Dear Experts,
Employees have been working in a factory continuously for more than 16 hours per day for a week to complete a task as per the commitment given to the customer.
On the last day, the customer was supposed to leave the factory around 8.00 p.m. Around 13 employees (mostly managerial staff) had planned for a happy hour as they had been working continuously for 4 days and nights. They arranged to have alcoholic drinks at night and proceed home.
Unfortunately for them, the customer went out for dinner and planned to come back. Hence, the employees had drinks around 10.00 p.m. and came to the factory only after the customer returned after dinner.
The concerned employees are agreeing to the above fact with the HR and have informed that they are all willing even to submit their resignations, which will create a vacuum in the operations. However, the Director of the Company is asking other employees to give witness to the issue so that he can initiate action against the employees.
Expert view is sought on the above issue.
Regards,
From India, Bangalore
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1Employees have been working in a factory continuously for more than 16 hours per day for a week to complete a task as per the commitment given to the customer.
On the last day, the customer was supposed to leave the factory around 8.00 p.m. Around 13 employees (mostly managerial staff) had planned for a happy hour as they had been working continuously for 4 days and nights. They arranged to have alcoholic drinks at night and proceed home.
Unfortunately for them, the customer went out for dinner and planned to come back. Hence, the employees had drinks around 10.00 p.m. and came to the factory only after the customer returned after dinner.
The concerned employees are agreeing to the above fact with the HR and have informed that they are all willing even to submit their resignations, which will create a vacuum in the operations. However, the Director of the Company is asking other employees to give witness to the issue so that he can initiate action against the employees.
Expert view is sought on the above issue.
Regards,
From India, Bangalore
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Dear Harish,
If yours is a factory, do you have standing orders approved by the labor department? Your case needs to be looked at from two angles: one is legal, and the other is from management science.
If the standing orders do not permit the consumption of alcohol on the company premises, then the Factory Act does not allow any employee to work more than nine hours per day. Therefore, both employees and employers have transgressed the law. It is better if they make a trade-off and move on.
If the employer thinks that he has "employed" the employees and therefore enjoys the whip hand, then he should be ready for backlash as well. Please tell your Director to tone down his haughtiness. All that employees are doing is resigning. Suppose they go a step further and approach the labor department to be forcibly made to work extra hours and asked for a forced resignation, will that not land your company in trouble? Please inform the Director that, in general, Labor Officers favor employees, not employers.
If employees are required to work 16 hours a day to meet customer commitments, then there is something wrong with the management style of the company. Tell your Director to fix this flaw first. Do not tell me that "this is what happens in our industry." There is a general tendency to hide one's inefficiency with this lame excuse.
His leadership lies in meeting the customer's deadlines smoothly, without gasping for breath. He should not focus his energy on taking on employees.
Tell your employer that today he no longer enjoys the opaque work culture of the 20th century. With social media so active, do you think these people will not create negative publicity in the job market? In a huff, he may sack people, but tomorrow he has to attract the right persons for the job. Will he be able to do that?
Thanks,
Dinesh Divekar
From India, Bangalore
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If yours is a factory, do you have standing orders approved by the labor department? Your case needs to be looked at from two angles: one is legal, and the other is from management science.
If the standing orders do not permit the consumption of alcohol on the company premises, then the Factory Act does not allow any employee to work more than nine hours per day. Therefore, both employees and employers have transgressed the law. It is better if they make a trade-off and move on.
If the employer thinks that he has "employed" the employees and therefore enjoys the whip hand, then he should be ready for backlash as well. Please tell your Director to tone down his haughtiness. All that employees are doing is resigning. Suppose they go a step further and approach the labor department to be forcibly made to work extra hours and asked for a forced resignation, will that not land your company in trouble? Please inform the Director that, in general, Labor Officers favor employees, not employers.
If employees are required to work 16 hours a day to meet customer commitments, then there is something wrong with the management style of the company. Tell your Director to fix this flaw first. Do not tell me that "this is what happens in our industry." There is a general tendency to hide one's inefficiency with this lame excuse.
His leadership lies in meeting the customer's deadlines smoothly, without gasping for breath. He should not focus his energy on taking on employees.
Tell your employer that today he no longer enjoys the opaque work culture of the 20th century. With social media so active, do you think these people will not create negative publicity in the job market? In a huff, he may sack people, but tomorrow he has to attract the right persons for the job. Will he be able to do that?
Thanks,
Dinesh Divekar
From India, Bangalore
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That's a trade-off I agree with, Dinesh. The blame should have been taken on both sides, especially when it involved managerial staff. Cancel the matter, give them one day off. They have been working continuously, and start afresh.
From Tanzania
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From Tanzania
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Sir, I am also of the same opinion as opined by Mr.Dinesh. However I wanted an expert opinion to substantiate my views to the Directors. Thanks a ton. Regards, Harish
From India, Bangalore
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From India, Bangalore
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Hello Harish,
Vis-a-vis your line "employees had drinks around 10.00 p.m. and came to the factory only after the customer returned after dinner," does this mean the employees went out to have drinks, or is Dinesh's presumption correct [that they had drinks within the factory premises]?
And is working for >16 hrs/day for a week the normal practice in your factory, or is it due to some exigency or delivery deadline to be met? If the latter, then your Director ought to adopt a 'give & take' policy. I too have worked under such situations now and then earlier in my career, and I know how it's handled from the Top.
