Have you tried not cursing?
The easiest route.
Ask HN: I'm a New Manager – How to Best Handle Employee Grievance?
31–40 of 44 posts
Re: Ask HN: I'm a New Manager – How to Best Handle Employee Grievance?
#32If this is a small company, I would probably not worry too much about process and ask the concerned employee to discuss this in a friendly and open way. Maybe a misunderstanding which can be cleared, maybe the reason is actually lying deeper. Good chance you can resolve this by being emphatic and act understandingly. That being said, I would note down a memory protocol afterwards in case this turns ugly after all.
I'm not sure what you mean by a memory protocol, what is that?
Perhaps OP means to jot down some notes, with dates and times to remember what happened and when should this arise again.
Re: Ask HN: I'm a New Manager – How to Best Handle Employee Grievance?
#33Earlier quoted context omitted.
As far as I am aware. I was not given the individual's name for "privacy reasons". I was explicitly told it was someone under me, but that could be anyone of 20-some odd people.
You are a project manager. You have no one under you.
A lot of project managers like to pretend that they are real managers. Some of them might even believe that developers are their reports.
Re: Ask HN: I'm a New Manager – How to Best Handle Employee Grievance?
#34Earlier quoted context omitted.
Can you maybe substantiate this a little? I don't understand why a company recording the meetings of their employees, on company time and regarding company business, would be illegal. (An individual doing so, on the other hand, might be problematic.)
This would definitely be illegal in Germany where I work as CTO. Even having employees sign some letter of acceptance of such would still be illegal as a court would assume an employee was in an uneven power position and therefore not able to refuse even if they wanted to.
It's always so refreshing to hear about Germany's labor laws. America's pretty much a third-world country when it comes to employee rights.
Re: Ask HN: I'm a New Manager – How to Best Handle Employee Grievance?
#35I have been a project manager in many organisations and I have on occasion let loose swear words. It has never been a problem. Over the years I have noticed that there are two distinct possibilities: 1. You might be in a company where nobody swears. In that case, it might be the expected norm that you too speak diplomatically and politely. 2. You might have a precious snowflake on your team. These come in two varieti…
So true, I've met all of them during my decade of work! But I've had one instance when the project manager was the snowflake. The manager needed constant validation, and when he didn't get it he became angry. Last time, half the team just left within a year. What I've gathered is that more often than not, they are micro managers with some kind of broken confidence (bad divorce, bad education or bad health can all tak…
> I'm starting to get better at sensing if people just want to win a discussion or want to learn & teach. But I wished I learnt it sooner.
The older I get the more I see this as a _critical_ soft skill to have in the corporate world. I wish I could go back to myself in earlier engineering roles and say, "just stop talking - these people don't care, they're only here for the narrative."
Re: Ask HN: I'm a New Manager – How to Best Handle Employee Grievance?
#36> I was told an employee had filed a complaint ...
Assuming the Company is large enough to have an HR Department; expect them to conduct an investigation. Their primary role is to protect the company.
As a Manager-- you'll want to align yourself with HR (be politically savvy) seek their guidance and consider the needs of the broader organization first.
Understand that lots of people are watching you now. You'll need to be extra courteous and thoughtful in your words and actions.
> https://www.employersresource.com/human-resources/hr-scenari...
Re: Ask HN: I'm a New Manager – How to Best Handle Employee Grievance?
#37I have been a project manager in many organisations and I have on occasion let loose swear words. It has never been a problem. Over the years I have noticed that there are two distinct possibilities: 1. You might be in a company where nobody swears. In that case, it might be the expected norm that you too speak diplomatically and politely. 2. You might have a precious snowflake on your team. These come in two varieti…
[deleted]
Re: Ask HN: I'm a New Manager – How to Best Handle Employee Grievance?
#38Not cursing is more professional than cursing.
Re: Ask HN: I'm a New Manager – How to Best Handle Employee Grievance?
#39Earlier quoted context omitted.
This would definitely be illegal in Germany where I work as CTO. Even having employees sign some letter of acceptance of such would still be illegal as a court would assume an employee was in an uneven power position and therefore not able to refuse even if they wanted to.
It's always so refreshing to hear about Germany's labor laws. America's pretty much a third-world country when it comes to employee rights.
> America's pretty much a third-world country when it comes to employee rights.
Nope, that's not true at all. Not to play the game of semantic-nazi, but that's legitimately offensive when you look at a "third-world" country's employee rights compared to the US.
I'll take you for a tour in Phnom Penh, Cambodia if you're interested in seeing what a "third-world" country's working conditions are really like.
Re: Ask HN: I'm a New Manager – How to Best Handle Employee Grievance?
#40If this is a small company, I would probably not worry too much about process and ask the concerned employee to discuss this in a friendly and open way. Maybe a misunderstanding which can be cleared, maybe the reason is actually lying deeper. Good chance you can resolve this by being emphatic and act understandingly. That being said, I would note down a memory protocol afterwards in case this turns ugly after all.
I'm not sure what you mean by a memory protocol, what is that?
Sometimes they are called memorandum for the record.
Send yourself an email with your recollection of the incident and print a copy that you do not keep at work. If there is a problem later, you’ll have documentation of your contemporaneous thoughts that can be used to corroborate yourself.
It’s good practice whenever something significant happens.