Happy Is As Happy Does
In the movie, Forrest Gump, Forrest had an I.Q. of 75 and his favorite book was Curious
George. One of Forrest Gump's favorite sayings was "stupid is as stupid does." Forrest's
point was that one should only be judged stupid if one acts stupid. In applying Gump
logic to the workplace, since Forrest never got around to comment on the workplace, I
think that Forrest would have said to managers, "happy is as happy does," in reference to
employees. In other words, a happy employee is an employee who acts happy.
Old style managers were trained that if an employee was too happy at work, the employee
must be goofing off and not working. A manager's job was to make an employee's work life
tough, and to prevent an employee from goofing off while at work. If the job itself was
not difficult enough, the manager could make an employee's work life more difficult by
frequently changing vacation time policy, forgetting to send in an employee's changes to
their health plan, and by misplacing their timecard.
New style managers have embraced the concept that work and fun are no longer
contradictions. An employee who laughs, has fun, and maintains a playful attitude
at work is a happy employee. Happy employees tend to be more energetic, productive,
and have an outlet for stress and tension. Also, happy employees build morale in
themselves and other employees. Laughter, fun, and playfulness are contagious.
Companies and organizations benefit from happy employees who laugh, have fun, and are
playful on the job because happy employees are less likely to be absent, tend to be
more creative, and are less likely to quit. And if your company has its employees
working in teams, humor is essential to promoting team bonding, team trust, and team
participation.
Happy Working,
Gary Vikesland, MA LP CEAP
Employer-Employee.com
Avoid Legal Trouble With Employees
Nolo's Legal Tips
Can you afford to ignore or mishandle employment problems?
Definitely not. In addition to the negative effects on your
business -- declining morale, retention problems and poor
productivity, to name a few -- a botched employment situation
can cost you millions of dollars if it turns into a lawsuit.
Protect yourself using these commonsense tips:
Treat your workers with respect. Workers who
are deprived of dignity, who are humiliated or who
are treated in ways that are just plain mean are
more likely to look for some revenge through the
legal system -- and juries are more likely to
sympathize with them. For example, if you march
fired workers off the premises under armed guard,
publicize an employee's personal problems or
shame a worker in public for poor performance,
you can expect trouble.
Communicate with your workers. Adopt an open
door policy and put it into practice. This will help
you find out about workplace problems early on,
when you can nip them in the bud. And it will show
your employees that you value their opinions, an
important component of positive employee relations.
Be consistent. Apply the same standards of
performance and conduct to all of your employees.
Workers quickly sour on a boss playing favorites
or punishing scapegoats. Successful discrimination
lawsuits start when you treat workers in the same
situation differently.
Give regular evaluations. Performance evaluations
are your early warning system regarding employment
problems -- and your proof that you acted reasonably
if you end up in court. In the best situations, they can
turn a poor performer into a valued worker. In the
worst, evaluations can be valuable proof in a lawsuit,
illustrating that you put a poor performer on notice
and gave him a chance to improve. You can find
detailed information about giving performance
evaluations in
Dealing With Problem Employees: A Legal Guide (Nolo).
Make job-related decisions. Every workplace
decision made should be guided by job-related
criteria -- not by a worker's race or gender and
not by a worker's personal life or your personal
biases. Making sure that your personnel decisions
are business-related, make economic sense and
will keep you out of lawsuits for discrimination,
violation of privacy and wrongful termination.
Don't punish the messenger. Employers get in
trouble when they discipline whistleblowers or
workers who complain of harassment, discrimination
or unsafe working conditions. Take action to deal
with the problem itself, not with the employee
who brought the problem to your attention.
Adopt sound policies and follow them. An employee
handbook is an indispensable workplace tool that
can help you communicate with your employees,
manage your workforce and protect your business
from lawsuits. But once you adopt policies, you
have to follow them. If you bend the rules, your
workers won't take them seriously. Some courts
have found that employers who don't follow the
policies set out in their employee handbook or
personnel manual might be on the hook for breach
of contract.
Keep good records. If a worker sues you, you'll
have to not only explain what happened, but also
prove that your version of the story is accurate.
To make your best case, keep careful records of
every major employment decision or event with each
worker -- including evaluations, disciplinary warnings
and reasons for firing.
Take action when necessary. Once an
employment problem comes to your attention, resist
the temptation to hide your head in the sand. Take
action quickly, before it turns into a real mess.
Be discreet. Loose lips about employee problems
are a surefire way to bring the law down upon your
head. An employee could sue you for defamation --
she could also haul you into court for causing her
emotional distress, for creating a work environment
that is hostile toward her or for poisoning prospective
employers against her. The stakes are high, so protect
yourself by giving information on a need-to-know basis
only. You can find more information on employee
privacy rights and other workplace issues in
Everyday Employment Law: The Basics (Nolo).
Copyright 2003, Nolo
Happy Working,
Gary Vikesland, MA LP CEAP
Employer-Employee.com
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