Initial rebuild

Foundations and Governance/Corrective Actions/Coaching.md

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+Coaching focuses on the present the future by highlighting expectations and talking about how to reach them. Coaching is usually a step before [[Counselling]]. Coaching focues on "how" to do better, whereas [[Counselling]] focuses on why the unwanted behavior is happening.
+
+#hr #writeups

Foundations and Governance/Corrective Actions/Corrective Actions.md

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+[[Coaching]] -- a structured conversation highlighting what the employee did wrong and how to do better in the future.
+
+[[Counselling]] -- a conversation about what is causing an employee to engage in unwanted actions or behaviors, with the goal of discovering the most practical solution. Counselling might result in some kind of assistance or accomodations for the employee, or it could result in additional corrective actions. It depends on the underlying reasons discovered during counselling.
+
+---
+[[Suspensions#Disciplinary Suspension|Disciplinary Suspension]] -- manditory, unpaid leave from work.
+
+[[Personal Improvement Plan]] -- a plan to correct a behavior (or set of behaviors) that aren't serious enough to terminate someone but will hold the employee back if they continue. Generally speaking, this should be reserved for employees who are otherwise great employees, they just aren't promotable because of some habit or behavior they exhibit.
+
+[[Reassignment]] -- change in job duties and responsibilities, possibly with a change in pay. This is essentially what's happening if a [[Chaplain]] [[Circles#Power of Ejection|ejects]] someone from their home Circle.
+
+[[Retraining]] -- a temporary reduction in pay or benefits until an employee can demonstrate competency with their work.
+
+[[Wage Deductions]] -- in most cases deducting from an employee's wages cannot be used as a corrective action unless the employee agrees to it in writing.
+

