Wasn't the full moon yesterday?

Whatever

Lunch is normally 45 minutes. However, on Fridays, the ees get an extra 15 minutes to cash their checks. For the people in the office this is no longer necessary, but they still get their checks. On May 14, the office has to close at 3 p.m. So, the office manager decided that the office workers would not get an afternoon break and would take a 45 minute lunch. EEs, who normally work until 5 p.m., resent the shortened lunch hour. They came and complained to both the office manager and me. Finally, the office manager announced that the next ee who complains would be fired. Not even two minutes later someone was fired. Now the office workers are really irked (politically correct term). While deep down in my heart I applaud the OM, the reality is that morale right now doesn't exist and I don't think the weekend will help. Any suggestions.

cebudragonlady

Is there an Owner you can go to ? - go to him/her, and calmly detail the situation re the Office Manager . Does the handbook state disciplinary procedures ? If so, were the written procedures followed in the case of the quickly fired employee ? Suggest a resolution to the problem. A meeting of everyone may be necessary - because morale has gone South.

Chari

POPEYE

The first thing I would do is let whomever is over your office manager to start looking for a new one with a little tact!!!!! I would love to have my Law Degree and represent the EE that was terminated.

System

Sounds like an ugly situation, Whatever. The employee's complaint looks a lot like concerted activity under the NLRA, which would make the termination illegal. You might want to talk to a lawyer.

And with bad morale, some of your employees are probably toying with the idea of unionizing. I just saw an excellent article on this topic, "Employee dissatisfaction: a sign of bad things to come," in the May issue of Virginia Employment Law Letter. Unfortunately, it's not yet available in the Subscribers Area of HRhero.com, but it should be within a couple of weeks.

Good luck.

James Sokolowski
HRhero.com

Don D

These questions may not be relevant; but (1) Why does the office 'have to close at 3:00 on May 14'? and (2) Why/How do you 'deep down in your heart applaud the Office Manager' for what he/she did?

I agree with James. What you had going on was protected activity under the NLRA. It's like firing people for discussing their paychecks. You guys are inviting a union.

Whatever

1. The office is closing because of a maintenance problem that requires removal of ceiling tiles.

2. With the exception of one ee who went to office manager to explain why they needed the full hour for lunch, the others who went storming in, used inappropriate tones to express their anger. Unfortunately, the om instead of talking to people got angry herself.

3. I did meet with the ees. Practically everyone (there is an exception to every rule) realized that they had over reacted. (As background, during the summer, the office works shorter hours). A concern was expressed about what the summer hours would be. When they were assured that there would be no change, everyone breathed a sigh of relief. We, also, discussed any other concerns they might have.

4. The OM was written up. She, also, must take a course at the local college to refresh her skills.

5. I, also, had a long conversation with the ee who was fired. She is returning on Monday. When she returns, there will be a meeting with her and the om in my office.

6. As to the union issue. The factories are unionized. However, one the factories (we have two)has made inquiries to the government about decertification.

Don D

All of that notwithstanding, the NLRA was still violated.

Beave

Wow, what a mess. How'd things go with the OM & the employee on Monday?

Whatever

Very well. However, the groundwork was in place before the meeting. But, it is obvious, that the respect for the om by the ees she supervises and by other managers was severely damaged.