Based on what you mentioned -- that the concerned employees are ready to resign -- looks like the pressure must have come from the customer. That's when the Director needs to act as the TACTICAL BUFFER between the customer [who can't be ignored] and the employees [who can't be just done away with without thinking of long-term consequences].
And since the employees have offered to resign, it does seem that they have realized their mistake and wish to correct it.
In this context, I would draw your attention to a small story [not sure if it's true or not, but it does convey HOW any Top Honcho ought to handle such a situation] about Gautam Adani. When he caught an employee making a big blunder that could have cost the Company a lot, he refused to accept the employee's resignation on THIS ground: You made a mistake, didn't hesitate to correct it, and have also learned your lesson. Now you will never repeat such a mistake. So WHY should I allow someone else to benefit from this lesson? I would rather benefit from it.
However, if this is the normal practice, then Dinesh is absolutely right in saying "Tell your Director to fix this flaw first."
Regards,
TS
From India, Hyderabad
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Vis-a-vis your line "employees had drinks around 10.00 p.m. and came to the factory only after the customer returned after dinner," does this mean the employees went out to have drinks, or is Dinesh's presumption correct [that they had drinks within the factory premises]?
And is working for >16 hrs/day for a week the normal practice in your factory, or is it due to some exigency or delivery deadline to be met? If the latter, then your Director ought to adopt a 'give & take' policy. I too have worked under such situations now and then earlier in my career, and I know how it's handled from the Top.
Based on what you mentioned -- that the concerned employees are ready to resign -- looks like the pressure must have come from the customer. That's when the Director needs to act as the TACTICAL BUFFER between the customer [who can't be ignored] and the employees [who can't be just done away with without thinking of long-term consequences].
And since the employees have offered to resign, it does seem that they have realized their mistake and wish to correct it.
In this context, I would draw your attention to a small story [not sure if it's true or not, but it does convey HOW any Top Honcho ought to handle such a situation] about Gautam Adani. When he caught an employee making a big blunder that could have cost the Company a lot, he refused to accept the employee's resignation on THIS ground: You made a mistake, didn't hesitate to correct it, and have also learned your lesson. Now you will never repeat such a mistake. So WHY should I allow someone else to benefit from this lesson? I would rather benefit from it.
However, if this is the normal practice, then Dinesh is absolutely right in saying "Tell your Director to fix this flaw first."
Regards,
TS
From India, Hyderabad
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The matter is not being handled properly. Dismissal, punishment, etc., are not applicable here. Counselling and advice are what is necessary. I presume that they did not drink within the factory premises.
The staff had a pressurised work schedule to meet company commitments and wanted to let off steam after meeting schedules as per company commitment. When they offered resignations en masse, the company wants to take disciplinary action.
The offense is not all that serious in one way, but going home driving after consuming liquor is unacceptable and can lead to serious consequences. Making them work beyond normal working hours is also a violation of the law.
Two wrongs do not make a right. Tell your director to be sensible and treat it as one of the things that do happen. If a customer had made a complaint, deal with it diplomatically, but employees should not be a pawn.
I write this considering that employees drank outside the factory and came back only because the customer had come back, and work was completed prior to "happy hours."
The director needs to handle his human resources more carefully and with care. They are not disposable commodities.
From India, Pune
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The staff had a pressurised work schedule to meet company commitments and wanted to let off steam after meeting schedules as per company commitment. When they offered resignations en masse, the company wants to take disciplinary action.
The offense is not all that serious in one way, but going home driving after consuming liquor is unacceptable and can lead to serious consequences. Making them work beyond normal working hours is also a violation of the law.
Two wrongs do not make a right. Tell your director to be sensible and treat it as one of the things that do happen. If a customer had made a complaint, deal with it diplomatically, but employees should not be a pawn.
I write this considering that employees drank outside the factory and came back only because the customer had come back, and work was completed prior to "happy hours."
The director needs to handle his human resources more carefully and with care. They are not disposable commodities.
From India, Pune
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Something is missing. If managerial people are involved, then standing orders do not apply.
Every day, working 16 hours under the guise of completing tasks raises questions about legality, fairness, and propriety. Would we have the same thoughts if this were done by a group of workers in the same situation?
Do we need to address this matter with seriousness, or can it be resolved by speaking to them in person and receiving an apology?
From India, Kolhapur
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Every day, working 16 hours under the guise of completing tasks raises questions about legality, fairness, and propriety. Would we have the same thoughts if this were done by a group of workers in the same situation?
Do we need to address this matter with seriousness, or can it be resolved by speaking to them in person and receiving an apology?
From India, Kolhapur
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Treat this as a one-time affair and move ahead. Your directors need to appoint more staff if work pressure is always so high. Otherwise, they should learn 'to bite only that much which they can chew'. The workers (managerial or otherwise) should delink relaxation from work. If they have to consume alcohol, then they need not come back for duty under its influence.
From India, New Delhi
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From India, New Delhi
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It should be dealt with from different angles. Working more than the requisite hours is an issue that is part of labor law. There might not be standing orders certified or not certified. This is all for the company for working and for the disciplinary process. But these things are not to be compared with taking drinks in the factory and for whatever reason it is. Are we accepting that those who do not have certified standing orders and those who are working overtime are permitted to take drinks in the factory? Further, whether drinks are taken in the factory or taken outside and then brought to the factory is not a justifiable stance. Pressurizing in the name of wholesale resignation gives the indication that the "unity and expertise" of the group are very sound. I feel that management should caution them on this and address it to ensure that these things do not happen in the future.
From India, Nellore
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From India, Nellore
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