Time Thievery!

[Xiona]

So again why is it if he's is doing his job, and doing it well, why are you being a douche about his smoking. Would you rather him do a sub par job and be on the floor 100% of the day?

Being physically on the floor doesnt mean you arent being a time thief as well. If anything youre the worse in the situation because youre supposed to be setting an example.

I used to have a boss who would bitch and moan telling everyone they could not text at all... while he was texting people all day long. Bottom line is, you have an employee who is doing a niche job very well you arent going to get fresh blood in there that is going to do it better and never take breaks. Its even sort of a slap to the face that youre crying about this minor infraction many good managers would over look because it boosts his morale and his performance isnt slipping in the slightest.

now if he was doing a terrible job then yea i agree...

Making him jump through hoops is just going to lower his performance. beginning with the dick tactics and trying to shock and awe him is a terrible strategy. Pretend he is a friend then build your approach around that. You will get a more lasting effect. Whats the point of doing a good job if he can do a shitty job and maintain his position?

sometimes you need to compromise in life, the workplace is no different.

[Dimmauk]

Its fun babysitting grown people. There are rules that everyone should adhere to. Why should someone be able to take multiple breaks and other cant? I think I should be able to take a TV break because I'm addicted to TV shows. Or how about a driving break? Driving around for 10-20mins would be a nice stress relief. Breaks and Lunches should be when people can go smoke, any other time is stealing time.

AFK, while I go sit on the toilet for 20mins. I like to pretend I'm pooping while playing video games on my phone.

[toonces]

thing is grown people learned that.. life is to short to follow such silly society rules. You should be more personal and social about the problem than throwing red tape at it.

[tyven]

whenever i go outside to smoke i always try to listen to at least one segment of the Big O and Dukes show, thats like a solid 20 minutes. i would say i go smoke 3-4 times a day. that coupled with my silly hour long lunch and the times i sneak away to mcdonalds in the morning for a mcmuffin make my work day much more bearable.

[Lampoon]

Sounds more like the OP simply doesn't like the guy and just wants to get rid of someone who's been working there longer than OP.

[Brill Weave]

So again why is it if he's is doing his job, and doing it well, why are you being a douche about his smoking.

Um I don't know because it's clearly fucking stated in our HR policies as to what are the accepted break and lunch time practices. There is no compromise on this and to even think that one could be made is woefully naive and quite honestly, ignorant. Perhaps you didn't read the part where I stated I work in a call center, we're all situated in the same area. If you make exceptions or compromises for one person, what's to stop every single other employee from coming up and deciding they would like to do the same? Hadn't thought about that have you? I stated I have about 20 people working under me. 20 people asking to change policy because I made an exception for one person.

Tell me have you thought about that before you started off on your little tangent? I'm sorry dood but once you quit working at Gamestop you'll understand. Compromises aren't made, period. Exceptions aren't made, period. Being a good manager isn't about making exceptions, it's about treating everyone the same exact way. No special treatment, no favoritism. Compromises regarding some things are acceptable(ie non policy related) and I have no problem with it at all. But you're saying that I need to stop being a douche by adhering to my HR policy regarding this. Which in turn puts my ass out there should someone voice their anger at not being able to take multiple 15-20 minute breaks like he does.

Be a fucking manager/supervisor anywhere not ending in the word Mart for a year and then come back here and tell me to do the same.

[Brill Weave]

Sounds more like the OP simply doesn't like the guy and just wants to get rid of someone who's been working there longer than OP.

Omg you totally nailed it lol. On a personal level I find him annoying, but he is a good guy. I don't consider him a friend, but I'm not wishing for his death either. Trust me, I've been here for ten years. Tenure is something that means jack shit here.

[Xiona]

If no exceptions are to be made then why are you posting on a forum during your work shift? Compromises happen all the time, regardless of work venue. I do like how you are blowing up on a forum, gives insight to how you operate at your job. Attempting to belittle me also adds that extra insight as well.

If people are doing their jobs well then they should get those little benefits. I dont care what any HR statement says, thats how you motivate people. If you make them feel as if theyre getting a taboo perk, then theyre more inclined to excel. i cant believe someone with your managerial experience has yet to discover this.

If all you want to do is bust balls and boss people around try the military, the individual doesnt matter there. Give and take obviously isnt a technique youre familiar with.

[Tyche]

This is why you crosstrain. I wish one of the other staff members here would learn my job, but they won't. So instead, my cell phone rings off the hook when I'm delivering my daughter, on my honeymoon, chilling on vacation, or taking a nap. It pisses me off to no end. We have 3 accountants, 2 CEOs, 2 people capable of production management, 2 receptionists, several supervisors, but I'm the only one who can do my job.

[Guitarman]

Alright man, from personal experience managing others, and seeing other situations firsthand, here's how you handle it.

First off, get a stopwatch or just watch the clock when he leaves, note the time he comes back. You need a little more than his screen saver to know how long he's been gone. First step, pull him aside, either in your office or wherever, and talk to him. Tell him he's taking far too long on breaks, and remind him of policy. Tell him that any further infractions will result in disciplinary action. Be level headed but fair. If he continues, suspend him, or get the authoriziation from higher up to do what you need to do.