Foundations and Governance/Corrective Actions/Counselling.md

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+#hr #writeups 
+Counselling is like [[Coaching]] in that it's a way to address a behavioral or performance issues at work. The difference is that [[Counselling]] focuses primarily on the past. The goal is to understand the "why" of the behavior, and then decide what next steps should be taken to prevent the behavior in the future or mitigate any problems it may cause.
+
+## When to use Counselling
+In general, counselling should be used in the following situations.
+
+### Requested by an employee
+Sometimes employees may request counselling without being in trouble because they want to discuss something that could end up causing a problem if it's not addressed.
+
+Here are some examples of that:
+
+- An employee has a personal issue they're afraid will negatively impact their work, and they want to see what can be done before it causes any problems.
+- An employee is confused about workplace rules or policies, or they see some reason they'll have trouble following the rules. They ask for counselling before they get in trouble.
+- An employee doesn't understand what they need to do in order to be promoted or qualify for a raise. They might ask for counseling to uncover anything holding them back.
+
+### Repeat problems after coaching
+When an employee has already been [[Coaching|coached]] about the same type of infraction, but it continues to happen counselling should be used to figure out why it's still occuring.
+
+For instance, an employee was coached about arriving late to work. That improved, but now they're coming back late from lunch. Counselling may help uncover what is causing the employee to have fundamental problems with attendance.
+
+### Widespread minor issues (bad culture fit)
+In some cases an employee isn't doing any one particular thing habitually that would trigger more than verbal or written warnings, but there is some new and different issue involving the person really often. There isn't really a pattern to one particular thing, there are just lots of different things.
+
+For example, the employee gets into an argument about stuff in the refrigerator. Next, they leave early for lunch without telling anybody. Another time they stop working and just read a book because they have a question and the supervisor's not immediately available. None of these things are related or repeating. The pattern is just that there always seems to be something irritating or frustrating going on with the employee.
+
+Counselling may uncover why the employee has a hard time fitting into our work culture and whether anything can be done to fix that.
+
+### Toxic Performance
+[[Toxic Performance]] is when an employee's high performance is causing unecessary problems for other people working around them. Put another way, the employee feels like they don't need to follow rules or be mindful of coworkers because their performance is so high. If this isn't caught and handled it confuses and frustrates other staff who don't understand why the toxic performer is permitted to continue what they're doing. It quickly leads to morale issues, attendance problems, mistakes, and other issues.
+
+The article about [[Toxic Performance]] should be read by every supervisor and the concept explained to other staff on some regular basis, much like we might perform annual training about lifting safety.
+
+### Extreme uncharacteristic behavior
+Sometimes, an emplyee does something so crazy, uncharacteristic, or strange we can't fathom why they would think it's appropriate behavior. Whatever happened is so shocking or alarming even one instance of the situation is worth figuring out why it happened.
+
+For example, an employee shows up to work drunk and falls asleep in the middle of the warehouse. Another example might be an employee who's usually well-known for their work habits explodes into a shouting match with someone. Other situations might be an employee suddenly fails to show up at work and doesn't notify anybody or explain themselves.
+
+Counselling makes sense in these kinds of situations to discover what unusual or odd set of circumstances triggered the behavior. From there, we might be able to identify some way to help the employee.
+
+## What to expect from counselling
+Often, counselling will uncover one or more underlying reasons the employee isn't behaving or performing appropriately at the job, such as:
+
+1. Problems with the work environment that make it difficult to do their job. Examples might be malfunctioning equipment, distracting coworkers, safety concerns, or receiving conflicting instructions.
+2. Personal issues that are effecting the employee such as financial stress, mental health, substance abuse, or domestic problems.
+3. A misalignment or misunderstanding about priorities. For instance, the employee does understand what's expected, but they are choosing to focus on something else they think is more important.
+
+Once we identify what's causing the behavior we need to evaluate practical solutions. The goal is identifying practical solutions the employee agrees will stop or mitigate the behavior. Then, document what those solutions are and put them in place. It's generally a good idea to agree to a follow-up conversation at some later date to touch base about whether the agreed solutions are working or if something needs to be adjusted.
+
+In the unfortunate event no solutions can be found or agreed upon the employee should be clearly warned that further repeats of the behavior will have consequences, and those consequences should be explained clearly. If it seems like the behavior will probably repeat anyway, the employee should be asked to resign voluntarily.
+
+### Further actions from counselling
+The goal of counselling is discovering what caused the situation and finding solutions so it won't happen anymore. The kinds of solutions that might be used are wide and variable, depending on what caused the situation.
+
+#### Reasonable accomodations
+Sometimes an employee will ask the business to make some kind of changes or special exceptions for the employee. If an employee requests something like this it should be granted if it's practical, especially if the employee brought it up proactively before there was a problem.
+
+However, the employee should be cautioned that it's their responsibility to be honest about how the accomodations will help the situation, and warned that if the accomodations don't stop the behavior further action will be taken. If the employee thinks the accomodations made aren't working it is their responsibility to tell us about it before they're in trouble again.
+
+When making accomodations we have to consider whether it might cause a morale issue in the workplace because of perceived unfair treatment. We also have to consider the cost and practicality of the accomodation.
+
+Take for example, an employee claims their attendance issues are being caused by extremely sore feet from standing for long periods of time. The employee asks if we can provide a stool for them to sit while they work. We have to evaluate several things about this:
+
+1. What does the stool cost? Is it affordable?
+2. Will other employees become upset because this person gets a stool? If they will, does that mean we need to buy a stool for everybody? Does that instead mean any employee can request a stool, but they have to provide a note from a doctor explaining that they need one?
+3. Can the work itself actually be done at an exceptable level of performance while seated?
+
+Depending on the answers to those questions, we might determine providing a stool isn't practical, even though it seems like such a simple solution. We also might determine stools are a great idea and decide to buy stools for everyone.
+
+##### When to require proof an accomodation is needed
+A requested accomodation should be honored without proof of the problem as long as it's simple and inexpensive to implement. For example, if an employee requests a stool because their feet hurt we don't need to look at their foot to check if it's sore.
+
+One situation where we should request proof or a professional opinion are where the same underlying problem seems to be the cause of several different issues or requires multiple different accomodations. For example, if an employee claims to have a medical or mental health issue and is requesting multiple different accomodations, we may need a professional recommendation. We don't need to know what condition the employee has, and we can't force them to tell us. However, we can ask them to have their doctor or other professional write a letter confirming the requested accomodations actually make sense for their patient.
+
+##### Types of accomodations that can be offered
+Generally speaking, requested accomodations usually revolve around buying something for the employee, making an exception to a rule, or adjusting the expectations around the work.
+
+The minimal, least complicated accomodation that seems feasible should be tried first. The reason is making sure the correct problem has been identified and matched with a reasonable solution. The point is getting a quick improvement with minimal effort, even if it doesn't completely solve the problem. If it seems like something other employees may also benefit from, a survey of some kind might be a good idea after an initial, minimal test has been performed.
+
+If the minimal solution solves the problem to a sufficient standard, then nothing else should need to be done. If it causes only minimal improvement but the problem is still worse than acceptable, it can then make sense to look at more complicated or expensive solutions if it's determined the short-term resource use is worth it in the long-term.
+
+For example, an employee complains their performance and attendance is below standard because of heat in the warehouse. We get them a water bottle, a fan, and an ice pack for their neck. It improves the issue enough that the employee's attendance and performance are within acceptable ranges. As time goes on, we start to find out other employees have the same kind of issue sometimes. We then make it standard to issue every employee a water bottle, fan, and ice pack.
+
+#### Retraining
+It might be determined the employee fundamentally misunderstands something about what's expected. In some situations like that, [[Retraining]] may be the solution, where the employee's training about one or more job tasks is repeated like they're a new hire. Kind of like when someone has to take a remedial driving class to reinstate their driver's license.
+
+#### Personal Improvement Plan
+A [[Personal Improvement Plan]] makes sense when the employee would be eligible for promotion if not for the problem we're having with their behavior. For example, a person has an amazing work ethic but their punctuality issues make it unthinkable to have them supervise other people.
+
