Employee issues.. Wanted to vent

[CALandscapes]

I've finally decided to use this site to vent...

A few minutes ago (about 9:30 pm) I received a call on my cell phone from one of my employees.. He starts to explain to me how his cousin's coming in town tomorrow, etc. etc. He then tells me that, because of this, he isn't going to show up for work tomorrow. He starts to plead with me and I offer him an opportunity to decide his own fate: come to work tomorrow and keep your job, or choose to stay home and loose it. I asked him to give me a yes or no answer as to whether or not he's going to show up, and he wouldn't...

Generally I'd happily fire most of the employees I have for such an infraction, but this guy happens to be very good and a pretty crucial member of the three-man crew he works on. He's also the brother-in-law of the crew leader, and I'm sure a bit of tension will come out of his termination..

Anyway, I just can't believe the nerve that some people have.

Obviously he's going to be terminated...

Thanks for listening! :dizzy::cry::dizzy::cry:

[AJ Lawnscapes]

So he gives you notice, probably after he just found out, that he's not going to be able to make it to work tomorrow, so you can him?

Maybe his cousin just got in from Iraq, or home from basic training, or etc etc.. Find out...don't just fire him if he's that important and this is his first "infraction" (used lightly as I don't see one)

[Uranus]

Really? Did he tell you he's not coming in or did you choose not hear him ask for a day off. Sounds like you need to chill just a little and understand that not everyone is willing to bust their tail every day. We all need a day of now and then, no matter what the reason is.

[SuperDuty335]

If I were him I would quit too.

[PROCUT1]

yep...thats the mentality these kids come to work with.

Come in monday late.

Hey....I gotta leave at 2 tomorrow, i got some stuff to do..

And im not coming thursday.

They have never uttered the phrase "i cant cause i have to work" to anyone.

[landscaper22]

Yeah, employees are fun. He did call at least. Most don't even do that. If he is that good, cut him a break. Well, I'm not trying to tell you what to do. It's just I have been way more flexible than that with far worse employees. Sometimes things do come up. You just have to decide how valuabe he is to you.

[CALandscapes]

They have never uttered the phrase "i cant cause i have to work" to anyone.

That's my point exactly.

The guy didn't show up today, either. I guess this cousin he has in town must be awfully important.

And for those of you who are so sympathetic, say you would quit too, etc. etc.; I don't understand how you can successfully run a business being so laxidasical... Whatever works for you, I guess.. :hammerhead:

Oh, and p.s. - his brother in law voted to fire him, as well. When you have deadlines, responsibilities, etc., you follow through with them and put your priorities in order of importance; this guy showed obviously where his priorities fall...

[jwynncmi]

Employees suck. I'd rather deal with PITAs all day than employee issues. Being sympathetic to a superstar is something I do, but for minor infractions it's ground work for days. No call no show = the can. They don't talk back because I give orders not options.

[landscaper22]

And for those of you who are so sympathetic, say you would quit too, etc. etc.; I don't understand how you can successfully run a business being so laxidasical... Whatever works for you, I guess.. :hammerhead:


You know, it's just one of those things. The thing is...Well I have said this numerous times before...You are dealing with a different breed with employees in this line of work. I wouldn't say I'm sympathetic. It's just near impossible to find one that does good work and puts work before other activities. If he is no good cut him. If this matter is the worse thing he has ever done then I would be considering myself lucky.
And yes, the employee thing does suck. I have had about all I can take of their drama too.

[Gene $immons]

I simply fire guys who don't show up and call in with an excuse. I have heard every excuse in the book. And of course it is always some over the top reason why they couldn't make it in, or call me.

I enjoy the Donald Trump line "Your Fired".

Feels good.

[mowjoe666]

I've finally decided to use this site to vent...

A few minutes ago (about 9:30 pm) I received a call on my cell phone from one of my employees.. He starts to explain to me how his cousin's coming in town tomorrow, etc. etc. He then tells me that, because of this, he isn't going to show up for work tomorrow. He starts to plead with me and I offer him an opportunity to decide his own fate: come to work tomorrow and keep your job, or choose to stay home and loose it. I asked him to give me a yes or no answer as to whether or not he's going to show up, and he wouldn't...

Generally I'd happily fire most of the employees I have for such an infraction, but this guy happens to be very good and a pretty crucial member of the three-man crew he works on. He's also the brother-in-law of the crew leader, and I'm sure a bit of tension will come out of his termination..

Anyway, I just can't believe the nerve that some people have.

Obviously he's going to be terminated...

Thanks for listening! :dizzy::cry::dizzy::cry:

You are such a heartless arse. No wonnder you lawn bisinesses are always griping no one wants to work for you. maybe he is just getting back from Iraq like the other guy said. Show some respect for our soldiers and their families.

