11/26/2014
Bill Answers Your Questions
Bill McCurry
Q. “I’m a college senior working for my dad and uncle. Nobody takes me seriously. My cousins get the easy jobs while I do grunt work. To make it worse, I’m getting a crush on my uncle’s stepdaughter (no blood relation). I think she feels the same. I’m afraid she’ll see me as less a person when her stepbrothers work in the office and I’m doing manual labor in the yards.”
Signed: Sweaty, Dirty and Wanting Respect
A. Dear Sweaty: Multiple issues! Let’s see if I can address them all.
First, real respect must be earned, not demanded. It’s likely the family doesn’t see you as anything beyond a member of the lucky sperm club. You’ve got a job because you’re related, not because of skills you bring to the job. It’s not fair, but it’s real and far too common. Please read—at least six times—the “Roots and Wings” column in the June 2014 issue of Green Profit.
When you go out into the real world and succeed with a real company, one not owned by your family, you’ll be awarded respect. That respect will stay with you whether or not your cousins eventually awaken to the competent man you’ve become.
Regarding the potential relationship between you and your uncle’s stepdaughter—keep your eyes and your mind wide open. This situation could become more toxic than any chemical regulated by the EPA. Matters of the heart rarely end well when combined with matters of the purse. This is another compelling reason for you to stretch your wings and find employment elsewhere. It gives you the opportunity to explore your feelings without the added complications of the family business and ever-present relatives nosing about.
You deserve the chance to live your life—take it!
Q. “Times change, employees don’t. I had an employee tell me, ‘This isn’t what I was hired to do and I’m not going to do it.’ How should I have responded?”
Signed: Thought I Was The Boss
A. Dear Boss—take control! It’s time to have a clear understanding with the employee. Refer to the written job descriptions and policy book. (You do have them, right?) In those documents, there should be an “additional duties as designed” clause. Advise the employee these duties are necessary. Why? Because times change, customers’ needs change and the company must respond to the marketplace.
The eventual conversation, assuming your local laws permit “employment at will,” might go something like this: “I regret your current position no longer exists, so this is your termination notice. There’s another job open at the company and we’d like you to apply for that position. It’s different from your current duties. We’ll understand if you leave and seek a job like the one you had. We wish you the best and hope you’ll consider applying for the new position here.” That’s a very effective way to say, “The music has stopped. Now pick a chair to sit on!” Otherwise this employee will continue writing their job description to suit what they want rather than what the company needs. GP
Have a question for Bill? Contact him at wmccurry@mccurryassoc.com or (609) 688-1169.