Karla Miller

Washington, D.C.

Work dramas and traumas? Come talk to the smart-aleck down the hall. Appearing weekly in Washington Post Sunday Business section. (She/her)

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Articles

Work Advice: His co-worker is stalking him. Can he do anything about it?

3 days ago | washingtonpost.com | Karla Miller

Work Advice: His co-worker is stalking him. Can he do anything about it? (washingtonpost.com) Work Advice: His co-worker is stalking him. Can he do anything about it? By Karla L. Miller 2025042111004400 Reader: I work in retail at a big-box store. A female cashier has been stalking and harassing me for nearly five years. I started avoiding her in the summer of 2020, after she made an inappropriate comment to me about claiming my son as hers.
Column | Work Advice: My employee is a hot mess at work. Can HR help?

2 weeks ago | washingtonpost.com | Karla Miller

Reader: I’m a site manager for a health-care company. One of my direct reports gives gifts no one asks for and dabbles in messy office drama. She has bought chrysanthemums for the fall, beverage cups filled with candy and socks for Valentine’s Day, and a candle and decorative initial letter for my desk on one random occasion. Whenever a male driver makes a delivery or pickupat our office — which is staffed entirely by women — this employee ensures she’s the only one to interact with him.
Work Advice: With age comes experience — and discrimination

3 weeks ago | washingtonpost.com | Karla Miller

Work Advice: With age comes experience — and discrimination (washingtonpost.com) Work Advice: With age comes experience — and discrimination By Karla L. Miller 2025033111000000 Reader 1: I'm applying for jobs adjacent to, but not directly related to, my current field. I do have relevant experience, but it's (mumble mumble) years old. Is it okay to put it on my résumé, even though I am told not to go back too far?
Column | Work Advice: I’m carrying $15,000 in unreimbursed work expenses

1 month ago | washingtonpost.com | Karla Miller

Reader: I’m a retail area manager for a company tied to a larger company that’s declaring bankruptcy. My colleagues and I are often expected to use our personal credit cards for business expenses — there’s no corporate card, stipend or direct billing option to ease the burden. My situation has spiraled out of control. I have been coerced into opening 13 personal credit cards to manage work-related costs and have fronted more than $70,000 in business expenses.
Restaurant worker questions legality of owner’s poor management

1 month ago | washingtonpost.com | Karla Miller

Reader: I work as a hostess for a restaurant. Although I generally enjoy my job and co-workers, the proprietor believes that he can run the establishment any way he sees fit because it’s his. For instance, shortly after a co-worker tried to get me to promise something I knew was impossible, I overheard her saying she “wanted to slap the [expletive] out of” me. She denied the comment was about me, and the proprietor told me that “company policy” required him to believe her.
Column | Work Advice: How to rebuild a relationship with a resentful new boss

1 month ago | washingtonpost.com | Karla Miller

Reader: I’ve been at my company for several years, with a good reputation and a few promotions. Last year, after my team supervisor resigned, I filled that role for a few months until we hired someone. The new supervisor is personable, and their expertise is filling a much-needed gap. It seemed to be going well at first. But now, something is off — we don’t seem to be on the same page, our work styles are very different and both of us are clearly frustrated.
Work Advice: A closer look at whether veterans and military spouses are ‘DEI hires’

1 month ago | washingtonpost.com | Karla Miller

If you were to ask whether employers should offer people of all backgrounds equal opportunity to prove their worth at work, most respondents would probably say yes. But when you ask if they’re in favor of diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) programs, the idea is often seen as shorthand for “unqualified people getting unfair advantages because of their minority status.”So let’s look at a group that everyone would agree is entitled to some privileges: Veterans and military families.
Column | Work Advice: How Trump’s anti-DEI orders affect vets and military spouses

1 month ago | washingtonpost.com | Karla Miller

Reader: Are people who were hired under military preference or military spouse preference considered DEI hires? I’m the spouse of a Navy retiree. I became a federal civilian early in his career and was hired under the military spouse program. I know a lot of people who were hired because they were veterans. I’m hoping they will not be impacted by the current administration’s actions.
How to politely fend off chatty co-workers at the office

2 months ago | washingtonpost.com | Karla Miller

Reader:How can I cut down on chitchat without seeming rude? One co-worker in particular will come into my office and talk at length about nonwork matters. I look at my computer, glance at the clock, say “Mmm hmm,” but these cues don’t work. To complicate matters, sometimes the exchange begins with a legitimate work-related question, but once I have weighed in, they shift to personal topics.
Column | Work Advice: How to turn away an unqualified internal job candidate

2 months ago | washingtonpost.com | Karla Miller

Reader: I work in state government as the director of a small agency with a long history of promoting from within, regardless of whether the candidates have skills suited to their new role. I’m hiring for a newly created assistant director position, which includes responsibilities for mentoring new managers and working with senior management to enhance leadership skills.