[StBalor]

Seems this stuff happens alot in our line of work. Something always comes up that is more important then cutting grass. I have 1 full time employee and he is really great. he works with me 7 days a week and when he absolutely needs to take a day off he lets me know in advance and works around my schedule. We try and work it out to a day i do not have much to do and he goes and does whatever he needs to do. I also have a few neighborhood kids ( 15 - 16 years old ) that are always asking me if they can work. I have taken some of them and they work their asses off. But it is only a day here and a day there. Where i am having trouble is finding a good 2nd full time employee. Man it seems like no 1 can hang for more then a few days. If they last longer it is usually because i am way to easy on them and they start taking advantage of it. Seems like something always starts coming up where it is more important then work. I have hired and fired at least 8 people this year. the last 1 was a winner. I Posted an ad for someone who could use a string trimmer. Talked to him on the phone and he said he knew what he was doing. HaHaHa, that was a joke, had no idea what was going on. he lasted about a week and stopped showing up.
Other guys would work a few days then start calling in sick or something would come up and they could not make it in to work. you want to believe them when they say it's an emergency but no way in hell every person i hire has an emergency and can't come in after just 1 or 2 days of working for me.
So i have come to a conclusion, I must be a D**K to work for.
But the guys that do work hard for me gets treated well. I often buy them lunch, usually always buy them breakfast on sundays and have even treated them to movies, bowling and the state fair. So i can't be that bad, can i?

[SuperDuty335]

StBalor presented a nice post. The guys who are half-hearted and don't show up mentally and physically with a good attitude have to go - no question. I've been in the same boat over and over again. This is however, a different matter than the initial case posted here. I must ask what has been gained by firing the quality worker? A point was made and a valuable part of the company lost? :hammerhead:

Secondly, we assume the said worker was indeed without blame or fault until the "incident".

Thirdly, the worker should have planned his reunion a little more wisely so we wouldn't have this thread.
:hammerhead:

[DeepGreenLawn]

But it is only a day here and a day there. Where i am having trouble is finding a good 2nd full time employee.

usually always buy them breakfast on sundays

They have to work Sundays? I bet you have a hard time finding a good second guy...

Take care of your employees and if they are good they will take care of you... that is my theory...

[Chilehead]

yep...thats the mentality these kids come to work with.

Come in monday late.

Hey....I gotta leave at 2 tomorrow, i got some stuff to do..

And im not coming thursday.

They have never uttered the phrase "i cant cause i have to work" to anyone.

So true. Can him and don't look back. If his Brother-in-law quits, so be it. Start looking for replacement help at once.

[CALandscapes]

You are such a heartless arse. No wonnder you lawn bisinesses are always griping no one wants to work for you. maybe he is just getting back from Iraq like the other guy said. Show some respect for our soldiers and their families.

I love how several of you are convinced that his cousin must have come home from Iraq.. It'd be near impossible considering that the guy's an immigrant from Honduras (and YES, all of my Latinos have documentation).

For those of you who think that I'm harsh or disagree with what I've said thus far, you may need to reevaluate your policies and actions; to allow an employee to walk all over you strips you of what you must maintain as an owner/manager: your power and control...

For me to allow one person to walk all over me would invite others to do the same, and this could potentially prove detrimental to my entire business.

To provide a conclusion:

Yes, the guy still is with me, but now only on an "as-needed" basis; he's been replaced on the construction crew and will only be utilized on paver jobs and on larger jobs where more people are needed or on the maintenance crew when they get behind.

I'm essentially treating him as he treated his job.. He obviously only felt it was necessary to work when he wanted to, and I'm thus using him only when I need him.

[DeepGreenLawn]

I'm essentially treating him as he treated his job.. He obviously only felt it was necessary to work when he wanted to, and I'm thus using him only when I need him.

Now that I agree with...

Apparently we all don't know the background of the situation... so therefore I will take your word on it and personally like the way that you handled it with the outcome.

[punt66]

I've finally decided to use this site to vent...

A few minutes ago (about 9:30 pm) I received a call on my cell phone from one of my employees.. He starts to explain to me how his cousin's coming in town tomorrow, etc. etc. He then tells me that, because of this, he isn't going to show up for work tomorrow. He starts to plead with me and I offer him an opportunity to decide his own fate: come to work tomorrow and keep your job, or choose to stay home and loose it. I asked him to give me a yes or no answer as to whether or not he's going to show up, and he wouldn't...

Generally I'd happily fire most of the employees I have for such an infraction, but this guy happens to be very good and a pretty crucial member of the three-man crew he works on. He's also the brother-in-law of the crew leader, and I'm sure a bit of tension will come out of his termination..