+Generally speaking, a Personal Improvement Plan establishes a way to measure how often the unwanted behavior is occuring and then puts the employee in charge of monitoring it. They're required to show improvement over a period of time, and check in with their manager on a regular basis to discuss progress. If there is no progress, it should be clearly explained the employee has no path for advancement at the company, and may want to consider finding a different job.
+
+#### Reassignment
+[[Reassignment]] can make sense where the employee's actions or behaviors might not be a problem if they worked in a different department, position, location, or shift. Here are some examples where reassignment could make sense.
+
+In one case, an employee has habitual attendance issues because of a personal problem that prevents them from waking up refreshed in the morning. They tell us if they worked 2nd shift instead it wouldn't be a problem anymore.
+
+Another case might be where two employees simply can't get along for personal reasons. It might make sense to reassign the employee to a different area where they don't need to work alongside the coworker they dislike. In that kind of situation, the person who is being counselled should accept any undesirable tradeoffs, not the person they dislike. For example, an employee says their quality of work issues are caused because they don't get along with Bob. However, Bob isn't the one being counselled. If the employee insists the best solution is not working with Bob anymore, we're not going to reassign Bob.
+
+#### Disciplinary Suspension
+[[Suspensions#Disciplinary Suspension|Disciplinary Suspension]] can be used when no solution can be agreed to, particularly if the employee is insisting on unrealistic solutions, deflections or blame games, or is generally unwilling to admit the issue is even a problem. The goal is to give the employee time to cool down and think about their actions and behaviors or pay more serious attention to underlying personal issues.
+
+For example, imagine an employee is having terrible attendance issues and they tell us it's because they can't afford an Uber. That doesn't logically make sense because the price of getting an Uber to work is less than the losses from missing an entire day's pay. Even after pointing this out, the employee still can't agree to an actual solution. In a case like that, we might use a Disciplinary Suspension, where they are taken off the schedule and banned from the workplace for a period of time.
+
+In another example, an employee has been having angry outburts at work and disrespecting coworkers. They tell us it's because they're going through a lot in their personal life and it's bleeding over into work. After discussing possible solutions with them, they can't agree to anything. We might place them on suspension until they take a class on conflict resolution or anger management.
+
+#### Termination for cause
+In some circumstances we may learn something during counselling that triggers us to immediately fire the employee. For example, the unwanted behavior was intentional, planned, and the employee isn't even apologetic about it. Another example would be lying to us during the counselling.
+
+This option should be reserved for situations where it's obvious the employee did something wrong intentionally or carelessly and it's pretty clear they take no responsibility for it, especially if some kind of irreperable harm was caused. An example might be an employee who starts a fight with somebody else and punches them in the face. When we counsel the employee about it, they're proud of what they did, or they justify it by saying something like "I warned him I was going to do it" or "he shouldn't have been talking about my mom like that". It's pretty clear, in that sort of situation, the person *will* do the same thing again if something triggers them.
+
+#### Administrative Suspension
+An [[Suspensions#Administrative suspension / leave|Administrative Suspension]] might be applicable if the employee says they need extended time off to deal with a personal issue that is causing problems at work. There is a small, but important distinction between a disciplinary suspension and an administrative suspenion. The difference is the employee is *asking* for time off to enact personal life changes or deal with an issue.
+
+Take for instance, an employee admits they're having performance problems because of substance abuse. They might ask for time off to seek treatment or rehabilitation.
+
+An Administrative Suspension can be used in this situation (and use of PTO to cover it), if the employee is otherwise in good standing and we believe the short-term challenges it causes are neglibible compared to the long term benefits of retaining the employee. In these situations, the following things should be in place:
+
+- The employee understands they are required to work towards resolving the personal problem. They won't be allowed to return to work if they don't.
+- If the employee will still receive pay while suspended, there needs to be a written agreement about it. It should include a requirement that to continue receiving pay the employee must report in regularly showing progress towards resolving the situation.
+
+Take for example, it's identified that Bob is suffering from professional burn-out. Lately, his attendance has been awful and he's making mistakes in his work. However, both of those things are uncharacteristic for Bob. He's worked with us for several years and normally has great attendance and performance. We might offer Bob a two-week suspension during which he will still be paid as long as he takes an actual vacation or spends time working on a hobby. Bob enjoys outdoor activities like fishing and hiking. We agree Bob can still receive his pay while suspended as long as he takes pictures showing he's fishing or hiking.
+
+#### Lay Off
+In some cases it might be discovered the behavior is caused by something totally beyond the control of the employee. The behavior is so problematic though, that we can't really employ the person anywhere in the company. In a case like this, it could make sense to lay the person off with an option to rehire at a later date.
+
+Say for example, an employee is going through a divorce or some other kind of drawn-out legal proceeding. It's causing them to have attendance issues and make lots of mistakes at work. The employee can't do anything to stop the situation, so until it's over the attendance issues and mistakes are unlikely to improve. After evaluating other options like accomodations or reassignment, we can't find any solution. In a case like that, we might lay the person off. We're essentially terminating them, but we're agreeing it's not because of anything they did. Instead, it's because the personal issues outside of their control make it impossible to employ them. We would likely rehire the person in the future if they could demonstrate the issue has been resolved.
+
+An employee may feel like this course of action is unfair, and it should be noted that because they were laid off instead of being terminated they can probably collect unemployment. Also, if the employee was otherwise in good standing with us and didn't have any other disciplinary issues, there may be an option to offer a severance package.
+
+## When counselling doesn't surface an actionable underlying problem
+Counselling will only surface an actionable underlying problem when both the employee and the counsellor are making a genuine effort to discover what's causing the inappropriate behavior. Sometimes, employees will avoid explaining the real problem for a variety of different reasons.
+
+If that happens, it's important to document that. It needs to be documented that the employee isn't able to articulate or identify the root cause of the situation so there isn't anything the business can do about it. Then, it should be clearly explained to the employee what will happen next if the behavior repeats.
+
+### Example: mysterious, repeated mistakes
+An employee keeps making mistakes in their work, like skipping major steps. They've previously been trained and coached about the right way to do the work, but the same kinds of mistakes keep happening. When asked about it the employee says they just need to pay more attention. We ask them what would help them pay more attention, and they don't have any ideas. We probe a little further to see if there is any help we can provide, but they don't ask for anything.
+
+In this case, we document that the employee says the problem is unspecified distractions and the employee agrees they don't need any help from us to avoid the distractions. Then, we explain that if more mistakes occur the employee could be terminated.
+
+### Example: air conditioning
+An employee is frequently absent from work or away from their designated area while at work. They've been talked to about it before, and during counselling they tell us it's because of the extreme heat during the summer. The employee says we need to install air conditioning in the warehouse. Meanwhile, during the conversation we also explore that the employee is not hydrating properly or dressing appropriately for the heat. We also remind the employee that new hires are warned about this ahead of time and told this job might not be suitable for people who are very sensitive to 90F temperatures.
+
+We ask if the employee wants to come in earlier to avoid the heat, do they need a water bottle or an extra fan, or other things like that. The employee says they don't want any of those things. They insist the business should install air conditioning.
+
+In this case, we would document that the employee is not engaging in appropriate precautions for the heat (hydration and attire), and they refused our assistance. We also document that air conditioning isn't practical to have installed, and the employee is aware it won't happen. Then, we explain that if the employee isn't able to improve their attendance and performance, we may have to terminate them or transfer them to a different position.
+
+### Deflections and blame games
+Sometimes employees will bring up reasons or excuses that mainly serve to deflect the conversation away from their actions or behaviors. For instance, an employee might say something like "why am I being singled out? Bob just sits at his desk all day and doesn't do any work!" It's important to identify when an employee is doing this and refocus the conversation back to the matter at hand. Unless the employee is stating that another person's actions or behaviors are actually the source of their own inappropriate behavior. For example, if someone said "Bob keeps stealing my tools", that's totally different than "Bob is late all the time, why don't you do something about that?"
+
+In other cases, an employee might bring up something that would definitely warrant action if it were true... however, it's not related to the current situation. In that case we need to consider: if the employee knew about something so serious why did they wait to mention it until they are in trouble?
+
+
+

