5 - Humansideupdate092104

Roles: Harry Grossman -- Maintenance Supervisor Joe Czernicki – Utility Man Ralph McGraw – Union Representative THE HUMANSIDE OF ENGINEERING PEACEFUL HARASSMENT: IS DISCIPLINE WARRANTED? During a strike that lasted 64 days, a dozen workers were hired to replace the strikers. When the strike was over, six of the replacements were kept on. A week or so later, two of the six workers appeared at the desk of the maintenance supervisor, Harry Grossman. “What’s the problem?” he asked. Joe Czernicki, a utility man, acted as spokesman. “Some of the crew are giving us a hard time,” he complained. “They resent the fact that we were hired and went to work during the strike.” “A hard time? How?” “Like making cracks,” Czernicki said. “One guy asked how it felt to be a fink. Another said, ‘Now I know what a rat looks like.’ That kind of thing.” The other worker joined in the conversation. ”That’s just part of it. A lot of times, a couple of them will give us looks--you know, staring at us or leering at us--and start whispering with smug, wise-guy looks on their faces, looking at us as if we had just crawled out of a hole. You’d think it was our fault that the plant went out on strike. We’re entitled to work just the same as they are; we have families to support, too.” Grossman nodded. “Is it just the two of you who are getting this treatment?” “No,” Czernicki replied. “All of us who were kept on after the strike. We were sort of elected as spokesmen.” “And who’s been giving you a hard time? Everyone?” “No.” The two men named three members of the maintenance crew who seemed to be the ringleaders. “I’ll talk to them,” the foreman promised. He kept his word. After the break period that afternoon Grossman called a meeting of the crew, reprimanded them for harassing the replacement workers, and ordered them to discontinue the harassment. To make the reprimand official, he posted a notice on the bulletin board to that effect. A couple of days later the two men were back. Instead of stopping the harassment, they complained, the meeting seemed to have intensified it. The same three workers were pinpointed as the most aggressive. Grossman issued each of them a three-day suspension after checking with the other replacements to be sure that the harassment was, indeed, continuing. No sooner had he issued the suspensions that he got a call from the union representative, Ralph McGraw. “Those suspensions are illegal,” he said. “You can’t discipline employees for staring at those finks and making a few cracks. If they can’t stand the heat, they ought to get out of the kitchen.” Grossman answered, “Those suspensions are legal – you can’t stop me from doing what is right. At this point, Grossman called in the consultants. QUESTION: Is the union representative right? Do you think Grossman was right to suspend the employees and can he make the suspension stick?

THE HUMANSIDE OF ENGINEERING PEACEFUL HARASSMENT: IS DISCIPLINE WARRANTED?

“Your response was correct and justified,” Plant Engineer/ Consultant Frank Hull told Grossman when he told Hull about the problem. “Harassment doesn’t have to be violent or physical to constitute intimidation. Those three men were warned. They were told to stop. The fact that they chose to disregard your instructions is just cause for discipline. Let them think about it for a few days. They can fight it if they wish. My advice is to stand firm.”

Roles: Joan Achim -- Harvey’s coworker Harvey Silversmith – a maintenance worker Bill Frinck – the maintenance supervisor

THE HUMANSIDE OF ENGINEERING CAN YOU FORCE A DRESS CODE ON EMPLOYEES? Joan Achim, a coworker of Harvey Silversmith, explains Harvey. “Harvey Silversmith has definitely changed. When Harvey came he was a clean shaven, neat young man. Now, he is completely different. He had just celebrated his 18th birthday when he was hired as a trainee in the maintenance department. He was bright, eager, and, if not a model of grooming, at least neat in appearance. He completed the company’s three month training period with a better than average record, achieved the status of permanent employee, and became a specialist in the maintenance and repair of equipment unique to the company’s segment of the electrical controls industry.” Joan continued, “After more than a year on the job, Silversmith had established himself as an above-average employee with a reasonably bright future. At this point the transformation began. Some coworkers said it was the new crowd he was running with. Others attributed it to the times. As one crewmember put it, ‘It’s Harvey’s way of declaring his independence.’ Still others blamed his changing attitude. Silversmith made no secret of the fact he was unhappy with his paycheck and bitter over maintenance supervisor Bill Frinck’s refusal to grant him the raise he requested. One worker said, ‘Harvey’s doing it to get even.’” This is Bill Frink’s reaction to Harvey’s behavior. Frink, Harvey’s supervisor, was getting angry. He finally called Harvey in and said, “Your hair is getting longer and longer. You are wearing cowboy boots and tight designer jeans to work. This is too much. I can’t let you continue dressing this way.” Besides manufacturing, the company did contract work for other manufacturers. As an expert on specialized equipment, Silversmith was occasionally sent to customers’ plants to work on their machinery. Frinck tried to sound as logical and reasonable as he could in explaining his objection. “You can’t show up at a customer’s plant looking like some weirdo out of a rock video,” he told the worker. “It’s bad for the company’s image.” Silversmith’s terse response was, “Bull!” Frinck swallowed his temper. “I’m not asking you to change you style of dress and to get a haircut; I’m telling you!” “No way! This is a free country. I dress as I please.” “You either dress appropriately or I’ll fire you.” QUESTION: Can the supervisor, Bill Frink, make Silversmith comply with the company’s dress code, namely no boots or tight pants, and no inordinately long hair? If Silversmith doesn’t obey, can Frink fire him? Frink decides to talk to the plant consultant. He brings Joan Aschim in to help.

THE HUMANSIDE OF ENGINEERING CAN YOU FORCE A DRESS CODE ON EMPLOYEES? Frinck told the problem to Plant Engineer/Consultant Ed Randall. Randall listened with interest to the story of the impasse with Silversmith. “It’s no secret,” Randall replied, “that dress and appearance codes have been substantially liberalized in recent years. Harvey Silversmith might have the courts on his side if this were an ordinary matter of an employer contesting an employee’s appearance. But, in this case, there are two extraordinary circumstances. “The first is that Silversmith knew when he was hired and started his training that he would eventually be dispatched for repair work to customer plants. The second is that when he was hired, his appearance was acceptable and in line with the image the company seeks to project. If he had shown up for the employment interview in the costume he’s currently wearing and with that hairstyle, he wouldn’t have gotten past the receptionist’s desk. In essence, the Harvey Silversmith of today and the one we hired is not the same person. “A company has no choice but to be concerned with the impression it makes on its customers. Its image influences the kind and amount of business it does. Under the circumstances, an ultimatum is in order for Silversmith: Either shape up or ship out. (Either change your style of dress, or leave the company.)