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Joined: Jan 2004
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I have a guy thats been working for me for almost 2 years. He's now a 4th year apprentice, he's completed all of his classroom time and if he ever decides to hand in his application he can take his journeymans exam. He's a nice kid with one major problem - he has a hard time getting out of bed in the morning! It might be 10 minutes here, 15 minutes there and then once every couple of months a no show.
Why do I put up with this crap you ask? Because the kid is an unbelievable electrician. His work is perfect - fast, neat, he can troubleshoot. The panels the kid makes up are so nice it's a shame to put the cover on. He also never has a problem working late if needed.
I've had talks with him, insisting he start showing up on time but to no avail. Now it seems to be causing problems with my other employees. They feel he is getting special treatment and they are right. There are days I want to can him but I don't want to bite off my nose to spite my face. I often feel I am walking fine line between being a peolple pleaser and a disciplinarian.
What are some techniques people use to get the most from their employees?
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Joined: Apr 2002
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Leespark: After 4 years.......you may 'save face' this way.
Change his 'start time' to 1/2 hr later.
If you put up with this for 4 years, and he got away with it, you may have a tough time with UI if you fire him. If he's as good as you say.....change his schedule, by 1/2 or 1 hour.
John
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Joined: Jan 2003
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leespark, If he accepts the new start time, remember to tell him up front, that you expect him to be on time, If the other employees ask why he is given a different start time, let them know you are trying to help resolve a problem, you may be asked by the other employees to give them flex hours also, so be ready to adjust.
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Joined: Mar 2004
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Perhaps a "random" drug test for all the employees. May shed some light. As far as the getting up late thing...in MY personal experience, a person can be late for a 10am job just like they can be for a 6am job. The only real way I have seen, is when people grow up... and getting laid off seams to be the only way. Money speaks better then most other things. Perhaps a probationary condition set forth for any future pay increases. Like 15 minutes tardiness allowed for any 90 day period, or a future raise will not be assessed untill this condition can be met. Just some ideas. Good luck Brian p.s. I used to be aflicted with this problem untill I grew up.
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Joined: Feb 2004
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Tell him to go into the "service industry"! I usually wake up around 8am or so, call the office to check in & see what calls are "on the board".. How fast I get ready depends on how good the calls are My boss & company as a whole are super cool about what hours we work.. Some guys LIKE getting up at 5AM... I've just never been one of them... The fact that I leave myself "on-call" pretty late helps also. Not to mention we get "premiums" on calls after 6pm & it gets even better after 8pm I've been known to take midnight-4AM calls on occasions simply because it automatically gets me the next day off! (not to mention 50% of the call total!) I used to do the "up at the crack of dawn" thing to be on a jobsite by 6am with my old company.. I just made me feel soooo slow! I felt like I needed to get hit with a good 277V bite to even open my eyes! 2 hours longer in bed really makes THAT much difference in my day! -Randy
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Joined: Jan 2004
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Leespark, find him a wife.
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Joined: Dec 2003
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Relax. Change your attitude. Announce a new company policy. Everyone is expected to be on time. If any one is late, they will be docked for the time they are late, plus a penalty of $10 from the annual bonus. Late time may be made up by staying late, but the penalty will still be taken. Unexcused days off will be penalized by a $20 fee. A doctor's note constitute a valid excuse. An additional $500 bonus reward for perfect attendance will be given at the annual picnic to those who qualify. (The carrot and the stick.) This way, those who do show up are rewarded, and your star performer will not be released.
Earl
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Joined: Apr 2004
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LEESPARK
I was one of those who was late to work ....you werent writing about me ..were you LOL. This story is me exactly. I am now 29 years old and nolonger have the problem , what broke it is a boss who took me out to lunch and talked to me 8 years ago he told me how much I and my work was appreciated, that everything was exceptional except for the tardyness and that if it continued i would be suspended 4 a week with no pay if it changed i got a bonus 500.00 in 1 year if i was tardy or unexcused absence 1 time i lost half, 2 times no bonus, 3 times suspended. to this day i am usually early by 15-20 min load truck and prep for the day. i never ever liked or enjoyed anything over 7 am now im at work at 6 00 and was for 7 years. i have changed jobs and employers but the lesson is still there.. BTW 500 bonus ....SWEET
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Joined: Nov 2001
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I lived the late-life, too. I was born late and the trend continued for a long, long time. I like a lot of the suggestions and laughed outright at the 'find him a wife' one - - nothing like adding stress and frustration for two people!
The heart-to-heart talk, the offering of (or loss of) incentives is one of the best win-win solutions.
The heart-to-heart talk can also include some discussion that gets a little deeper into the 'why' of being late. Sometimes the tardiness is an indication of lack of prior planning, over-confidence in the time & steps involved in getting from point to point (or from bed to job-site) and not just in the nick of time but conservatively with some buffer time built in for traffic, problems or even chit-chat. Start planning the night before for an early-morning obligation rather than trying to pull it all together when your mind is still snoozing.
Often, a tardy arrival can be an indication that the person doesn't want to be there though it doesn't sound likely in this case but happened all the time for me when it was a social get-together that I'd rather just skip.
Just a simple statement like, "the tardiness problem is a sign to the rest of us that we're not (or the work is not) important enough to you for you to show up on time. That mixes the signals between what you say and what you do and it leaves us/me wondering. Your work is precision so I know you understand that concept, you don't need allowances for a margin of error on your skill but maybe giving yourself a little margin for error on your arrival, say 15 minutes for shooting the breeze in the morning with the rest of us, may help us improve the precision on scheduling our day."
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Joined: Jan 2002
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Either you accept it and get over it or tell him be on time or beat it. I'd go with the latter. "Change his start time" Please you have to be joking. Whats next warm his bottle for him. Good god.
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Posts: 46
Joined: March 2013
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