Foundations and Governance/Corrective Actions/Personal Improvement Plan.md

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+---
+alias: PIP
+alias: Performance Improvement Plan
+author: Jason Thistlethwaite
+tags: correctiveAction
+---
+A Personal Improvement Plan is a structured approach to improving or correcting behaviors that make a person unpromotable. A PIP might be used when an employee's performance or behavior would probably lead to termination if it gets worse, and at least prevent advancement if it stays the same.
+
+## Example use case
+An employee demonstrates above-average attendance, shows a lot of intitiative, and is generally known for producing high-quality results. However, they have an annoying tendency to cause a [[work stop]] when they have a question instead of using more efficient, [[asynchronous communication]] methods. Instead, whenever they come across anything they don't understand they flag down other people to ask questions, even if that means [[Foundations and Governance/General Policies/Attendance#Missing from post|leaving their post]] to do so.
+
+The employee is probably not going to be in trouble if the habit continues the same way, but a person who is able to communicate more effectively would probably be promoted instead of them.
+
+## Recommended way to handle a PIP
+The first thing to do is explain to the employee what behavior or tendency is problematic, and carefully frame it in terms of how it will effect their long term advancement with the company.
+
+Next, determine a way to measure how often the problem happens within their area, not just involving that person. Then, put them in charge of tracking that metric. The employee should track the problem for more people than just themselves, ideally the whole team. It becomes part of their job to improve the metric and identify ways to do so.
+
+Let's say for example, a person's attendance isn't very good but they're otherwise a great employee. That's a case where a PIP could make sense. So, they are put in charge of tracking attendance for their team, including themselves. If they identify ways to improve that metric (even if it just means their own attendance), the PIP can be considered successful. If they actually manage to improve it for the whole team by setting and example and getting buy-in from other people, then they've proven they are promotable (which is the point).

Foundations and Governance/Corrective Actions/Probationary Period.md

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+During a probationary period an employee's performance, attendance, and conduct are monitored more closely. Infractions and unwanted behavior may be taken more seriously, and can skip the normal escalation process even for otherwise minor actions or behaviors.
+
+A probationary period is normally used when hiring a new person, who is typically subject to a probationary period for 90 days after being hired. A probationary period can also be used as part of corrective action.
+
+## How does a probationary period affect an employee?
+While subject to probation an employee should expect the following:
+
+- Use of [[PTO]] is not permitted;
+- Any kind of absense or attendance concern may be more carefully scrutinized;
+- Overtime and schedule adjustments will probably not be allowed;
+- Any infraction could lead to immediate termination;
+- Failing to show up for a scheduled shift without appropriate notice may be treated like the employee voluntarily quit.
+
+## When a probationary period may be used as part of corrective action.
+A probationary period might be used along with [[Retraining]], [[Reassignment]], or a [[Suspensions#Disciplinary Suspension|Disciplinary Suspension]]. This should be done when it's needed to reinforce that further unwanted behavior or actions won't be tolerated, even if they are not related to the original problem that lead to corrective action.
+
+It may be tempting for managers to use a probationary period in tandem with a [[Personal Improvement Plan]], but this is not generally recommended as it tends to be a waste of time. The reason being that PIP's are best used to resolve situations where an otherwise great employee is unpromotable because of some behavior we hope to correct. Using a PIP with an employee who is likely to break other rules is probably a waste of time since we should be focusing on replacing them anyway.

Foundations and Governance/Corrective Actions/Reassignment.md

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+Ressassignment occurs when an employee is transferred to a different position, location, department, or shift as a means to correct an issue in the workplace. Employees could be reassigned for a variety of reasons like [[Corrective Actions|corrective action]], [[Restructuring]], or because the employee requested it.

Foundations and Governance/Corrective Actions/Retraining.md

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+Retraining is a form of [[Corrective Actions|corrective action]] best used to deal with Quality of Work, Quantity of Work, Safety, or Policy Violation [[Write-ups|infractions]]. When an employee is being retrained, their pay and privileges may reduced until they can demonstrate competency with their assigned work.
+
+In most cases retraining lasts no longer than a month and is focused on retraining the employee about a specific aspect of their job. Another employee will work closely with them to ensure they understand the right way to do the job, and they will be given some kind of test to prove they understand it. In many cases, this is handled by asking the employee to provide a written or oral presentation on the proper way to do the work, which is then graded by others.
+
+## When retraining should be used and when it shouldn't
+Retraining is best used when an employee seems to be making cyclic or repeated mistakes or ommissions in their work. This is especially true if the work output of the employee is highly variable or unpredictable.
+
+Normally, retraining should be considered after [[Counselling]] has uncovered the employee seems to misunderstand what their job entails or reveals they don't have a clear grasp on the right way to do the work. It should be reserved for cases where the employee *should* know the correct way to do their job because they have already been trained on and it have done the work for a while already.
+
+## Reduction in pay and privileges
+Any attached reduction in pay is not intended to be punitive. Rather, it is because retraining an employee is expensive. It means at least two people will be less productive until the training is complete (the trainer and the person being retrained). The amount of pay reduction should be whatever the employee's wage was at the time they first began doing the job. If for some reason that amount isn't known, it should be the rate a new employee would currently be paid for doing the same job.
+
+In many cases, [[Foundations and Governance/PTO#PTO accrual pausing|PTO accrual]] may be paused for the employee until retraining is completed.

