Why workplace discipline fuels litigation
The most common cause of workplace litigation is the perception of unfair discipline and discharge. Many employers misunderstand this, and that’s why supervisory training makes no difference.
So, before considering supervisory training, consider this: Most employers are interested in production, efficiency, uncovering mistakes, and the elimination of waste. This requires the compulsory cooperation of employees by getting them to follow uniform procedures over and over again, and to make sure there are no deviations. Since the whole system is based on repetition and finding and correcting mistakes, most feedback given by supervisors, even if intended to be helpful, is viewed by employees as punitive.
Further, in a workplace where there is an absence of praise, discipline will almost always be perceived as punishment.
But fair and ethical discipline requires thinking and acting from both sides of the brain. It requires more than the use of punishment. The best supervisors combine job expertise with people skills. To have a truly productive and litigation free environment, supervisors must motivate employees by tapping into their values– as opposed to merely threatening them, which is mistakenly seen as easier to do. In short, the best supervisors are leaders, not dictators.
But the dirty little secret is that many employers are simply not interested in the leadership abilities of their supervisors because they believe that leadership skills– such as listening, articulating core values, coaching, mentoring, conflict resolution, cultural sensitivity– are incompatible with meeting production quotas, finding mistakes and eliminating waste.
Since many employers are not really interested in supervisory leadership, supervisors have no incentive to improve their people skills. Supervisory training is a waste of time without incentives encouraging supervisors to take leadership skills seriously. Training without incentives and role models from the top, leave supervisors feeling more disillusioned and cynical than ever.
Its clear that discipline without leadership results in conflict; and conflict perpetuates litigation. But most employers have no insight into the problem and no genuine desire to break this vicious cycle.
January 8th, 2008 at 3:21 pm
I am conducting training sessions for a member every morning this week. We are covering the supervisor’s responsibility in recognizing, avoiding and rectifying inappropriate, unwanted and offensive conduct. Of course, this has less to do with the law, and more to with leadership values, although I’m obliged to talk about relevant caselaw.
The training is going quite well, because this is a culture where most folks understand that meeting production goals is not incompatable with leadership values, such as listening, accessibility and openness. In fact, they understand that sustainability over the long haul will be based on living these values day in and day out.
I’m convinced that legal compliance training without a strong ethical foundation is pretty useless, if the goal is to create a thriving culture. Frightening supervisors with the prospect of getting caught, as if they were children, is a poor substitute for the insight, integrity, and personal responsibility that goes with being an adult.
February 6th, 2008 at 9:46 am
Supervisory training does make a difference but this is only one side of the problem, the worker needs training as well. The supervisor’s role is finding mistakes, correcting them, reducing waste and meeting production goals. In many cases, the responsibility of running a smooth operation is left on the supervisor’s desk with no realization that it is a team effort. If the team does not know the goal, how can they help the supervisor in reaching it?
Unfortunately, too often, the employees misunderstand that the supervisor’s job is to meet deadlines, reduce waste and correct problems. The understanding of how high scrap rates, unscheduled absentees and missed deliveries affect the organizations bottom line is missing in the work force. Many employees just do not understand that every scrap piece is wasted materials and labor. The same is with absenteeism, the understanding that the missed work must be covered with higher cost by overtime or additional workers is missing.
Training and a bit of information can go a long way in preventing future problems and conflicts. The lack of sharing information and training combined with disillusioned and cynical leadership the employers are primed and ready for litigation.