Farhat Sharief

To: cc:

Diana Turgeon Dir. H R Stephanie Kennedy Manager H R

From: Farhat Sharief Date: March 23, 2006 Re: Employment issues which have arisen at Rand McNally ________________________________________________________________ I would like to bring to the attention of the Human Resources Department certain significant problems in the workplace involving my employment that I have raised verbally in the past, but which have not been formally addressed by Human Resources. I would first like to say that I have been proud to be employed by Rand McNally for nearly thirty years. Up to very recent times, I have consistently received midyear and annual performance ratings indicating my work product exceeded expectations for key objectives and one time far exceeded expectation with a very significant cost saving. My job is very special in nature and requires expertise and careful performance, for which I have been trained, and for which I have years of experience. I have taken my job quite seriously, as reflected in the quality of my work. In the last year, the work environment has changed dramatically. Since August, 2005, I have been exposed to increasing hostility from my supervisor, Susan Hudson, on a repeated and continuous basis. In August, 2005 we began working on the Gold Standard project. This was a job that required immediate attention with a short completion date. We were required to reduce 834 places to 327 places. I explained to Susan Hudson that I needed a new excel sheet in order to reduce 834 places down to 327 places. Susan Hudson did not even look at me as ordered me to “Just do it!.” I went back to her again and tried to explain the problem again, but she would not listen and told me that the problem was my failure to communicate. I have never had a problem communicating with any of my co-workers or superiors. I am of foreign ancestry, but I am a US citizen and I am able to communicate clearly in English. Since LandView was discovered the procedure has been changed and no new procedure has been written. Susan Hudson set a goal for me to help her with developing and writing a new procedure, but she has never followed up on that and it has never been done.

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I used the LandView resource for a California full-revise. Susan Hudson then accused me of not following the correct procedures, even though current procedures do not exist. Rather than explaining what she meant and how to complete the job correctly, Ms. Hudson began sending me angry e-mails. With only ten days left to complete the California full-revise, I asked Susan Hudson to demonstrate the procedures she preferred so I could go over the rural places and finish them with LandScan. Susan Hudson told me there was no LandScan for that and she could not show me how to do it because New York had to be completed. Susan Hudson told me she was going on vacation and would demonstrate the procedure for me when she returned. However, when she did return, she did a quality assurance on seven places, but never demonstrated the verbal procedure of LandScan which was not well defined and hard to apply. Susan Hudson rated my performance as “A,” for the first time on my mid-year and annual review in 2005. Susan misrepresented facts on my SPP and I felt it was necessary to respond to the comments she had made in my permanent record. When I did, Susan Hudson responded, “I am the boss. I can do anything, and they are going to believe me, not you.” I did not receive a copy of my review, signed by Susan Hudson, until February 28, 2006. At that time I learned that Howard had signed my review on October 21, 2005, but the signed review was not returned to me until five and a half months later. In the first week of September, 2005, we were working on clean up. We performed a QA on each other’s work. There was one written procedure, but it appeared everyone understood it differently. Susan Hudson discussed the work with Felix and Ray. Initially I was told that we would all meet to clear this up. Later, I learned that I was not included in the meeting. In regard to the DNF/NRDB rural research procedure, I asked Susan Hudson for clarification of “clustered” as opposed to “scattered.” She told me to “read the procedure.” Then, on September 30, she gave us a revised procedure, defining landmark places. Later, she gave us another revised procedure. On October 12, 2005, Felix and I had a meeting with Susan Hudson with regard to aerial maps. She told me she was too busy and that Felix will help me. Felix and I agreed on nearly everything. Any questions were brought to Susan Hudson. Then on the morning of October 13, 2005, I gave AL to QA. Felix then threw the procedure away, screaming at me. Following that, Susan Hudson and Felix had a meeting about the result of QA on my work. I asked to be included, which Susan Hudson refused, with one word: “No.” Later, I finished AR and asked Felix for his comments. On November 8, 2005, I still had not received any comments from QA about AR. On November 9, 2005, I met with Felix for one hour. He said to me: “Don’t you think Joel should hire somebody to do this job?” I said that was up to

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management. Then Felix leaned over toward me and said: “I get mad at you when you don’t answer my questions.” On November 15, 2005, I told Susan Hudson I had worked on 15 states, but I received no feedback from her. On December 6, 2005, Susan Hudson sent me an e-mail indicating I should join her for a “planning meeting.” In fact it was not a planning meeting. When I arrived couple of minutes early, Susan Hudson said “Why don’t you come a little later because Stephanie from Human Resources will join us.”I asked Susan why I was not told that this was a Human Resources meeting and that Stephanie would be present, so I could be property prepared. Susan told me “I don’t have to tell you.” Susan Hudson presented the error report and told me the errors needed to come down to 8%, as the last error report was 9%. While discussing my performance rating, Susan Hudson told Stephanie that I had requested an “E.” I pointed out that was my self-assessment, not a request to Susan Hudson. Susan Hudson then said to Stephanie: “She doesn’t even deserve an “A.” On January 12, 2006, Susan Hudson had a meeting with me about training and then said to me in a hostile voice: “Don’t say I did not train you.” On February 14, 2006, I spoke to Stephanie about my upcoming review. I told her that I would send my completed evaluation to Susan Hudson the next day. I also told her that I was under too much stress on the job to have a discussion at that time, and I requested to be excused from the review at that time. I told Stephanie that my working environment, and the way I was being treated and spoken to, was causing me physical illness, including stomach problems and diarrhea. Stephanie told me she would talk to Susan about the situation. I have since been thoroughly tested for these physical problems and it has been determined that there is no organic cause and that my stomach and digestive problems are stress related. Regardless of the meeting with Stephanie, my work environment has not changed and no one has told me that any course of action will be taken to correct the current situation. Receiving orders from my supervisor, such as” “Just do it,” and one word responses such as “No!” are unacceptable, disrespectful and inappropriate in the workplace. Similarly, such comments as: “Don’t say I didn’t train you” and “I am the boss, who are they going to believe, you or me” are unprofessional and dehumanizing, as are the comments: “ I am the boss, I can do anything” and “I don’t have to tell you.” Still further, for Susan Hudson to misrepresent that we were going to have a planning meeting, when in fact she knew that she had called a meeting with Stephanie from Human Resources – and then to say, in front of Stephanie, She doesn’t even deserve an A” indicates a complete lack of professionalism and respect for human dignity.

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Resolution I am asking Human Resources to address the problems that I have raised and reiterated in this memorandum. I need to know, specifically, in writing, what will be done about the manner in which I have been and am being treated. I have not changed my work habits or my work ethic in any way, by comparison to my history of glowing, and praising reviews. I am still the diligent, hard working person I have been at this company for over 29 years. Perhaps the entire department is under excessive pressure. But with no other explanation to rely upon, and no response from Human Resources, I am left to wonder if I am now experiencing age discrimination or discrimination based on my race, gender, or creed, which I never experienced before at this company. I am ashamed that my children are now aware of the way I am being treated by a life-long employer. Regardless of the reason for the way I am being treated, it is clearly causing me physical illness and mental anguish, which is not what I anticipated my last years at Rand McNally would be like, after a career that was previously the subject of praise and accomplishment. Respectfully,

___________________________________ Farhat Sharief

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