Managing Conflict : Policy Compliance

In this paper I will discuss the conflict that is occurring at General Hospital, the conflict management styles that are evident in the case, and how General Hospital could have used teams to address the cost reductions needed to stay competitive. I will also describe how the CEO of General Hospital, Mike Hammer can us negotiation skills to get buy-in for the cost reductions and finally I will recommend a strategy for Hammer to resolve the problem.

However, the ruling in this case and others like it prove that employers can, in fact, be bound by articles written in an employee handbook when disciplining or discharging an employee. An abysmally written handbook can greatly jeopardize an employer’s right to terminate at will. Trends show that courts are increasingly acknowledging enforceable promises in the past employment practices of firms, in employer handbooks and in oral commitments. In addition to including an at-will disclaimer in employee handbooks, employers should also require employees to sign an acknowledgment confirming that they understand and agree to employment-at-will and that at-will employment can at any time be modified by a written agreement. Personnel manuals should explicitly state that the employer reserves the right to terminate employment at will. All written policies should also be free of any language that could be considered as a guarantee of job security. To be sure that these common pitfalls are avoided employers must retain the service of a labor attorney to draft and air-tight employee manual and acknowledgment

In 1980, a precedent was set in a Michigan court case involving a man named Charles Toussaint who was suing his employer, BlueCross Blue Shield, for wrongful termination based on the guidelines set in the employee manual (Alfred and Bertsche 33). The manual stated that employees would only be terminated for just cause, and the court decided that Blue Cross had violated the agreements in the employee manual (34). The court also ruled that even with Blue Cross’s efforts to provide a document that “issued non-binding guidelines” the employee manual was a contract and Toussiant was wrongfully terminated (34). After the precedent set by this case many employers and employees for that matter were reviewing their employee manuals for the type of

One of RAPIDS’s foundational barriers against lawsuits is to approach the business with an attitude of prevention. A few of RAPIDS’s policies will be to implement a three day orientation session and to require each employee to read the employee handbook. All employees who are hired will be required to attend this session and will be subsequently tested to ascertain that

4. Please be advised that failure to follow this policy can result in possible criminal, and civil sanctions against the company, and it management and employees, and possible disciplinary action against the responsible individuals, and including termination of

On June 5, 2016 I was forced to work an overtime event when Joyce and Vicki Hoak with less seniority purposely took a vacation day the Friday before the event. Once again on Nov. 15 ,2016 I was mandated to work overtime 7:00 am. to 3:30 pm even though Cliff Worthy, Vicki Hoak have less seniority and with Joyce being excluded from all Saturday overtime due to her schedule work day. However, when Danny Kelly and Harry Feals worked Joyce’s routine they were mandated to work Saturday overtime. In both incidents I filed an oral grievance with Scott union steward and talked to Joe director of Maintenance.

1. What is the legal issue in this case? Linda Dillon appealed her case against her employer, Champion Jogbra, on the grounds of wrongful termination. The company’s progressive policy for disciplinary action was not applied. Therefore, Dillon makes her claim that her at will status was modified according to the employee handbook and practices. Employee’s handbook should be written clearly and reviewed by legal experts (Walsh, 2010). Champion Jogbra countered that Dillon was an at-will employee and she could be terminated at any time. Dillon also, argues against that the

Question 1: An office worker had a record of frequent absence. He used all his vacation and sick leave days and frequently requested additional leave without pay. His supervisor and co-workers expressed great frustration because his absenteeism caused bottlenecks in paperwork, created low morale in the office, and required others to do his work in addition to their own. On the other hand, he felt he was entitled to take his earned time and additional time off without pay. Was he right?

Conflict is a fact of life - for individuals, organizations, and societies. The costs of conflict are well-documented - high turnover, grievances and lawsuits, absenteeism, divorce, dysfunctional families, prejudice, fear. What many people don't realize is that well-managed conflict can actually be a force for positive change.

The decision of not firing Bill might give other store managers the impression that disregarding company policy is acceptable. Since Bill was not fired, other managers may assume they have a certain amount of freedom or ‘leeway’ surrounding money handling and enforcing company policy. It is important that all personnel follow company policies and procedures to: (1) maintain reputation; (2) establish efficient parameters; and (3) ensure company processes are running smooth and consistent.

John will break the rules and can lose the trust of workforce in the company if he uses his power to give Jean the benefits from the additional health plan.

3. How valid is the company’s argument that the labor agreement with maintenance employees is “beyond the scope of this grievance”?

All unscheduled absences after the official discussion date leads to disciplinary action. The employee is now ready for disciplinary action. The employee is again called into the office for a P.D.I., which is a PreDisciplinary Interview. A union representative can be present, at the employee’s request. The P.D.I. gives the employee the opportunity to defend him or herself as to why they have demonstrated unacceptable attendance. All P.D.I. do not necessarily lead to discipline. It is Management’s discretion. The employee is asked a series of questions as to who, what, when, where and why. After the interview the employee is informed that they will receive a Letter of Warning for Failure to Be Regular in Attendance. The Letter of Warning is the first step in progressive discipline. It is formulated and it includes the following:  All unscheduled absences for the last six (6) months are listed, with dates and hours used.

The third form of Conflict management is Accommodation. When the task at hand is more important than the conflict that has arisen and when relationships may be damaged putting the entire project in jeopardy. With this method a team member may minimize the conflict in order to protect the relationship and ultimately the project. Some of the negative aspects in using this

In trying to resolve the conflict between Reece and Patel, Edwards used an avoidance strategy. Instead of speaking directly about the root causes, or sources, of the conflict, Edwards focused on the behaviors and treated Reece and Patel like children. Edwards scolded them, and sent them off without bothering to find out what was bothering the two. Of course, this type of conflict resolution is ineffective because it fails to address the underlying issues. As Anderson (n.d.) points out, addressing the problem is key to conflict resolution. "When a conflict does happen, a manager needs to focus the conflicting parties on the issue and have them leave out any personal problems they may be having," (Anderson, n.d.).