Building Positive Relations at Work

Building Positive Relations at Work

2 Building Positive Relations at Work Acknowledgements Author: Dela Jenkins Series editor: Lesley Partridge ISBN 07482 6754 9 This material is protected by international copyright laws. All rights reserved. No part of this material may be reproduced or re-published without the prior written approval of the copyright holders.

Building Positive Relations at Work 3 Building Positive Relations at Work Contents Workbook introduction About this workbook 5 Objectives 6 1 Supporting your team Introduction 7 Why have rules and procedures? 8 Types of rules relating to employee relations 9 Written rules 9 Unwritten rules 10 Dealing with employment queries 12 Keeping records 14 The chain of communication 14 The supervisor as a link 17 Uncovering employee relations issues 17 Dealing with dissatisfaction 18 1. Identify the problem 19 2. Get all the facts 19 3. Identify the causes 20 4. Propose solutions 20 5. Testing the solutions 21 6. Select the best solution 21 7. Carry out the solution 21 Check your learning 1 23 Summary 24 2 How to handle a disciplinary issue Introduction 25 Maintaining discipline 25 Causes of breaches of discipline 26 Different views on maintaining discipline 26 How to avoid discipline problems 27 The difficulties supervisors face 29 Types of disciplinary issues 30 Recognising the signs 31 Gross misconduct 34 Approaching a disciplinary issue 34 Analysing the situation 36 Choosing the appropriate response 36 Informal methods 36

4 Building Positive Relations at Work Formal disciplinary procedure 38 The ACAS guidelines 39 The investigatory interview 40 Taking notes 44 Taking action 44 The four stages of the formal disciplinary process 45 Stage 1 disciplinary interview to give a verbal warning 45 Stage 2 first written warning 46 Stage 3 final written warning 46 Stage 4 dismissal 46 Common pitfalls for supervisors 48 Check your learning 2 50 Summary 51 Action plan 52 Comments on activities 54 Answers to Check your learning 1 58 Answers to Check your learning 2 59 Workbook Action chart 60 Other workbooks in the series 65

Building Positive Relations at Work 5 Workbook introduction About this workbook This workbook explores the many aspects of employee relations and considers how you, as a supervisor, are responsible for maintaining productive relationships at work. The aim of the workbook is to provide a framework of rules and procedures which are designed to encourage good relationships between people at all levels of an organisation. Section 1, Supporting your team, looks at the procedures themselves and how you should use them to support the members of your work team. Section 2, How to handle a disciplinary issue, considers some of the discipline problems you may come across and suggests ways to handle them. The workbook will provide you with a fuller understanding of the possibilities of the system of employee relations in your organisation. It aims to help you become more familiar with the procedures and processes your organisation uses, and to enable you to use them creatively and with confidence. The case study To help you to understand how the information in this workbook applies in practice, we will be looking at the example of Jake Thomas who works at Dovetail Limited. This is a medium sized company which makes and sells fitted kitchens. Since being founded in 1978, it has grown into one of the most successful kitchen unit producers in Birmingham and has a workforce of 300 people. Jake is a newly promoted supervisor on the shop floor. We shall be looking at how he handles the problems which crop up during his first week in the job. Workbook action chart So that you can apply the information to your own work, you will be given the opportunity to complete a Workbook action chart. This is included at the back of the workbook and is made up of a series of checklists. As you complete each topic, you will be asked to turn to and complete the relevant checklist in the action chart.

6 Building Positive Relations at Work Objectives At the end of this workbook you will be better able to: use your organisational rules and regulations to advise your team on their rights and obligations identify an employee relations issue within your team and decide on appropriate action use appropriate techniques to maintain discipline handle a discipline problem effectively.

1 Supporting your team 7 1 Supporting your team Introduction As a supervisor, you have a key role in your organisation s employee relations. You are one of the very few people to have a foot in two camps as both a member of the management team and part of the workforce. A number of skills are required to keep this balance. Think about the supervisory tasks you have had to carry out and the problems you have had to deal with during the last five days. Make a list of them in the space below. You should try to identify at least nine. 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10.

