You are working as head of a large department where several supervisors report t

Question

You are working as head of a large department where several supervisors report to you. Recently you have confronted with a problem. Problem arose when one of the supervisors got into a loud and disagreeable argument with an employee. You called the supervisor to your office to know about the problem. The supervisor admitted losing his temper and shouting at the employee, but he believed it was justified. He had been observing the behavior of the employee over the year. During this period the employee had been frequently late, and his absentee rate was above average. In addition, the supervisor went on to say that the employee was a socializer on the job, frequently leaving his work to talk to other employees and to use the telephone for personal calls. The supervisor then said that the proverbial last straw caused his outburst. The employee had come in late, and after about an hour of work he made a telephone call which the supervisor had timed as lasting 14 minutes. The supervisor then started his outburst. The employee denied being on the telephone that long, the supervisor called him a liar, and they continued the insulting exchange which ended when you called the supervisor to your office. After listening to the supervisor, you asked him if he had disciplined the employee before, since apparently he had a poor record. You also asked if the employee had been placed on probation or had been warned. The supervisor looked at you sheepishly and seemed reluctant to answer. You pressed him, for an answer, and he finally revealed out that he was afraid to discipline the employee because he was black. He stated that the impression he had from you and higher management was that black employees should be given special treatment so that they would feel welcome and not discriminated against. He felt the company wanted to impress the public with its forward-looking employment practices and didn’t want any trouble with the black community. As a result, he was negligent in discipline and had kept a hands-off approach with all black employees until his outburst. He said he couldn’t stand it anymore, and the 14-mintue telephone call caused him to lose his temper.

Questions:

Q1. Why would a supervisor find it difficult to communicate with a black employee?

Q 2. Could the company have done anything to offset the misunderstanding the supervisor apparently had about the treatment of black employees?

Q3. To what extent did the supervisor’s lack of communication encourage the employee to think his behavior was satisfactory?

Q4. What would you now tell the supervisor?

Explanation / Answer

1. The supervisor felt the impression that the company is promoting equality in the workplace and is implementing forward-looking employment practices which will put the firm on a front foot in the list of companies providing a racism-free workplace. The supervisor was also under the impression that the top management wants black employees to be given a special treatment at the workplace so as to make them feel welcome rather than making them feel discriminated. This is why supervisor found it difficult to take any action against the black employee under consideration.

2.The company could have set their expectations clear and more interaction with the lower levels of hierarchy regarding this issue could have been promoted so that everyone has an equal and accurate picture of what the firm is intending to do. this would also have mitigated the behavior of the black employee given that the firm has clearly stated its objectives regarding how to treat the employees and to not allow any discrepancies in the work. By this firm could have made sure that no one misuses this leverage towards back employees.

3. The supervisor did not correct the employee at the early stage leading to which the black employee thought that his behavior was acceptable. leading to which the black employee continued his behavior which then was very much not acceptable to the supervisor. Had the supervisor consulted with the black employee under consideration the black employee could have reduced his unacceptable behavior in the workplace. Hence supervisors lack of communication was one of the most key factors in increasing the severity of the issue at hand.

4. I would ask the supervisor to keep his calm and make him understand the actual intentions of the firm relating to the treatment of black employees. I can clearly put forward the situations where the supervisor should consider correcting the black employees and where he should not. I would also suggest the supervisor to not allow any compromise with the work that needs to be finished and would suggest him to correct an employee who is failing to meet the expectations. I would recommend him not to lose his temper and spoil relations with the employees rather understand them and make them understand your expectations for a better flow of workplace activities. I would also suggest him to bring any such future cases to mu notice so that I will also be able to assist him well.

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