Carefully( Not Carelessly)
Making Your Point At Work
By The Quarter Roll Team
Every once in a while the boss may get under your skin. There can be any number of reasons why, perhaps you don’ t agree with a decision the boss made about your performance. Sometimes it is your assigned schedule or workload, the amount of your pay raise, or a quirk of theirs. All of us can experience frustrations at work from time to time with our bosses. Even bosses can get irked with their bosses!
However, it’ s how we handle those frustrations that can set us up for either future success or problems at work. One of the worst things an employee can do is to walk off the job in protest of a boss’ s decision, the equivalent of stomping your feet and taking your ball home. When disagreeing with your boss, regardless if you are right / wrong / or somewhere in between, it is important to remember the scale of power is tipped in their favor. They have the power to make accommodations or firmly stand their ground.
What happened on the Pittsburgh Steelers team.
Rashard Mendenhall is a running back for the Pittsburgh Steelers football team. He has struggled during the 2012 season because of injuries and fumbles he had during key games. Coach Mike Tomlin demoted Mendenhall to third-string following a fumble in a loss to Cleveland in November. Later, he was approached by coaches prior to the December 9, 2012, game and was told he would not be playing in that game.
During that game Mendenhall was absent from the field. Note: unless you are seriously injured and unable to travel, being absent from a game while you are an active player is considered an unacceptable act on most teams in the NFL. In fact Coach Tomlin suspended Mendenhall for one week for missing the game, even though he was not playing, and called his action“ conduct detrimental to the team”.
Mendenhall may be fortunate that he is only losing one week at work. Many employers look at“ detrimental conduct” as grounds for immediate termination. Was Mendenhall’ s absence apathy, laziness, or a statement? No one said, but based on the events leading up to his absence he was probably dissatisfied with the coaches’ decision to keep him from playing. His reaction will have several negative consequences, including the potential rift it creates between him, management, and
5 The Quarter Roll Spring 2013