JohnP, great advice. I agree with all you have said as a total package - all parts are necessary, in my opinion & experience.

If the problem is not fixed after discussing with the two women what the situation is and how it affects you, in a diplomatic way, in a place which is private so that it does not appear to be a public "dressing down" then another idea is to have a staff meeting about issues relating to work.

Part of the reason for the meeting would be to encourage ideas to make work easier and more effective - like Best Practice teamwork meetings, or TQM (total quality management). Other topics for discussion should be sought as well to make this situation just another item on the agenda.

You would need to get support from enough of your colleagues to state how the situation is affecting your work and to put forward a constructive, diplomatic proposal for a solution, but be open to suggestions for alternative solutions. It needs to be presented as a constructive way of increasing team effectiveness. Think laterally about the possible solutions, e.g. can they or you work in separate areas? Can walls or enclosures be erected so that they can be free to be as loud and happy as they want? Or does it just come down to all working well together and making allowances for other people's needs, i.e. mutually agreed compromises, trade-offs, negotiated goals, etc.

If you choose to use this method I would go to the supervisor with a well thought out plan, be as reasonable and rational as possible, sell the "team effectiveness" and "team harmony for increased productivity" angles, and especially the angle that you want to work constructively and proactively on this situation, rather than just handing it over to the supervisor to handle. If the supervisor hates confrontation then the carrot dangled in front of his nose would be that he would be spared the trauma of dealing with conflict.

Good luck
Helen