the story.

    • yeah usually cos my desk is close to the kitchen and i have a very large desk i tend to put them there before i move them into the common area.

      she had my food not the company food which is the issue

      • I know she had your food…
        If she thought it was company food, why did she assume you were trying to poison her specifically? Surely she would assume that it was the catering company.

        • Coz he had the rat poison.

        • +4

          @Sage:
          I think everyone is allergic to rat poison…

      • Since you said you regularly serve company platters from your desk, How did she know that the food she eat was not part of company food.?
        Did you put a label on your food?

  • +2

    And baby bear said, "Who's been eating MY cheese and Lithium sandwich?"

  • +3

    She sounds like the co-worker from hell.
    I would comply with the report request but make it has simple as possible e.g. just write down the facts with bullet points.

    Important only write down the facts of the incident, do not include any emotional, behavioural type of comments like she is a busy body or she is annoying or she loves to micro manage etc

    If you do they might read into this as you having some sort of conflict with her and this could be used as a motive for intent.

  • Be sure to hide anaphylaxis pen next time you attempt to poison a coworker :)
    Or replace it with anaphylaxis shot which contains allergen rather than the required medicine .

    • +1

      yeah nahh not into that kind of behavior

  • Honestly, don't think it could have worked out better if you tried..!

    Sounds like one cold-blooded biatch.

  • The important question … Is she hot?

  • +1

    Honestly, as someone else suggested, it is standard these days for any workplace injury that a report be made (OH&S rules). It sounds like the report you are being asked to write up is just a standard type report required by OH&S laws.
    Just be honest with report. Try not to use inflammatory wording.
    At the end of the day, you have nothing to hide by just telling 100% truth.
    People who lie, can be caught out, because thy have to tell another lie to cover up original lie, and then an clever investigating person could spot such lies. Someone lied in report about me, and Ive caught them out on many inconsistencies, which has now been directed to authorities.
    Just be truthful and trust justice will prevail.

  • Back in my school days I saw a kid eat a paddle pop out of a bin once. I think OP's coworker and that kid have the same disorder.

  • Omg what did you bring for lunch?

    This thread is a better than the recent ones people have been posting. Thanks for the afternoon entertainment!

    If you are wanting to poison your co-worker probably get something stronger? https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Warfarin

Login or Join to leave a comment