Do I really want to go to work?

July 7, 2010 5 Comments

Listen to this postMost of us wake up every morning and go through the same daily routine to get ready for work. We fight our way in the crowded streets to reach the office (work place) just on time or few minutes late, or sometimes, few hours late! We dread the long working hours, complain about the extra work they dumped on us and sometimes we complain that we have nothing to do, just plain boring. We long for a vacation, long public holiday or occasional sick leave to relax for few days. If you just started working then you will be full of energy and would be looking forward to change the world. If you have worked for more that 10 years you would definitely know that you can change just small part of your daily routine. Some of us have worked for more than 20 years and asking them self “when will I be able to retire!” or why don’t I get that easy job in the corner office to just sign few papers every day to enjoy your especial cup of coffee. You would tell yourself that you deserve that easy job because you have earn it.

Occasionally, we get the thought of quitting, retiring or switching jobs but we forget or dismiss that thought after few minuets . However, few of us would seriously think about it and have difficult time deciding. The best way to know if you should quit, retire or switch jobs would be that morning routine. If you wake up in the morning but feel that you do not want to go to work, then it is time for you to make a decision about it. The decision would be based on not wanting to go to work because you do not want to go. This decision would not be applicable if you are physically tired, sleepy or sick. You would positively know that you just do not want to work at the same place because you hate working there. This is a gut feeling that you can not explain, but your body your brain and your legs would all tell you that they hate going to work at the same place. You should plan your future of either retiring, looking for another job, or shutting your mouth and stay at your current job until things get better. Never leave your job while you have financial commitments or family to feed with no other source of income to replace your monthly salary. Tomorrow when you wake up in the morning ask yourself “do I really want to go to work?

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How Long Should We Stay

May 28, 2010 6 Comments

Listen to this postI was asked how could I work for the same employer for a long time. I have worked with the same employer for about 30 years now. I joined the current employer in November 1980 when I had enough black hear on top of my head and a slim waist that I can only wish for now. I have gain a lot of weight which mostly not muscles.  Back then, I was eager and happy to work in an unforgiving environment like the refining industry. My start was with a team ten years older than me. They started bullying and pressuring me to quit. They asked me many times why would I work in such harsh conditions while I am still young and able to join less demanding and more prestige’s job. My answer would always be in the a derivative of the following question “…. and why are you still working in this environment if it is not good as you said!” usually they could not give a good answer. I knew then that I had a good job because they were trying to push me out of it.
The number one reason for me to stay with the same employer is the good salary and the frequent promotions I got. I was promoted relatively fast from one position to the other when I was a high school graduate and also when I got my engineering degree.  I should say that I got the degree by a generous  scholarship from the same employer.
The working team and the culture in the refinery is the second reason for me to stay with the same employer. The refinery is full of people who would help me when I ask them to, and they are always supportive when I needed support. They are more like a family to me than coworkers.  The daily challenges keep me busy and innovative constantly. These challenge are my third reason for staying with the same employer because routine or repetitive work is does not suit me. I would say that good salary, good benefits combined with daily challenges in a supportive environment would be a good combination for somebody like me to stay forever with a single employer.

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Safety Culture Prevents Accidents

May 24, 2010 1 Comment

Listen to this postFriend (2000) suggest setting up key performance indicators to check the safety culture and act on deviations from these performance indicators. Periodic review is suggested to confirm the validity of the key performance indicators and culture development. Reid (2008) highlights three steps to build up a safety culture. First, team’s errors, intentional or unintentional, are unacceptable and should be dealt with to either mitigate or end them. Second, acknowledge human factors in the care delivery. Third, set permanent quality improvement in the medical teams and leaders. Hard work is required to prove that such problem does exist at the work place. The problem might be intangible like potential for loss which can be prevented by an insurance policy. Management support and commitment is required to build safety culture. Management can support the culture by endorsing written safety documents like safety manual, safety policy, rules and regulation. Management should support a carrot and stick system to reward good safety behaviors and denounce unsafe behaviors.

