I am an executive assistant in a corporate office. My boss has a high title. My desk neighbor (I'll call her Brianne) has worked here for over 7 years, she's an assistant to a lower ranking person. The moment I started my job, she has made it clear that she dislikes my boss, but has not given any reason.
He sometimes has a loud laugh, sometimes speaks a bit loud, and might cough here and there...In other words, he operates like any other normal person, but he's very polite and friendly.
Brianne will constantly make remarks such as "ugh give me a break" when he laughs. She will say "yuck, so disgusting" when he coughs. She's even had the audacity to go to his office and close his door when I'm not here, when he's on a call as to block out the noise coming from his office!
She and her (lower ranking) boss have zero respect for him and they have verbally voiced their opinion of him to me, telling me they aren't his "fans".
I don't know the history of this egregious tension but it seems to be one sided, as my boss doesn't ever seem to treat them poorly.
To top it off, Brianne is on the phone constantly, all day, gossips on the phone, has personal conversations, whispers to colleagues when they're at her desk, complains nearly everyday, and laughs just as loud.
I know two other assistants before me who have had conflicts with her.
How would you approach the situation if you were me?