Anyway, I just can't believe the nerve that some people have.

Obviously he's going to be terminated...

Thanks for listening! :dizzy::cry::dizzy::cry:

In my opinion your way out of line. He could have just called in sick of made some other excuse. Instead he gave you a little notice and was honest about the situation. Its hard to find good people and if he is one of them as you said then your behavior is unproffesional. People arnt robots you own. Good luck training a new guy who is worth a damn. There arnt many of them around.

[Eakern & Dog]

I love how several of you are convinced that his cousin must have come home from Iraq.. It'd be near impossible considering that the guy's an immigrant from Honduras (and YES, all of my Latinos have documentation

Well, if he has legit documentation I suppose it won't be hard for him to find another job. A hard working latino with legit papers in the Atlanta area is like finding a diamond in the ruff.........send him our way.......

[Ramairfreak98ss]

So he gives you notice, probably after he just found out, that he's not going to be able to make it to work tomorrow, so you can him?

Maybe his cousin just got in from Iraq, or home from basic training, or etc etc.. Find out...don't just fire him if he's that important and this is his first "infraction" (used lightly as I don't see one)

lol yeah CA sounds like your pretty pissed for one reason or another. Im THRILLED when i know the day ahead of time when an employee isnt going to be able to come in.

Now its BAD when you have two trucks/trailers ready to send 2-3 guys out each in, and two dont show up. So i strip down to one crew/truck/trailer and hold off on the one job till the next day. After myself and two other employees get everything unloaded off the other "loaded/ready" trailer and truck and put it back, the @#$%$ show up, 25 minutes late, not a call or nothing. I was gonna frekking flip, but i wanted to get the 2nd job done and it would have hurt me more to not send them out. Low and behold, one guy got in a fight with the other, he knew him somehow, and stopped showing up, then that guy just didnt show up one day and that was it.

About two months ago i got a new employee that seemed great, he worked fast, had overall descent knowledge about what we were doing etc.

He took off for a week, vacation or something, so i talk to him after he comes back, on a thursday, hes supposed to come in next day on the next monday.. MOnday comes, hes not there, have never heard from him since :/ Pisses me off more when they ARE good employees until the end. He had only worked for a month and i gave him a $1/hr raise after the first week and another $1/hr raise after the 3rd week and was going to bump him up another the week that he quit... He was good in all aspects except he JUST passed his drivers test/29yrs old a couple weeks after starting for us becuase of a DUI 2 years prior. My insurance would skyrocket with him driving anything so i just didnt allow him to.

It sucks, you can hire employees to work for you, but its 20x more difficult to find ones just capable of simple things like decision making and driving ability. I only have one guy/ my brother that i'd ever let drive any of our trucks. I see how bad the others drive their own personal cars lol.

[Gene $immons]

His cousin was coming to town = I have to get drunk with my friend and can't work.

[DeepGreenLawn]

Now, my bro-n-law came in town from Iraq on leave, we went and got drunk, but that to me is fine. Especially since I experienced it personally, if I ever have an employee tell me that they have a friend/family member in with a situation such as being here from Iraq, I may give them money to take their friend out for a night of fun... after that night a few weeks ago... any soldier home on leave could use all the breaks and commradery they can get while they are home.

I know this is not the case... just saying...

[CALandscapes]

I'm completely aware that employees aren't "robots," but, at the same time, if you're going to work for me you're going to show up for work, wearing your uniform, on time, and be ready to do whatever is needed for the job.

I understand that things come up, people get sick, wives have babies, children need rides to school late, etc., but, because you're cousin's coming in town you call at the last minute is b/s. I run a tight schedule and have customers expecting things done, and, when you don't show because you essentially don't want to, it affects my business. I have a personal and friendly relationship with each and every one of my employees, but, when we're at work, work comes first and foremost. The fact of the matter is that I'm running a BUSINESS.

Furthermore, to calm down you guys who think that I'm the Satan of all employers, this guy has done similar things in the past. Over the past couple of years there have been a handful of days where he didn't show. While he is skilled and proficient at the work that he does, I would exactly call him a shining star...

Again I'll reiterate: For those of you who don't agree with my way of managing employees, I wish you the bust of luck in running your business and with this the hope that your employees don't walk all over you, because, if you're as lax as you say, that is exactly what they'll do once they figure you out.

[CALandscapes]

His cousin was coming to town = I have to get drunk with my friend and can't work.

Gene, I just read your response --- You're spot on 100%. You must be the cousin or something, because you know exactly how my guy's mind operates. LOL!