Foundations and Governance/Corrective Actions/Suspensions.md

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+Sometimes an employee can be suspended from work, and this article talks about that. When an employee is suspended they aren't allowed to come to work without an appointment to see a manager.
+
+There are two types of suspensions that are used for different reasons, and they are handled a little differently. 
+
+## General things about suspensions
+When an employee is suspended, the following things are generally expected:
+
+1. The employee is not allowed on company property unless they have an appointment with a manager.
+2. The employee isn't allowed to do any work for the company, even if it's done remotely.
+3. The employee is expected to return all company property or documents in their possession until the suspension is over.
+4. Suspensions may be paid or unpaid, depending on the circumstances.
+5. The employee is not to have any contact with customers.
+
+## Administrative suspension / leave
+An Administrative Suspension might be issued when the business benefits from having the employee out of the workplace but the employee hasn't necessarily done anything wrong. In some cases, it could be thought of as a manditory paid vacation. The other major reason for administrative leave is where an employee is accused of something serious, but no other actions are warranted until the matter has been investigated.
+
+## Disciplinary Suspension
+A Disciplinary Suspension should be used when an employee has done something that is serious enough they could be terminated, but it's more desirable to retain their services.
+
+Return to work can be both time and contingency based. That means the employee is suspended until they perform some kind of action by a deadline. If the employee fails to perform the action it's assumed they have quit.
+
+The goal of a suspension should be one of two different things:
+
+1. Temporarily remove a hazard or disruption from the workplace so the matter can behandled later (like sending an employee home for the day because they're being extremely disruptive)
+2. Temporarily remove an employee from the workplace until some problem they caused is corrected.
+
+The key aspect is that the employee's presence at work is contributing to the problem, but we would rather not terminate them because we suspect the issue is correctable.
+
+### Being sent home for the day
+Being sent home for the day falls under the category of a disciplinary suspension but isn't necessarily as serious. A person can be sent home for the rest of the day if they're doing something that is highly disruptive to the work environment and in a supervisor's best judgment the situation can't be resolved in a short period of time (generally about 5-15 minutes). The employee should be given [[Counselling]] about their actions or behaviors after they return to work.
+
+Here are some examples of when this may be appropriate:
+
+- An employee comes to work in a bad mood, and they are generally grouchy and yelling at everybody. They're not getting their work done, and they're causing other people to be unproductive.
+- An employee comes to work too sick to do their job, or creating a risk of making other people sick. We asked the employee to just take the day off, but they refuse to leave.
+- An employee is given a verbal warning about a relatively minor issue at work, like having their music too loud. Instead of professionally responding to the warning, they try to have a big argument about it, causing several people to stop working.
+- There is strong suspicion an employee is too heavily intoxicated or mentally impaired to do their work.
+
+This type of suspension is the same thing as a Chaplain's [[Circles#Power of Dismissal|Power of Dismissal]].
+
+### Return to work contingencies
+It should be made clear return to work contingencies connected to a disciplanary suspension are meant to be done on the employee's own time. The company generally doesn't compensate for them, but may under certain circumstances determined on a case-by-case basis where individual exceptions can be made.
+
+#### Self-Driven Action Plan
+The most basic return to work contingency is a Self-Driven Action Plan, which is a written document that includes 3 sections:
+
+1. An explanation of what the employee did wrong and why it's a problem.
+2. What they're going to do to fix the damage already caused, or explanation of why they aren't able to fix it.
+3. What they're going to do moving forward so it doesn't happen anymore.
+
+#### Class or test
+In some cases an employee can be asked to complete some kind of class or test before they're allowed to return to work.
+
+Here are some examples:
+
+1. An employee suspended for misconduct might be asked to take a class on conflict resolution, anger management, or something similarly related to their actions.
+2. An employee suspended because of intoxication or substance abuse might be asked to pass a drug test before returning to work.
+3. A sick employee might be required to show proof they're not sick anymore or that they sought treatment.
+

Foundations and Governance/Corrective Actions/Wage Deductions.md

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+## Wage Deductions
+In general, manditory wage deductions are not a valid form of corrective action. Wages can only be deducted from an employee's check in limited circumstances.
+
+## Voluntary deductions as a corrective action
+In some cases, like if an employee breaks or loses equipment, it might be tempting to deduct the replacement cost from their pay. In most cases that's not permitted by labor laws except where the employee agrees to it in writing.
+
+## From a lawyer's website:
+
+> This text is copied from https://www.davidsonmorris.com/can-you-make-an-employee-pay-for-damages/ 
+
+The law sets out specific situations where an employer is allowed to automatically make deductions from an employee’s wages. Wages can be automatically deducted where it is:
+
+- Permitted by legislation/statute such as National Insurance (NI) contributions, or student loan repayments
+- Set out in the employee’s contract of employment
+- The employee has given their written consent
+- Because of an [overpayment of wages](http://www.davidsonmorris.com/overpayment-of-wages/)
+- As a result of the employee taking part in industrial or strike action
+- To fulfil the terms of a court order or to a public authority
+
+This is a finite list and does not allow for any deductions that have not been previously discussed or agreed with the individual. This includes cases of theft, failure to return a uniform, property damage, or failure to return company equipment.
+
+Additionally, if there is a contractual clause allowing deductions, or the employee gives written consent, deductions made cannot reduce the employee’s wage sufficient for it to fall below the national minimum wage, unless:
+
+- The deduction is because of NI contributions or income tax.
+- It is a repayment of an advance of wages or a loan.
+- It is repayment of an accidental wages overpayment.
+- The employee is buying share options or shares in the company.
+- If the employee has caused damage and their contract of employment allows for the deduction (retail workers have additional protections limiting deductions of more than 10% of their gross wage).

Foundations and Governance/General Policies/Angry Spirits.md

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+---
+tags:
+  - communications
+  - conflictResolution
+author: Jason Thistlethwaite
+---
+
+Workplace and interpersonal issues broken down and categorized in a fun way, to make it easier to identify and solve them.
+
+Usually, these are all situations where things we expect to happen aren't, and it's hard to figure out what the problem is.
+
+# Basic Index
+[[Time Vampire]]
+[[Help Vampire]]
+[[Phantom Deliverable]]
+[[Zombie Project]]
+[[Werewolf Project]]
+[[Monty Hall Project]]
+[[Crab Bucket]]
+
+[[Koolaid Man]]
+
+[[Worry Virus]]

