Team work\likes or dislikes

[Nighthawk]

But is this not a case of "Lets work as a team".
Regardless of our feelings toward each other or lack of them we are there do do a job so lets get on and do it as a Team.
Being an Ex Army man we had no choice even if we were the worst of enemys we got on and worked as a tem and looked after each other.
Its down to the managment on post (Observers) to see that things are ok.
I will work with anyone.
So come on its team work.

[Tracey]

The magic word is choice. I agree in a job, you have no choice of who you work with. However, marshalling is, for me, a hobby - something I get pleasure from doing. As a result, I will choose to exercise my right to make informed choices of who I don't work with if being around someone makes me feel very unsafe. Other than that - variety is the spice of life!

[EvilPumpkin]

I marshal a variety of different disciplines, I'm a member of four different marshalling clubs and marshal occasionally for a couple of others - and I get to a fair few circuits over the course of a year. More than would be usual for an Irish marshal, bearing in mind that there's only one circuit in the south and only a couple in the north.

I've marshalled with hundreds of different people and in general I've gotten on with most of them. I can count on the fingers of one hand the people I will not marshal with, out of the hundreds I have met. However, I will not marshal with those people under any circumstances and a lot of the reason is that teamwork is not an option with them - they have a totally different agenda and it has little to do with marshalling.

Even outside of marshalling, you do have a choice of who you work with. If you are unhappy with your work situation, you can use the internal complaints procedure, external legal system if applicable - or simply change jobs.

Even in the Army, if you are in a situation where you really cannot rely on another person within the team and your safety is being put at risk, you have options. Granted, the emphasis is on trying to deal with things without going official - but the option is there.

Teamwork is indeed the watchword. But the problem is that not all groups of people are teams. Some are gangs of bullies looking for someone that they can pick on in order to bolster their egos.

In any group of people, you will always have some that don't get on. This doesn't mean they can't work together and the majority of them do. But you have to accept that some situations are far beyond the "we don't have anything in common" scenario and into territory that can create a dangerous and stressful atmosphere that will spill over into the general group.


No-one is saying that everyone should be able to pick and choose where, and with whom, they are posted. But facility has to be in place to ensure that if someone really doesn't want to be in a place/group, that they can be accommodated.

It's vital that problems like that are caught early and dealt with appropriately - otherwise you end up with a situation where factions form and then you have a real problem on your hands. Forcing people who shouldn't be anywhere near each other to spend time together in the name of teamwork can actually be the most harmful thing you can do.

[Nighthawk]

Ok I agree with what you are saying. Its a hobby for me too.
What are we there for?
As an I/O i have come across these sort of situations and have had to work it out but not forgetting the reasons we are there on the bank.
I feel some take it as a hobby to the extreme