[HOOLIE]

The thing that caught my attention was the guy didn't ASK if he could have the day off, he simply said "I'm not coming in" So much in life is in how you phrase things. While it's true he could have simply lied and called in sick, he didn't, and didn't go about trying to get the day off the right way. An employee can't just presume they can come and go as they please.

[punt66]

I'm completely aware that employees aren't "robots," but, at the same time, if you're going to work for me you're going to show up for work, wearing your uniform, on time, and be ready to do whatever is needed for the job.

I understand that things come up, people get sick, wives have babies, children need rides to school late, etc., but, because you're cousin's coming in town you call at the last minute is b/s. I run a tight schedule and have customers expecting things done, and, when you don't show because you essentially don't want to, it affects my business. I have a personal and friendly relationship with each and every one of my employees, but, when we're at work, work comes first and foremost. The fact of the matter is that I'm running a BUSINESS.

Furthermore, to calm down you guys who think that I'm the Satan of all employers, this guy has done similar things in the past. Over the past couple of years there have been a handful of days where he didn't show. While he is skilled and proficient at the work that he does, I would exactly call him a shining star...

Again I'll reiterate: For those of you who don't agree with my way of managing employees, I wish you the bust of luck in running your business and with this the hope that your employees don't walk all over you, because, if you're as lax as you say, that is exactly what they'll do once they figure you out.

Had a construction company for 11 years. had 3 crews running fulltime. Treated them all with respect, gave them the time off they needed. Said thank you and please. Fired 2 people in 11 years because they were lazy. Fired within the first week on recomendations of the others. Provided them with with insurance, sick days, and let them use my condo in naples florida. Employees are there to make you money, keeping them happy is key. My guys would come to work sick and on saturday without me even asking because they knew work needed to be done. Most people dont know how to manage employees. Your one of them. I know what your next question is. Why arnt you in business now??? Diagnosed with brain cancer. Needed to slow down. Doc didnt want me to work at all. But mowing lawns seemed stress free and i grew from there.

[CALandscapes]

Most people dont know how to manage employees. Your one of them.

Based on the little you know of me and how I run my business and manage my employees, that's quite the judgment you've chosen to make. I, however, would beg to differ, as I'm sure my employees would, as well.

I'd love to sit and argue with you on the computer, but, considering that I know where I'm at with what I do, I'll spare my time and wish you the best with your lawns.

[punt66]

Based on the little you know of me and how I run my business and manage my employees, that's quite the judgment you've chosen to make. I, however, would beg to differ, as I'm sure my employees would, as well.

I'd love to sit and argue with you on the computer, but, considering that I know where I'm at with what I do, I'll spare my time and wish you the best with your lawns.


good. its a judgement i made based on my experiences as an employer and an employee. Your employees are people to be respected and guided. Not owned. Its their choice to what path they take. You accept them for who they are or not accept them. If your firing a good employee because he wanted a day off and was honest with you about it how will that be percieves by the rest of your employees? In a professional setting which you obviously have not experienced, that wont fly. Your comment of im running a BUSINESS is correct. A business under good management has to expect those scenarios and deal with them. I learned my way of management from my first employer in the construction field and to this day have huge amount of respect for him as all his employees do. Give your employees the respect and they will return the favor. If they dont then they made their choice.

[YardPro]

sounds like YOU are a control freak

there is a big difference between letting an employee walk all over you and being a decent humam being...
Your employees are not machines.. they are people.. they have feelings, emotions, etc...
you treat them like machines and never give a crap about thier personal lives, and you will never have decent employees.... they will treat you like a paycheck...

[StBalor]

They have to work Sundays? I bet you have a hard time finding a good second guy...

Take care of your employees and if they are good they will take care of you... that is my theory...


If someone needs off on a sunday or comes to work for me and does not want to work sundays, that is fine. Just let me know in advance so i can make other arrangements and get 1 of the neighborhood kids fill in. Just give me some sort of notice, that's all i ask.

As for the original topic of this post, i would have probably been aggrevated that the guy did not come in on such short notice. But i do not think i would have fired him unless it became a regular habit.

[DeepGreenLawn]

That works...

I would have been pissed with a call the night before... at least give me a day or two... preferably the week before... but I would have made that VERY clear... you get this one but no others... then explain that because he is not coming in and letting me know the night before that really puts a strain on me and the other guys and is not very considerate...

Like the others were saying, give and show them respect and treat them like men and not kids and that I would think would go a long way...

I just got a call for an estimate, I just hired a new sales guy, it is out of his way and not in the area that we had planned for him to work so I told him that if he couldn't get to it tomorrow I would take care of it Sat... not a demand, a request... he is going to do it... I respect him, I don't want to work off a last second schedule and I am not going to make him do it either.

(I will be at the FD tomorrow so I can't do it)