DEAR SOMEONE ELSE’S MOM: As part of my job, I have to work late two nights a week. I am usually still at my workstation when the cleaning crew comes in.

There is another guy who sits near me and is on the same schedule. It’s always been my impression of this guy that he’s a bit of a jerk, but he surpasses even that category by how he treats the people who clean the office. He purposely misses his wastebasket, “accidentally” spills coffee and tea all over the breakroom counters and floors, and worst of all, he makes nasty comments about their ethnicity, loud enough that they can’t help but hear him.

I have to work with this guy, but would I be wrong in telling our supervisor, who works alternate nights from us, what’s going on? --- STUCK WITH A JERK

DEAR STUCK WITH A JERK: You don’t mention if you tried speaking to your coworker about his behavior, but I’m guessing from the picture you paint of him, whatever you have to say would most likely not make much of a difference to him.

It’s time to talk to your supervisor about what’s going on when he or she isn’t around. No one should be treated the way this man is treating the cleaning crew, and his attitude towards them is indicative about how he very likely treats other people, and no employer is going to want to deal with potential legal problems because one of their staff members acts the way your coworker does.

DEAR SOMEONE ELSE’S MOM: My mom and dad are very old world. They came to this country from India when they were first married, nearly 35 years ago. I remember all the times when I was growing up their parents would fly to the U.S. and end up staying with us for a month or two at least, and my folks were completely cool with it.

Now that my wife and I have our own family, my parents, who only live a about six hours away, come for at least three visits a year, and after my dad goes back so he can get back to work after a few days, my mom, who has always been a housewife, remains for nearly a month.

My wife, who works from home so she can be with the kids, never says anything, but it drives me nuts having my mom hanging around so much. I enjoy having the house to just my own family, and when Mom’s here, it seems like we have a guest that needs to be entertained. Would I be wrong to ask my mother to cut her visits shorter in the future? --- SON OF A HOUSEGUEST

DEAR SON OF A HOUSEGUEST: Your mom is just following the traditions she grew up with and raised you by. It isn’t at all uncommon for family from far away to make long visits, especially if the trip is costly.

Since we’re not talking about a great distance here, you might suggest to your mom that it would really work out better if she perhaps visited more often, but for shorter periods of time.

However, before you do that, I think you should speak to your wife about it. Since she isn’t expressing objections to the visits, and she’s the one home more of the time than you are, you should ask her if she finds it a help or a hinderance having your mom around.

DEAR SOMEONE ELSE’S MOM: When I started my current job, I had a really good feeling about it that it would be something I would want to do for a long time.

Now that I have learned everything I can expect to learn from it, I am beginning to hate the job. There is nowhere else in my company I could go, and I am beginning to feel like I made a bad choice when I took it.

I have only been here for less than nine months, but I feel like I need to make a change.

How long do I have to stay with a job I hate to keep me from looking like a job-jumper? --- SCARED TO JUMP

DEAR SCARED TO JUMP: Without knowing how many other jobs you’ve had, or how long you’ve stayed with them, it’s hard to say if you come off as a job jumper. It’s unfortunate that this one isn’t working out for you, but that happens.

If you truly feel you’ve done all you can with your current job, and that you’ve hit a dead end, you could start looking around, but don’t expect to land a perfect job next time. Try to find something with growth potential for your sake ─ and that of the employers who will be investing in you.