Discpline for employee near retirement
legaladmin43
19 Posts
We have a long time employee who would normally have been fired a long time ago - I've had to fire employees who have committed fewer sins....
However, she is a widow with no other means of support than herself and has become the office "social" case. Not only does her misbehavior cause a morale problem, but her supervising attorney, one of the biggest proponents of not firing her, complains about her to me since I am the office manager.
I can't figure out how to "manage" her since talking to her, issuing warnings, etc. has not been effective and there is no other system in place for additional discpline other than a termination, which I am not allowed to do.
She is approximately a year and a half away from retirement (okay, 1 year, 6 months and 5 days...) sits right outside my office where I can hear her all day long talk to her family and friends.
I have tried all kinds of accomodations from changing her hours to account for her chronic tardiness, to lessening her workload, etc., but she still manages to cheat on her timecard, play a mean game of Solitaire, and conduct auctions on eBay. (I also have tried playing music in my office for my own sanity...)
It has been suggested we set up a different system of discipline for her, including a series of suspensions. Would this be permissible if we don't use this system with other employees (we'd fire them before they got this far...)? We have no other employees close to retirement age and I suspect one of the reasons they don't fire her is they are afraid of an age discrimnation suit.
Please help!
However, she is a widow with no other means of support than herself and has become the office "social" case. Not only does her misbehavior cause a morale problem, but her supervising attorney, one of the biggest proponents of not firing her, complains about her to me since I am the office manager.
I can't figure out how to "manage" her since talking to her, issuing warnings, etc. has not been effective and there is no other system in place for additional discpline other than a termination, which I am not allowed to do.
She is approximately a year and a half away from retirement (okay, 1 year, 6 months and 5 days...) sits right outside my office where I can hear her all day long talk to her family and friends.
I have tried all kinds of accomodations from changing her hours to account for her chronic tardiness, to lessening her workload, etc., but she still manages to cheat on her timecard, play a mean game of Solitaire, and conduct auctions on eBay. (I also have tried playing music in my office for my own sanity...)
It has been suggested we set up a different system of discipline for her, including a series of suspensions. Would this be permissible if we don't use this system with other employees (we'd fire them before they got this far...)? We have no other employees close to retirement age and I suspect one of the reasons they don't fire her is they are afraid of an age discrimnation suit.
Please help!
Comments
Also, I'd have her Solitaire game removed from her computer and limit her internet access.
I think you have two choices:
1. Ignore her and dig in for a very long year and six months. Be prepared to deal with the consequences of not responding to her flagrant misbehavior. Good luck trying to fire anyone in the future for being late, not doing their work, etc.
2. Treat her just like you treat everyone else. Document her performance problems and work through your established discipline process. Keep everything, including termination, on the table.
I wish you luck! You have been put in a difficult spot.
I think Paul’s 2 choices are basically it. And yes, you have been put in a difficult spot so I will attempt to help a little by asking some questions you can answer to yourself and also share a few of my thoughts.
Why are you having to carry the load instead of the supv? Why is the atty supervising if he isn’t trying to address the issue? Does he supervise other EEs and if so how well? My supvs come to me for alternatives/suggestions to handle a problem EE or make sure they don’t make a legal mistake. I try to teach them “to fish” and it’s worked very well but I have excellent management support that you may not have.
Does the supv just not want to be the bad guy? Have you asked him how he wants to handle the situation? Use probing questions, make him feel like he has all the wisdom. (don’t attys think that, anyway x}> Occasional venting by supv is okay but you should not be used as the kicking post when the atty is fighting your suggestion. How many others and what level is resisting what you think is the next reasonable progressive action? If more then one, are their reasons the same or all different? Perhaps it is charity or fear of lawsuit. If those resisting are afraid of a suit, again ask why? Does the supv fail to document? Tell him to start! He should have had a big file by now. Does atty have supv training or experience? If not, send him. Position the EE outside ATTY’S office so HE’s prodded into action. Does your company not have policies in place? Get them written.
You may have tried some of this so I also tried to list things you could take higher up the org chart. Which leads to a major warning. Do NOT take on further action alone. My take on reading your post, you may be set up, intentionally or not, as 1) the do nothing/incompetent Office Mgr 2) the cold-hearted B.... that fired the widow 3) the stupid Mgr that didn’t listen to legal advice & got the co. in an age discrimination lawsuit. The supv/atty, who should have taken ownership of this problem comes out clean. Do any of those predictions sound reasonable?
