The Phantom Employee

How do you effectively address employee concerns, especially when managing a geographically diverse organization from afar, when you can’t get the employee who supposedly has a problem to call or e-mail you back?

Maybe you’ve received an e-mail or letter or “tipster” call from an employee who uses all the right buzzwords; Retaliation, age discrimination, gender discrimination, etc.

Being the good HR animals that we are, and having effectively trained our managers to raise these concerns to our attention (wink, wink), we jump on the case and begin investigating. What, when, where, who, why, how?? We start our documentation trail and then we get stuck. Joe or Jane Employee, in all their initial dramatic flair, no longer seems interested in participating in the process.

What to do?

Fall back on the age-old HR proverb, “Document, document, document.”

You can’t force an employee to give you relevant information or even to return your repeated attempts at contact. However, you certainly can document the Company’s attempts to provide support, to take concerns seriously and to create an environment that fosters communication and conflict resolution. If, at the end of the day, the employee tries to come back and claim constructive discharge (being compelled to resign due to objectively difficult or unpleasant working conditions or outrageous conduct by the employer), you have an affirmative defense to such a claim. In AZ, there are specific and restrictive requirements that must be met for an employee to claim constructive discharge:
http://www.azleg.state.az.us/ars/23/01502.htm

Don’t be afraid to hold people accountable to their job requirements, but do make sure you communicate the right things in the right way. Partner with an HR professional and document, document, document!

ZW

www.azmobilehr.com