Plumbing the depths

The majority of the people I work with do their best, toiling away under heavy workloads and still, somehow, just about getting stuff done. I do also deal with some real morons, but they're hard to avoid in any line of work. Still, I was not prepared for the person I've been dealing with this past week, who has made gormlessness into an artform.

Last week, I got asked if I could give some support to L who had a particular report she needed to write by tomorrow (11th) and I met with her on Wednesday (2nd). The report she needs to do will take about 8-12 hours to write, since it's all about compiling and analysing existing information; essentially, because I've done lots of these, I can knock one out in 3-4 hours but I figure it's going to be three or four times longer for someone without the same experience.

I should have realised when L stopped taking notes partway through our conversation that there was going to be a problem. I'd already wondered if I should have brought some jumpleads along, since she was almost sucking all the energy out of the office. Still, I persevered and L agreed to get a first draft to me by Monday (7th), thus giving time for amendments. Of course, the fact her manager's parting comment when I informed her of this was "you'll be lucky" should have also been a clue.

As you can probably predict, Monday rolls around and no report. I drop her an email and then get a phone call, assuring me the report will be with me the following day and that it's half done. L is also getting help from someone else, not that this seems to be speeding up the process in any way. I'm already underwhelmed by L but decide to see what happens. An email arrives in my inbox at 4.55pm on Tuesday afternoon - I'd already decided not to say I wasn't going to be in the office on Wednesday, just in case, so it's going to have to wait.

This morning I open the file L sent me, hoping for the best, and it's half done. Yes, the half completed report from Monday is apparently still half completed. I email, asking if I've been sent the wrong file - no, I have the right file, and the other half is 'on the way'. Three hours later, when I'm about to go off for meetings elsewhere and therefore will have no further time to look at her report, I still haven't received anything, so cue a stinky email to L and her manager going through the entire sequence of events and asking what she's playing at. There is, however, a technical term for this behaviour: taking the piss.

I know from L's manager that she is not as busy as everyone else. She has had at least 30 work hours in which to get this report done and I have no faith whatsoever that the other half even exists. The most galling part? She's a locum, so I expect she's earning more money than everyone else in that office who is working their arses off, and more than I get as well.