Dear Claudia,

I feel silly writing about this, but it’s come to the point that if I don’t get some advice soon, I’m gonna kill someone and plant sweet smelling flowers on his grave. Our company recently downsized and moved into a smaller office space; I now sit in a cubicle next to one of the engineers. Nice guy, very friendly (and curious about my job, which is annoying), but the real problem is that he has the worst body odor imaginable. No matter what I try, I can’t get away from the smell; it even lingers on my clothes when I go home some days. I’ve talked with my boss about it several times, and she’s had conversations with his boss, but this guy doesn’t seem to get the message. There’s no other space in the office for me to move; what should I do?

Migraine in Maine

Dear Migaine,

Can I just say this for all of the girls in the room? Ewwwwwwwwwwwwww. Sorry guys, I know there are some equally sensitive male noses out there. It may not help to know this, but Fish4jobs did a survey in the UK last year about bad behaviors in office environments...


Read the rest of my response and add comments of your own here...


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In my day job, I’m the Head of Products for Improved Experience, where we help employers use feedback to measure and manage competitive advantage in hiring and retention. Learn more about us here.

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