Intangible items like shared values, beliefs and perceptions set safety culture in the work site. Management will focus on selected intangible elements of the culture according to the job nature. Deviations will not be accepted in these selected elements. Management should improve safety attitude and constantly assess the safety related issues to build a solid safety culture. Set up standard operating procedure and proactively manage assets. Assess each incident and share the learned lessons with employees. Encourage employees to document incidents regardless of their size or effect on the workplace. Analyze each incident and set a remedy to prevent its reoccurrence.

One of the important management responsibilities is to balance between safety and the incident cost reduction. Management should elevate safety awareness as part of their support to safety culture. Train employees, new and veteran, on safety related issues and encourage them to report incidents. Employ safety personal make them report to the highest management levels possible.

References:

Enhance safety culture in your manufacturing sites. (Oct 2007). Hydrocarbon Processing, p.NA. Retrieved October 19, 2008, from Gale PowerSearch database.

Friend, M. (2000). Establishing a safety culture: getting started. Professional Safety, 45(5), 30. Retrieved October 18, 2008, from the EBSCOhost database.

Reid, J. (2008). Building a safety culture. The Journal of Perioperative Practice, 18(4), 134.  Retrieved October 19, 2008, from ProQuest database.

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When Do We Blow the Whistle?

May 9, 2010 11 Comments

Listen to this postWhen we notice something that we think is unlawful or unethical at work we have to investigate its integrity. We should also investigate why the employer would do unlawful or unethical act. Whistle-blowers sometimes blow their whistles too early and get themselves in trouble. Whistle blowing is ” the disclosure by organization members (former or current) of  illegal, immoral, or illegitimate practices under the control of their employers, to persons or organizations that may be able to effect action” (Peeples, Stokes, & Wingfield, 2009, p. 468).

Miceli and Near (2002) stated that the wrongdoing would be terminated when it is less serious or deeply rooted. Whistle blowing can be more effective if the whistle –blower have power and can communicate to the right people (Miceli & Near, 2002). A single incident like overhearing a supervisor or noticing a violation by the organization might not be worth reporting, although we are obligated ethically to report it. Understanding the reason for the unlawful or wrongdoing would help the whistle-blower to find alternative solutions or means to do the same job without violations.

Good reasons for whistle-blowing would be increasing safety, stopping wrongdoing, receiving monetary rewards, and eliminating perceived injustice (Peeples, et al., 2009). The whistle-blowing is an act of loyalty to the employer because it will benefit the employer in correcting the wrongdoing or improve the workplace safety and general condition. But, the whistle-blower should do that after exhausting all means to correct the wrongdoing by using internal means. The whistle-blower should balance his decision by weighing the severity of the act, the motive of the wrongdoer and the degrees of control assigned to the wrongdoer (Peeples, et al., 2009). The US Department of Labor estimated that only15% of the whistle-blowing cases have value,  and 85% of the whistle-blowers incurred high costs for their decision to blow the whistle (Peeples, et al., 2009).
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References:

Miceli, M. P., & Near, J. P. (2002). What makes whistle-blowers effective? Three field studies. [Article]. Human Relations, 55(4), 455.

Peeples, D. K., Stokes, P., & Wingfield, S. S. (2009). When the whistle is blown: Legal defenses and practical guidelines for managing reports of organizational misconduct. [Article]. Business & Society, 48(4), 467-488.

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Drug Testing Policy at Work

April 27, 2010 Leave a comment

Listen to this postUnited Kingdom (UK) workers are known for drinking of alcoholic beverages heavily. Research was conducted on UK workers estimated that 40% of the workers believe that alcohol misuse is the main cause of employee absence and productivity loss (Johnson, 2009). Another research quoted by Johnson (2009) estimate that 33% of the organizations in the UK report similar effects of drugs abuse although 40% of these organizations do not have a policy to manage drinking and drug abuse. Drug testing is useful but brings up personal issues and reservations. Drug testing can be justified if the nature of work need alertness like running heavy machinery, driving public transportation or performing sensitive and delicate work.