Foundations and Governance/General Policies/Attendance.md

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+Attendance is a key factor in job performance. Punctuality and regular attendance are expected of all employees. Excessive absences (whether excused or unexcused), tardiness, or leaving early is #unacceptable. If you are absent for any reason or plan to arrive late or leave early, you’re expected to receive authorization from a supervisor before doing so, or at least notify your supervisor promptly.
+
+Absences can't be entirely avoided because life happens, but everyone is expected to minimize unplanned absences as much as possible.
+
+### Types of absense and attendance issues
+We classify attendance situations a few different ways to make it easier to talk about and understand them.
+
+#### Planned absense
+We consider an absence planned when it was communicated about far in advance and received sign-off by affected people. Generally speaking, an absence is considered planned when everyone it will effect knows about it at least a week ahead of time, but several weeks is preferred.
+
+#### Unplanned absence
+We consider an absence unplanned when we receive short notice about it. We expect the amount of notice to line up with how soon an employee could have anticipated the absence.
+
+#### Unauthorized absense
+An absence is considered unauthorized when an employee is absent from work without permission. That can include situations like failure to provide notice, being myseriously missing from work (at any point), or failing to show up to work after a time-off request was denied. This is also the case if an employee tells us they're not coming to work instead of asking for the day off.
+
+#### Presenteeism
+Presentiumeeism is what happens when a person is at work when they shouldn't be. For example, a person is too sick to be at work, but they show up anyway. If a person shows up at work unfit for duty and has to be sent home it may be considered an unplanned absence.
+
+#### Virtual Absence
+A virtual absence is when an employee is working remotely or at a satellite location but they're not reachable by other people who are working. Here are some examples:
+
+- An employee working remotely leaves their company chat app closed or muted and isn't responding to messages.
+- An employee working at a sattelite location isn't answering the phone.
+
+The situation being the person might actually be doing work, but since supervisors can't communicate with them they may as well be absent because orders and information about the work can't be exchanged.
+
+#### Missing from post
+A person who is at work but is mysteriously missing from their assigned work area without a good reason might be considered absent, particular if it's habitual. While the person might actually be at work, they're not in the area they're supposed to be.
+
+Here are some examples of when an employee might be considered missing from post:
+
+- An employee who is supposed to unload trucks around the same time each day is habitually found using the bathroom for long periods of time instead.
+  
+- An employee who is supposed to attend a meeting every Monday at 9:30am is habitually absent from the meeting because they are working on something else.
+  
+- An employee who is supposed to start work at 9am is habitually missing from their work area because they are eating breakfast in the breakroom instead.
+  
+- An employee shows up to work, but doesn't report to their supervisor. Instead, they spend the majority of the day doing something nobody assigned them to do.
+
+## Excused and unexcused absences
+An absence can be excused in two main circumstances:
+
+1. It's a planned absence that was approved of ahead of time by a supervisor.
+2. It's unplanned but it was approved of because there is evidence it couldn't reasonably be avoided.
+
+In just about any other situation an absence is unexcused.
+
+In general, a person who misses more than 3% of their scheduled hours due to unexcused absences can be terminated. For a full-time person that means 7 or more unexcused absences in a year probably leads to termination.
+
+An unauthorized, unplanned absence usually leads to an infraction for [[Absences and Absenteeism|absenteeism]], and may be subject to corrective action more swiftly.
+
+## What makes something an unplanned, unauthorized absence?
+
+Here are some examples we would usually consider unauthorized, unplanned absences. In general, these kinds of absences can't be excused. There are plenty of other situations where an unplanned, unauthorized absence wouldn't be excused, but these represent the most common situations.
+
+### Example 1: Failure to schedule appointments in a responsible manner
+A person who calls off work unexpectedly because of something they should be able to plan in advance is probably absent without authorization. In the example below, the person called off work because they were having a washer and dryer delivered. Then, despite saying they would come to work after the delivery, they never showed up. In this situation, the person told us about it 45 minutes before their shift was supposed to start.
+
+![[Pasted image 20230110221351.png]]
+
+### Example 2: Sick and going back to sleep
+![[Pasted image 20230110221824.png]]
+In this case the person messaged us about 30 minutes before their scheduled shift, and they didn't ask for the day off. Instead, they told us they aren't coming in and they didn't provide any evidence they are sick.
+
+### Example 3: Somebody else has an emergency but the employee isn't obligated to do anything about it
+A person might call off work because a family member or child is sick or needs some kind of help. It happens from time to time.
+
+In order for that kind of absence to be excused, the following things need to be evident:
+
+1. The situation is real and not exaggerated or invented.
+2. The employee is obligated to do something about it. There wasn't another practical way to handle it.
+
+For example, imagine an employee calls off work because their dog needs to go to the vet. For that to be excusable the person would be expected to provide a note or something from the vet, as well as reasonable evidence there was no practical way to get treatment for the dog without calling off work unexpectedly.
+

Foundations and Governance/General Policies/Business Hours.md

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+Our standard business hours are 9am to 5pm, Monday through Friday. From time to time the company operates extra shifts or slight changes in these hours.

Foundations and Governance/General Policies/Cash Advances, Loans, and Cashouts.md

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+Once in a while people request being paid the same day or for some kind of loan. The company does those things sometimes when we're able, but when we aren't  people sometimes become upset. This article is here to explain the right way to go about these things and what to expect.
+
+## Same-day and short term requests are difficult to approve and considered harmful
+We're a young company without outside investors or a lot of extra capital. On top of that, we pay our people weekly while most of our customers pay less often, like once or twice a month. That means keeping the lights on requires careful financial planning.
+
+Whenever someone asks for earnest money we weren't expecting to pay out it means we have to go over our budget before we can approve it. That can be time consuming, and in some cases it has to involve multiple people and takes several days.
+
+In other words, that means several people are spending time figuring out whether we can issue a loan instead of doing productive work. That's why we ask people to avoid doing this unless it's an emergency situation that will effect the company in a strategic way. People who make a habit of it are frowned upon and unlikely to be promoted.
+
+## Seniority and responsibility
+Typically, we will not approve any kind of loan or pay advance unless an employee has worked with us longer than a year and demonstrates high levels of responsibility.
+
+## Improving your chances of a loan or advance
+First of all, ask for it in writing, instead of in person. The idea is to give us enough information ahead of time that we can schedule a time to talk about it. That way, we're making the best use of everyone's time. 
+
+Usually, the best thing to do is email hr@ldrprep.com about it. You'll get an automated response with a ticket number, just like when customers email us. Then, if you need to have the conversation sooner, just tell us "hey, I'd like to talk about HR ticket 123, when do you have time?"
+
+### Help us have confidence about it
+When we approve loans, cashouts, or advances it is usually for one of the following general reasons:
+
+- A long-term employee who's done a lot of great work wants some extra spending money for a vacation.
+- A stellar employee has an emergency expense that would prevent them from getting to work if it's not handled.
+- An employee has a proposal for a business idea or new venture that's aligned with our company's goals.
+- Major life improvements like moving expenses, replacing major appliances, getting glasses or surgery, etc.
+
+Other reasons are less likely to be approved.

