How To Deal With The Engineer Who Has Body Odor
It’s a good day and you’re in the middle of finally solving that problem you need to discuss with your clients. You’re the boss in your section and so far, no one’s suing anyone inside the office. The day is starting to look good until one of the people who work under you asks for a little bit of your time.
You ask her to close the door so that you both can have your privacy. She hesitates to tell you what she came in for until she finally complains about the other engineer who has a terrible case of body odor. Of course you tell her you’re going to look into this and thank her for approaching you first instead of embarrassing that engineer.
Now, you are left with this responsibility to inform that engineer about the issue and admit it, it’s one of the most awkward things to do at work. But before you do, you must check it yourself. Does that engineer really have a body odor issue or is the complainant having an off day? In case the claim is true, this is where the awkward but necessary part happens.
It is advisable to talk to that engineer at the end of the day to avoid distracting him/her at work after talking about the issue. Discuss it in a private corner where no one else can hear it to avoid embarrassing him/her. As soon as you are alone with that engineer, just be completely honest about the observation YOU made. Don’t mention someone else complained about him/her to avoid any conflict. Get straight to the point but be kind to the engineer.
Remind the engineer the importance of good hygiene inside the work place so that he/she will see how urgent this issue must be resolved. Also, ask if this is a medical condition. If the engineer says yes, assure him/her that you’ll be more understanding of the condition. If not, the engineer should find a way to work on this.
Keep in mind that sometimes, these smells are results of one’s diet so reminding everyone to be a little more tolerant with each other will also help keep the peace inside.