Drug testing maybe not needed for less critical jobs but lost productivity due to intoxication or absenteeism amount to huge sum of money. Pre-employment drug test is useful to screen candidates. Hair analysis is a new drug test that give a three months history of the candidates lifestyle (Johnson, 2009). Unannounced random screening could be a good practice to eliminate the thought that such test was done because of personal issues with the superior or because of prejudice reasons. The code of conduct policy should support drug testing and details how the test is performed and what to do if violation was found. A research was done on schools in Australia showed limited success in detecting and preventing drugs abuse (Roche, Bywood, Pidd, Freeman, & Steenson, 2009). Schools can be the informative and supporting medium to educate the students on the harmful sides of drugs-abuse on their health and social relationships (Roche, et al., 2009).

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References:

Johnson, G. (2009). Under the influence. [Article]. Occupational Health, 61(12), 32-34.

Roche, A. M., Bywood, P., Pidd, K., Freeman, T., & Steenson, T. (2009). Drug testing in Australian schools: Policy implications and considerations of punitive, deterrence and/or prevention measures. [Article]. International Journal of Drug Policy, 20(6), 521-528. doi: 10.1016/j.drugpo.2009.04.002

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Sexual Harassment or Office Relationship?

April 25, 2010 9 Comments

Listen to this postWhat would you do if a co-worker was sexually harassed? You may not accept sexual harassment and you would report it right away to the right person for immediate action. But before reporting the harassment, you should make sure that you know the difference between office relationship and sexual harassment. The result of surveyed workers in the US stated that 40% of the surveyed workers admitted they dated a co-worker and 18% of them had dated more than one co-worker (Pearce II, 2010). The age group between 35 to 44 are most active group in the office relationship group because 44% of them admitted a relationship (Pearce II, 2010). Pearce II (2010) state that the age group of 55 and older are also participating in the office relations activity with lesser percentage of 34%. Office relationship is defined as “relationship between two individuals employed by the same company that advances beyond the socially acceptable employer-employee association and the work-related duties” (Pearce II, 2010, p. 38). Office relationship might be desirable by large number of employees but sexual harassment can lead to “employee turnover, absenteeism, insurance costs and lost productivity” (Popovich & Warren, 2010, p. 45). If you have been sexually harassed by a co-worker then you should:

  • Remain calm and do not start blaming yourself.
  • Tell the offender that you do not like what was done and it should be stopped immediately.
  • Report the harassment to the right person. Fill the forms or write a litter of complain to you superior.
  • Follow up on the investigation and disciplinary action. Make sure it will not happen to you or other co-worker.

But before you file a complain for your co-worker, make sure that they have been harassed.

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References:

Pearce II, J. A. (2010). What execs don’t get about office romance. [Article]. MIT Sloan Management Review, 51(3), 39-40.

Popovich, P. M., & Warren, M. A. (2010). The role of power in sexual harassment as a counterproductive behavior in organizations. [Article]. Human Resource Management Review, 20(1), 45-53. doi: 10.1016/j.hrmr.2009.05.003

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How Sick You Are?

April 13, 2010 10 Comments

Listen to this postSick leaves have been used and abused by workers depending on their health and employer’s firmness. The cost of sick leaves on the U. K. taxpayer is exceeding £11 billion due to different reasons. Work related stress is one of the contributing factors along with workers lifestyle and malingering. The sick leave issues are management concern and health and safety topic. Workers feel the need for sick leaves to revive their mental and physical health. The organization management considers sick leaves as wasted valuable assets. Worker’s lifestyle in workplace or outside affects his/her health. Sleep deprivation can cause fatigue and negative impact on health. Work related stress is because of apprehensions over job security and family finance. Malingering is workers laziness to the point of taking sick leave when not sick.

Workers sickness due to work environment or work stress is a natural phenomena, but workers misuse of such privilege intensifies the debate against general practitioners (medical doctors) issuing the sick leaves. A survey showed that 80% of the general practitioners did not want the responsibility of writing sick leaves. The general practitioners are generally busy on more important issues that force them to write the sick leave without careful consideration.

Many of us have different justifications for taking sick leave when they are not sick. We have to ask ourselves how do we feel if our employees, whom we pay their salaries from our pockets, used the same justifications for taking one or two days off. For example, if we have a driver or housekeeper that declare that they are sick today and they got the official sick leave from the doctor to prove it? And they make this announcement to you just before you leave to work! How would you fee? What would be your reaction if they repeat the sick leave once every week?