Foundations and Governance/General Policies/Dress Code.md

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+Individual departments or business units may establish a dress code suitable for the needs of the work being done. When no other dress code is communicated, everyone is expected to adhere to the following guidelines.
+  
+- Avoid wearing attire that creates a safety hazard. In general, loose or baggy clothing, long necklaces, or other things that can get caught in machinery are not allowed.
+- Dress for the weather and temperature.
+- Avoid clothing with provocative, offensive, religious, political, or controversial imagery or words.
+- Keep your clothes on. Your top, groin, and feet should be covered by appropriate clothing at all times.
+- Footwear should be something you are comfortable standing in for long durations of time as most positions in the company will have you on your feet for most of the day. Closed toe shoes are strongly recommended.

Foundations and Governance/General Policies/Employee Assistance.md

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+Where possible, we invest in our staff by helping them work through issues in their personal life they might be struggling with. However, we don't have a formalized Employee Assistance Program (yet).
+
+## How to request assistance
+Email hr@ldrprep.com while you're off the clock and explain what kind of issue you're dealing with. If it's confidential, just say that, and we'll schedule a time to talk about it. If it will be a lengthy conversation, please be mindful of that. We want to help, but we might ask that a lengthy conversation be handled off the clock.
+
+## What we might be able to help with
+We have helped people in the past with various issues. This is a short list to give some examples.
+
+To be clear: we're not lawyers, doctors, therapists, or anything else. However, we help where we can, sometimes through direct action, other times advice or referrals.
+
+- Moving into a new place to live.
+- Relocating from another state and finding a place to stay.
+- Domestic violence and abuse.
+- Substance issues like addiction.
+- Financial planning, including setting up budgets or building credit.
+- One-time medical expenses like getting new glasses.
+- Needing clothing or food.
+- Mental health issues like anxiety, PTSD, or depression (again, we are not therapists).
+- Furthering education and developing skills.
+- Disputes with service providers or companies like a car dealership, the phone company, or a landlord.

Foundations and Governance/General Policies/Employment Status.md

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+#### Full-time
+An employee is considered full-time when they are normally scheduled 35 or more hours during a week. Full-time employees are elibible for PTO, Holidays, and various other benefits or perks. Full-time employees are expected to work until the job is completed, which may mean working more hours than scheduled, particularly during peak season.
+
+### Part-time
+An employee is considered part time if they are usually scheduled for less than 35 hours during a week.
+
+### Seasonal
+A seasonal employee is somebody whose employment is expected to end once the current season is over. We sometimes offer seasonal employees ongoing positions if they particularly impressed us, but not always.

Foundations and Governance/General Policies/Equal Opportunity Employer.md

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+## Logistics Done Right is an Equal Opportunity Employer
+
+Logistics Done Right Inc. is an equal opportunity employer, which does not discriminate in hiring, promotion, discharge, pay, fringe benefits, job training, classification, referral or other aspects of employment, on the basis of race, color, religion, sex (including pregnancy), national origin, age, physical or mental disability, or genetic information.

Foundations and Governance/General Policies/Holidays.md

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+Our company is closed for general operations on certain holidays. Full-time employees receive full pay for those days. Part-time employees receive pro-rated pay based on the number of hours they'd usually work.
+
+1. New Year's Day
+2. Memorial Day
+3. July 4th
+4. Labor Day
+5. Thanksgiving
+6. Black Friday
+7. Christmas Eve
+8. Christmas
+
+If a holiday falls on a weekend when the business would normally be closed, we observe the holiday on the nearest week day.

Foundations and Governance/General Policies/Outside Employment.md

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+Employees can have other jobs besides working at LDR as long as the other job doesn't create a conflict of interest or harm their performance at our company. If an employee has a job outside of LDR they are expected to prioritize LDR in matters of scheduling, hours worked, and other matters.
+
+If the company determines an outside job is interfering with an employee's job or work requirements, we may ask the employee to quit their other job if they want to continue working with us. For example, if an employee's schedule or availability keeps changing because of their second job, that might cause problems at LDR. In that case, we might ask them to quit their other job if the scheduling conflict can't be quickly resolved.
+
+Similarly, if the company determines an outside job is creating a conflict of interest an employee may be asked to quit that job. For example, an employee who has a second job working at a competing company may be asked to quit their other job.