To proceed, get buy in from all stakeholders making sure it’s done confidentially. Have supv/atty calculate total cost of having this EE not being productive, both direct & indirect comp. Have other mgrs try to estimate the cost due to low morale among other EEs. Get competent Emp Law atty give advise on exposure by establishing future liability because of failure to adhere to present policies. If EE has received positive reinforcement (by lack of serious consequences) for current misbehavior she may get entitlement mentality and not retire in 18 months; sustain a questionable WC injury; or sue for something else. A good Emp atty can give you some possible scenarios that may arise from inaction.
Now guesstimate the cost of defending or losing a suit. It will probably be a lot less if you have done due diligence in documentation and adhered to written policies. Proceed with giving EE expectation, consequences and then follow through. If you, the supv, or management fails to be consistent or backslides in this process, all bets are off. This can be a lot of work and should not have been allowed to get you into this position but acting can help maintain both your credibility, and that of the co. I’m not sure about the supv/atty but will give him the benefit of doubt.
This is long, rambling and I probably left out things but I hope some of it helps because I did spend some time thinking & typing. If it gets resolved, let us know or if you have to suffer it can be a lesson for others. Best of luck.
If it were me, I would continue to approach the decision maker loaded with all of that, the impact each has on the company, on him/her personally, and on coworkers, and continue to push for some form of dismissal. In the meantime, if your discipline policy includes suspension, by all means suspend, and remember that part of an effective discipline process is the opportunity to guide employees into acceptable behavior in the workplace as well as reinforce to other workers that your company takes the process seriously. If you are unable to proceed with either of the two, investigate some early retirement options and/or severance options. My honest opinion is that this one employee is costing significant resources in damage control. Your company should work to stop the problem. Otherwise, you have 1.5+ years for it to worsen. Then you get the privilege of seeing history repeat itself with the next near-retirment age employee.
Best wishes.
1. Is this a battle you really want to have?
2. If upper management doesn't want to deal with it then is that not the playing field you are on?
3. Why should HR always be the answer to problems of this nature?
4. Is upper management willing to at least attempt to control this behavior and back it up with your guidance and input?
5. If not on question 4, then what could you do anyway?
6. Are you taking this personally?
Sometimes,in our work we run across things that seem to have no real means of solving the problem without creating a larger one, thanks in part to the so called "protective labor laws" we deal with all the time. This case seems to fit that mode. It does not mean the situation you have is right-far from it! What it means is it worth the potential cost, let alone the time and effort, to put an end to the employee's poor performance this close to retirement? Only your company can make that determination.
And, by the way, I do agree with the others that you are discriminating in the sense she is being treated differently. But that is a whole other can of worms!
I agree it makes sense to pick your battles. I actually decided a long time ago that this was not my battle because I was starting to take it as a personal failure in my ability to manage. Then I realized if I didn't have the backing of upper mgt, then my efforts were doomed to fail. And yes, the managing partner in this firm does want the office manager to be the "bad guy." They do no disciplining, documentation, hiring or firing themselves (though they make the behind the scene decisions), which is probably a good thing...
In analyzing the situation with your help, I realize that upper management, despite their complaints, have no intention of doing anything about this employee. Perhaps the next time her supervising attorney comes in to complain, I will point out to him that I have followed all our established protocols regarding discipline to no avail and that the next decision and course of action regarding this employee is entirely his! However, should he decide to terminate, this employee's behavior is well and extensively documented and I believe, as does our employee attorney, that a lawsuit would be unlikely. (The more likely lawsuit would come from someone who was fired for fewer infractions saying we were discriminatory.)
Again, thanks for all the input! Have a wonderful weekend.
>actually decided a long time ago that this was
>not my battle because I was starting to take it
>as a personal failure in my ability to manage.
>Then I realized if I didn't have the backing of
>upper mgt, then my efforts were doomed to fail.
>And yes, the managing partner in this firm does
>want the office manager to be the "bad guy."
>They do no disciplining, documentation, hiring
>or firing themselves (though they make the
>behind the scene decisions), which is probably a >good thing...
>
>In analyzing the situation with your help, I
>realize that upper management, despite their
>complaints, have no intention of doing anything
>about this employee.
While I am sympathetic with your situation, it is a compromise of your principles and good managment practice. To me, I would consider whether this is representative of other poor decisions happening in your company. If so, I would have to make a decision whether to try and effect change by going above the supervising attorney's head or, in the larger scheme, whether to find another job where good decisions are made and respected.
I think doing nothing is corrosive not only for others who see what this employee gets away with, but also for your own morale. Too many of these compromises will turn you into something you won't recognize. Take a step back and evaluate how your company is changing you and where you want your career to go.