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References

Cumulative sleep debt on rotating night shifts. (2005). Nursing Standard, 19(43), 18.

Duffin, C. (2004). Staff take less sick leave with flexible shift system. Nursing Standard, 18(33), 7.

Paton, N. (2008). Economic crisis starts to take its toll on occupational health. Occupational Health, 60(11), 5.

Sicknote pressure could backfire on business. (2004). Management Services, 48(6), 6.

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Thank You … Keep The Change!

March 28, 2010 5 Comments

Listen to this postMost of us used taxi services at some point of our lives and there is a great chance that we have been robbed by the taxi driver. The taxi drivers perfected a simple trick which they use often and they never were caught by anybody. For example, you arrive at your destination and the fair meter shows the total amount of  £16.35. So you hand in  a bill of £50 to the taxi driver. He would reach for his wallet and hand you a £10 note then start handing you the pounds 1, 2, 3 then search for the smaller coins and take some time to find them. At this point you would say “Thank you…please keep the change !“. He will drive a way with £20.15 you gave to him willingly. Next time you are in a taxi and the driver give you the coins just stop there and keep your mouth shut. You notice that he will reach to another wallet to hand you the £20. Smart trick and you can not accuse them of anything. I have seen the same trick done in many countries without exceptions. Did you experience similar tricks?

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Self Development Programs are Like Ice Cream

March 11, 2010 5 Comments

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Robin Sharma and Me

Robin Sharma and Me

Yesterday I attended a nice full day workshop by the best-selling author Mr. Robin Sharma. His most popular book is “The Monk Who Sold His Ferrari“. I enjoyed the workshop but there is a variety of self-development books which I read before made this workshop look similar. Once you read few of these self-development books you will find them repeat the same principles. They are like choosing a flavor at Baskin-Robbins, the color and taste might be different but the basic ingredient is Ice Cream. I distilled the presentation to the following important points:

  • All human are equal and anybody can be an amazing leader.
  • We all have equal opportunities which we should take advantage of before it is too late.
  • We need to set long-term personal targets (10-50 years) and then dissect them into smaller tasks.
  • Work everyday on 1% of the task (or goal). You will accomplish the goal withing the target date without being overloaded.
  • Ice Cream

    Baskin Robins Ice Cream

    Keep on focusing on your goals all the time.

  • Fall in love or be passionate about what you do. Keep your focus on that ultimate goal and neglect other distractions.
  • Do not make yourself a victim. Do not blame other people or circumstances for your failures.
  • Learn from you failures, they are a good opportunity to learn.
  • Do not be afraid of risk. Change will always bring the best in you.

Mr. Robin Sharma has a good presentation style that captivate the audience and has a talent for telling passionate stories that makes the audience want to cry. On my scale I would give Mr. Sharma 7/10 when compared with other motivational speakers.

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High Hanging Fruits

March 7, 2010 4 Comments

كنار السدره
Image by Sami Malallah via Flickr

Listen to this postThe tree in the picture is known in Kuwait by the name of “Sedrah”. It produces small fruit called “Kinar” which has sweet and refreshing taste. This tree can grow up to 10 meters tall and have nice diameter of cool shade with a diameter of 6 meters. The sweet Kinar will fall down when it is ripe and ready for eating. All we need to do is collect it for the ground when the breeze blow it off. However most of the people are impatient and would like to eat the high hanging fruits at their convenient time, so they would hit the branches with a stick or through rocks to the top of the tree to drop the fruit. The aggressiveness would break the branches and damage the tree.

This strange human behavior always amaze me. Volunteers suffer form this phenomena the most. When they do a good job, people would ask for more. Volunteers receive complains or at least criticism when they exert their average effort. We live in a time where everybody wants everything, and they want it now. Anything less than that would be unacceptable. The tree in the picture is more than 25 years old and has given without complains. It has been hardly beaten, thrown at by sticks, rocks, shoes and once I saw car windshield wiper hanging on one side of the tree! But still the tree keep on growing and giving without complains.

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