Unfortunately you're not going to have an easy time. One thing, you being younger he's going to look at you like "who the hell do you think you are". Secondly, him being around longer he is going to think he can get away with shit like this, and you not being around as long you are in the wrong. Nothing you can really do about that, except show him the door. In my experience people his age in his situation feel like they run the show, and you have to prove you're in charge. There's literally hundreds of people that would clamor to do that job and would love it. I don't mean to sound like a bleeding heart, but there's people with families to feed that are much more deserving than some arrogant prick that thinks he can take 40 minute smoke breaks.

[Seraph]

Part of this problem is the mentality of 'punching the clock'. I do sort of laugh at the notion that someone is always productive at their desk/station.

In Brill's situation, he is screwed no matter what. Either he has to try to get the old employee to cooperate, but in doing so will probably upset him which will cause a decrease in performance. If Brill does nothing, other employees will get upset at the 'preferential treatment' and productivity will go down. If Brill fires the guy, the new replacement will have to overcome the learning curve and productivity will suffer.

So, no matter what, productivity is always below optimum, and people suck.

[toonces]

time to ask for a raise tyche!

[Brill Weave]

If people are doing their jobs well then they should get those little benefits. I dont care what any HR statement says, thats how you motivate people. If you make them feel as if theyre getting a taboo perk, then theyre more inclined to excel. i cant believe someone with your managerial experience has yet to discover this.

Are you seriously this clueless about the working world? Have you never heard of unfair labor practices? How about the word favoritism? With 20 people how can you possibly condone making exceptions for some due to work perfomance and not others? There is an easily attainable bonus program for our employees. The vast majority of my people get it every month. The ones that don't complain that they cheat to attain it, or they are being discriminated against. It's not about busting balls. I don't even think I can continue talking with you. You seem to have very little clue as to what you're talking about. Which coincidentally is why I got on you in the last post to begin with.

[Seraph]

Are you seriously this clueless about the working world? Have you never heard of unfair labor practices? How about the word favoritism? With 20 people how can you possibly condone making exceptions for some due to work perfomance and not others? There is an easily attainable bonus program for our employees. The vast majority of my people get it every month. The ones that don't complain that they cheat to attain it, or they are being discriminated against. It's not about busting balls. I don't even think I can continue talking with you. You seem to have very little clue as to what you're talking about. Which coincidentally is why I got on you in the last post to begin with.

Extended breaks for employees who met their quota that month perhaps? I think your Nemesis there does have some sort of a point. If in the event your HR policies do suck ass, it will be difficult to motivate employees while always following the rules.

[Dimmauk]

If no exceptions are to be made then why are you posting on a forum during your work shift? Compromises happen all the time, regardless of work venue. I do like how you are blowing up on a forum, gives insight to how you operate at your job. Attempting to belittle me also adds that extra insight as well.

If people are doing their jobs well then they should get those little benefits. I dont care what any HR statement says, thats how you motivate people. If you make them feel as if theyre getting a taboo perk, then theyre more inclined to excel. i cant believe someone with your managerial experience has yet to discover this.

If all you want to do is bust balls and boss people around try the military, the individual doesnt matter there. Give and take obviously isnt a technique youre familiar with.

Salaried managers can do whatever the fuck they want. They put in extra time in and dont get paid for it. Plus they are the boss. Having a job and a fun and enjoyable work environment should be the reason to have a job. Oh yeah, and the economy.

[Brill Weave]

Part of this problem is the mentality of 'punching the clock'. I do sort of laugh at the notion that someone is always productive at their desk/station.

Seriously if my people are productive through 3/4 of the day I'm fine with it. I let them go online, read books if it's slow. But they are still at their desks and they are still adhering to our policies. I don't bust their balls unless they are doing something blatantly wrong. It's not militaristic. It's not confrontational at all. They are clashes between people but they are usually relatively minor.

This is our bonus program benefits. When I did their jobs, I loved getting it because it was essentially free money. We judge our quality using the QS# 12 format, our club goals are to have our customers 80% or more totally satisfied when they get their questionnaire in the mail. If you go through the month with over 80% totally satisfied you get 6% of your monthly gross as a bonus. That's a nice chunk of change for just doing your job well.

[Seraph]

Seriously if my people are productive through 3/4 of the day I'm fine with it. I let them go online, read books if it's slow. But they are still at their desks and they are still adhering to our policies. I don't bust their balls unless they are doing something blatantly wrong. It's not militaristic. It's not confrontational at all. They are clashes between people but they are usually relatively minor.

No, and I understand. It's the same way here. It's always been more about 'getting done what needs to be accomplished' as opposed to 'you must be busting ass for the full duration of time.'

[Brill Weave]

I understand what you're saying Seraph, but the issue with that is as follows. If I let someone other than our time thief go for an extended break, their workload is pushed off onto another person until they return. So we would be rewarding people for doing a good job and punishing the people who were deemed, not doing good enough.

[Seraph]

I understand what you're saying Seraph, but the issue with that is as follows. If I let someone other than our time thief go for an extended break, their workload is pushed off onto another person until they return. So we would be rewarding people for doing a good job and punishing the people who were deemed, not doing good enough.

That is a problem, as your group workload is a pool, where here each person (usually) has their own tasks to accomplish.

[Brill Weave]

We've been pushing to get them to sign off on the individual workloads for the last year or so. Because from a managerial stand point it's very difficult to actually catch someone who is slacking off hardcore because in the end the work is done(usually by someone else.) Individual workload looks like a pipe dream here sadly. When it comes to this place it's kind of like too many hands in the cookie jar if that makes sense. If a problem occurs that is blatantly someone's fault, because it's communal work, they can say they didn't know etc.