8 Building Positive Relations at Work You may have identified: allocating work, writing reports, keeping records, handling disciplinary issues, ensuring rules are adhered to, checking work standards, encouraging your team, solving problems, giving information, introducing new work procedures, and so on. To perform such tasks effectively you need a wide range of skills, including: collecting and giving information solving problems communicating motivating controlling counselling monitoring. These are just some of a wide range of skills which form the basis of employee relations. The intention of this section is to show how, together, these skills form a complete tool kit for supporting the people you work with so that they are able to do their jobs effectively. When you have completed this section you will be able to: explain why the rules and procedures in your organisation are necessary use your communication skills to obtain and give information take appropriate steps to uncover problems and select appropriate solutions. Why have rules and procedures? Every organisation has rules and procedures relating to employee relations which are followed, more or less, by all employees. Sometimes they are vital to making things run smoothly. Sometimes they seem designed simply to make life more difficult. But usually there are good reasons for them. The aim of employee relations is to provide a framework for good relationships between people at work. Can you think of four reasons for having rules? Here are a couple of examples to start you off. Rules are necessary to: 1. Set good working standards 2. Protect the weaker members of the group

1 Supporting your team 9 3. 4. 5. 6. There are many reasons for having rules to cover employee relations. You may have said that they are necessary to: let employees know what is expected of them, make sure that work targets are met, ensure safety, set standards of behaviour, prevent people from interfering in other people s rights, avoid conflict, prevent carelessness or inefficiency and so on. Types of rules relating to employee relations There are two kinds of rules which control employee relations in an organisation written rules and unwritten rules. Written rules In many organisations the most common sets of written rules are the Company Rule Book and the Health and Safety Rules and procedures. These form part of your organisation s code of behaviour. Other sets of rules are written into your contract of employment. They come from four main sources: Acts of Parliament (known as legislation, like the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 and the Sex Discrimination Act 1975) judge-made law (mainly the decisions of court cases) collective agreements between unions and employers (in such areas as wages and conditions of employment) company rules (such as bans on smoking). The breaking of a written rule is generally followed by some sort of official reaction. This may range from a mild ticking off for an employee who disobeys a ban on smoking in the rest room on one isolated occasion, to dismissal for someone who consistently refuses to obey safety regulations. Of course, rules do not only apply to employees. They also dictate how the organisation itself should behave in employee relations. For instance, the Employment Act 1990 states that all contracts of employment must give details of the grievance procedure which an employee can institute if they have a grievance against the organisation. Similarly, there are ACAS (Advisory, Conciliatory and Arbitration Service) Codes of Conduct on issues like disciplinary procedures.

10 Building Positive Relations at Work Unwritten rules Unwritten rules aren t disciplinary rules but conventions of conduct. They dictate how people are expected to behave because of tradition. For instance, in some jobs, it may be acceptable for staff to wear jeans in others, staff are expected to dress more formally. Many employers turn a blind eye if their staff make personal telephone calls, others do not, and so on. Sometimes, unwritten rules work against the interests of the organisation and even other employees. Examples include taking an extra coffee break, sleeping on the night shift or cornering all the best equipment. Can you think of any of the unwritten rules in your organisation? Note them down in the space below. You may have thought of a number of customs or traditions which people obey because they want to belong. Breaking these unwritten rules can end in all sorts of reactions (this time unofficial) such as being sent to Coventry. It is not always easy for you, as a supervisor, to decide what to do when an unwritten rule is broken. As it is not part of official organisational policy, it is not part of formal employee relations and, in theory, does not concern you. On the other hand, because of the strength of the convention behind it, you may feel obliged to ensure that it is adhered to. Know your organisation s rules it is the supervisor s job to know the rules and regulations relevant to the work team and understand how they affect employee relations. ACTIVITY 1 25 minutes This activity is in three parts. Before you begin, get hold of copies of your organisation s rule book, the health and safety regulations and the rule books of any unions to which your team belong. You will need these later on in the activity. Part 1 Can you think of three breaches of organisational rules which have occurred recently. If not, ask your line manager to make some suggestions. Write a short note about what happened in each case in the space below. (continued)