High Plains Drifter Posted September 11, 2008 Posted September 11, 2008 Proven once again. I work with one of the nicest, hardworking ol' boys you could imagine. He drives the truck that delivers product that I use in various refineries. A few weeks ago he had a fender-bender with a rail road barrier. Barely hurt the truck, and didn't damage the barrier, but he's been told he'll be disiplined. He's been calling me the last couple of days, and I can tell he's distracted and anxious. The thing is: I know what his punishment will be, and its probably not as bad as he's imagining. He'll get a Letter of Reprimand, Only a 2% bump in pay (the smallest allowable), and his annual bonus will be bumped back a quarter. Now why management cannot simply TELL him this, I don't know? Its like they're TRYING to give the old man a heart attack!!! I'm thinking on telling him myself, but then ALL ROADS TO HELL ARE PAVED WITH GOOD INTENTIONS. What do you think?
Sarita12385 Posted September 11, 2008 Posted September 11, 2008 What's the big deal if you tell him? Are you at risk of then getting reprimanded? Might sound better coming from someone like yourself rather than the company. If you're sure he's not on the verge of getting fired, just try calming him down
Author High Plains Drifter Posted September 11, 2008 Author Posted September 11, 2008 What's the big deal if you tell him? Are you at risk of then getting reprimanded? I really don't know. Like I said, in my experience, "No good deed goes unpunished." I know what the punishment is because my boss told me. Why? I don't know, but he seemed to be taking me into his confidence. Another thing I've learned is that earning the confidence of others is damn hard to do, but its easy to lose.
Angel1111 Posted September 11, 2008 Posted September 11, 2008 I see this kind of poor management all the time and it's very troubling. This employee shouldn't even be repirmanded for this accident unless he was being extremely negligent, or if he does this kind of thing fairly often. This poor guy is being tortured for just being human. So ridiculous. Yes, if I were you, I'd tell him what he can expect - he's probably about to have a coronary. Just tell him what you know about what's typical of company policy.
Author High Plains Drifter Posted September 11, 2008 Author Posted September 11, 2008 Well, I just called my Boss' Boss. Let him know that Jim (the trucker) sounded like he was MUCH more stressed out than he deserved to be, and that someone oughta let him know wtf was going on. Now I've done it.
IfWishesWereHorses Posted September 11, 2008 Posted September 11, 2008 I really don't know. Like I said, in my experience, "No good deed goes unpunished." My father said this to me all of my life as a kid. I always called him a pessimist when he did! As an adult I have lived this over and over and over. Which means I don't learn lessons easily, I guess! I completely agree with your theory BUT I would have to tell in this case. The work ethic of this age group and the dedication to a job are deeply ingrained. I remember a local mill that was rumored to be offering "mandatory" early retirement packages to some but the catch was you had to sign up before they published the list of names. 25 grown men who had worked for the complany all of their lives had heartattacks or strokes with in a month of each other before it was ever inacted. Non illegitimi te carborandum est!
Author High Plains Drifter Posted September 11, 2008 Author Posted September 11, 2008 I really don't know. Like I said, in my experience, "No good deed goes unpunished." My father said this to me all of my life as a kid. I always called him a pessimist when he did! As an adult I have lived this over and over and over. Which means I don't learn lessons easily, I guess! I completely agree with your theory BUT I would have to tell in this case. The work ethic of this age group and the dedication to a job are deeply ingrained. I remember a local mill that was rumored to be offering "mandatory" early retirement packages to some but the catch was you had to sign up before they published the list of names. 25 grown men who had worked for the complany all of their lives had heartattacks or strokes with in a month of each other before it was ever inacted. Non illegitimi te carborandum est! You make an interesting point about the work ethic of this age group. I had lunch with Jim, to sorta feel out his opinion of the news, and to emphasise the importance of the confidentiality of the info. He told me that he'd worked for the company 29 YEARS, and had only had TWO (2) accidents. He thought that he was being treated as a number. He also was a helluva lot more savvy about the punishment than I had given him credit: No Christmas bonus, and no more than 2% raise (which could be a LOT more than a week's pay, which he lost because of his last accident. Basically, he said, another accident, and I'm walking.
Trialbyfire Posted September 11, 2008 Posted September 11, 2008 Well, I just called my Boss' Boss. Let him know that Jim (the trucker) sounded like he was MUCH more stressed out than he deserved to be, and that someone oughta let him know wtf was going on. Now I've done it. I like this. It shows that you're taking all parties into consideration. One thing though, why wouldn't you have told your boss though? In telling your boss' boss, aren't you potential telling him that your boss has loose lips?
Author High Plains Drifter Posted September 12, 2008 Author Posted September 12, 2008 I like this. It shows that you're taking all parties into consideration. One thing though, why wouldn't you have told your boss though? In telling your boss' boss, aren't you potential telling him that your boss has loose lips? The day before, he told his boss that he had told me everything, and that I thought the punishment would be taken lightly. My boss was so ill yesterday, he had to travel home, but I wanted someone to speak with Jim before the weekend: if not my boss, then his boss. Anyway, now I'm done. I agree I'm taking a small risk, but its not in my nature to see someone suffering and just ignore it because helping them might pose a personal risk.
Trialbyfire Posted September 12, 2008 Posted September 12, 2008 The day before, he told his boss that he had told me everything, and that I thought the punishment would be taken lightly. My boss was so ill yesterday, he had to travel home, but I wanted someone to speak with Jim before the weekend: if not my boss, then his boss. Anyway, now I'm done. I agree I'm taking a small risk, but its not in my nature to see someone suffering and just ignore it because helping them might pose a personal risk. Then I 100% agree with the actions you took. You kept company discretion while attempting to alleviate a mismanaged situation with a co-worker. Well done, regardless of outcome. Your thoughts were in the right place.
Author High Plains Drifter Posted September 14, 2008 Author Posted September 14, 2008 Then I 100% agree with the actions you took. You kept company discretion while attempting to alleviate a mismanaged situation with a co-worker. Well done, regardless of outcome. Your thoughts were in the right place. Thanks. Spoke to the boss Friday AM. He was STILL trying to get all the ducks in a row, and wanted to fish out whether or not I'd spilled my guts.
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