Foundations and Governance/General Policies/PTO.md

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+LDR values time, and we offer a generous paid time off plan.
+
+Hourly employees hired prior to April 21, 2022 accrue PTO at a rate of 1 hour per 10.8 hours worked, to a maximum of 192 hours (24 days).
+
+Employees hired after April 21, 2022 accrue PTO at the following rates based on the number of years they have worked at the company.
+
+|   Year with company   |  Hourly Accrual Rate    |   Max Unused Days   |
+|:-----|:-----|:-----|
+| During first year     | 1 hour PTO per 26 hours worked     |   10 days   |
+| During second year     | 1 hour PTO per 17.3 hours worked     |  15 days    |
+| During third year     | 1 hour PTO per 13 hours worked     |  20 days    |
+| During fourth year and beyond     |  1 hour PTO per 10.8 hours worked    |  24 days    |
+
+PTO cannot be used until an employee has been regularly employed with our company for 90 working days.
+
+## Unused PTO and forfeiture of PTO
+Unused PTO is forfeited upon termination of employment except where there is a written agreement about payment for unused PTO.
+
+Generally speaking, an employee who quits, is laid off, or is terminated forfeits their PTO unless they have worked with the company for more than a year in a full-time capacity and have very few, if any corrective actions or write-ups in their personnel record.
+
+### PTO accrual pausing
+Under certain circumstances accrual of PTO can be paused. When PTO is paused, effected people stop accruing PTO.
+
+This may occur on a departmental or company-wide level if the performance of a particular division is below expectations. It may also occur on an individual level as a form of [[Corrective Actions|corrective action]]. In general, when a person is subjected to [[Retraining]] their PTO accrual is paused.
+
+## Absences, Sick Days, and Personal Days
+Our company doesn't maintain a separate pool of days for different kinds of absence or leave. A person's PTO is used to cover all such situations. PTO use is generally only approved for excused absences. See our [[Foundations and Governance/General Policies/Attendance]] policy for further explanation.
+
+### Examples of when PTO can be used to cover absences:
+
+- A person who calls off sick, has proof of the illness, and provided appropriate notice can generally apply their PTO to the absence.
+  
+- A person who requested days off weeks in advance and received approval can use PTO to cover those days.
+
+Having unused PTO days doesn't necessarily entitle an employee to take days off. Days off still need to be approved and scheduled as much as possible to avoid creating any delays or problems in the workplace. During times when the company is experiencing a lot of delays, heavier demand than usual, or staffing shortages PTO may not be approved.
+
+## Limited PTO Periods
+A Limited PTO Period is a specific time block during which scheduling PTO requires approval further in advance than usual, and there are more restrictions about approving it.
+
+When a Limited PTO Period is announced the special scheduling requirements will be included with the announcement, and if they are not they are as follows:
+
+1. Scheduling PTO requires 30 day notice prior to the first day of absence;    
+2. If multiple people are requesting overlapping days, they will be approved based on tenure and a first-come-first-serve basis;
+3. Unplanned absences can result in immediate [[Corrective Actions]] if they are not excused.
+
+### Standard peak season Limited PTO Period
+By default, there is a Limited PTO Period during peak season each year. Unless there is a different announcement that Limited PTO Period includes:
+
+1. The second week of November through Christmas Eve.
+2. The first two weeks of January.
+
+## Required vacation
+Once per calendar year each employee is strongly encouraged to schedule at least 5 consecutive days off work. This is to encourage taking a real vacation and rest from work.
+
+## Fractional PTO Use and rewards for long term service
+When planned and approved in advance, PTO can be used in any manner that doesn't cause a business disruption. This is especially true for employees who have seniority. Some novel examples of that (which would still require advanced approval), include:
+
+- Leaving 2 hours early on Fridays but still receiving pay;
+- Spending 1 hour of PTO per week to have a 1 hour long lunch;
+- Taking the 2nd Wednesday off of every month;
+- Observing personal or cultural holidays the company doesn't officially observe.
+
+For such planned, approved uses of PTO, the following factors will generally be considered:
+
+1. The PTO use doesn't cause a problem of any kind in the work place;
+2. The person requesting it is an employee in good standing who has a record of stellar performance;
+3. The person requesting has worked with the company for several years;
+4. With the modified schedule the PTO use allows, the person is still accruing a positive PTO balance.
+
+In the examples listed above, a person who's worked with the company long enough to be accruing 24 days of PTO per year would still be earning at least 1 unused day per month even with the modified schedule.
+
+### Fractional PTO use for unplanned absence
+In the case of unplanned use of PTO, it will generally only be approved in 4-hour or 8-hour increments. If the underlying absence was shorter, the remainder is forfeit.
+
+For instance, an employee is an hour late to work, but it's for an excusable reason. They can opt to use PTO to receive pay for that hour, but in doing so they will be spending 4 hours of PTO to receive one hour of pay. This is to encourage employees to use PTO in planned, non-disruptive ways.
+
+## PTO Cashout
+Employees in good standing with a track record of stellar performance may be eligible to exchange unused PTO for extra pay. This is intended to assist employees with covering unexpected expenses or emergencies, acting on investment opportunities, or major life expenses. Such cash outs are not an entitlement, and will be approved on a case-by-case basis.
+
+Generally speaking, the following factors are weighed when a PTO cashout is requested:
+
+1. The financial health of the company;
+2. The performance and employment record of the requesting person;
+3. The legitimacy of the reason a cash out is being requested.
+
+For example, a person who has worked at the company for several years with stellar performance might request cashing out several days of PTO to upgrade kitchen appliances, renew a lease, or other expenses that represent a major life improvement.

Foundations and Governance/General Policies/Pay Periods.md

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+LDR utilizes a weekly pay period which begins on Wednesday and ends on the Tuesday of the following calendar week. This means that payroll is typically run on Wednesdays and employees should receive pay by Friday. We do this so employees have their pay available by the weekend.

Foundations and Governance/General Policies/Payment Methods.md

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+We generally pay our staff using direct deposit. We make exceptions sometimes, but we prefer to avoid that because of the extra complication and overhead it causes.

Foundations and Governance/General Policies/Personal Property at Work.md

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+Employees, visitors, and contractors are responsible for their own personal property brought to the workplace. We don't have the time and resources to monitor personal property or investigate damage, theft, or mysterious events surrounding personal property. You have been warned that the company will not provide any kind of assistance with issues that happen with your personal property. If it gets broken, damaged, lost, stolen, or something else it's entirely your responsibility.
+
+## General rules about personal property
+- Personal property shouldn't create a disruption to other people. If it does, we might confiscate it or ask you to take it home.
+- Personal property shouldn't be left in common areas or at shared-use stations. If it is, it could be moved, misplaced, or damaged.
+- Make sure your name is on any personal property you bring.
+- Personal electronics should not be charged at work if doing so clutters a work area or requires unplugging company-owned devices.
+  
+### Christmas lights, holiday decorations, or similar
+It's unfortunate we have to mention this here, but excessive decorating for holidays is strongly frowned upon. These things tend to create clutter, trip hazards, fire hazards, or other issues.

Foundations and Governance/General Policies/Personalizing Work Areas.md

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+It can be tempting to personalize work areas, like putting up posters or decorations, or other things to make it feel a little more like home. This is generally allowed providing our stance about [[Personal Property at Work]] is adhered to, and personalizations don't cause some kind of problem.
+
+Generally speaking, unless you've been given a desk and a computer that only you have a password for, you don't actually have a station that is truly yours, even if you do tend to work in the same area most of the time. If you decide to personalize an area like that it's best to check with your supervisor first to make sure it won't cause some kind of problem.

Foundations and Governance/General Policies/README.md

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+# General Policy Folder
+The documents and articles in this folder are meant to explain what's normal or usual in different circumstances within the company. It's kind of a miscellaneous collection of how various situations are usually (or supposed to be) handled.
+
+Everything in here is subject to change, and nothing should be taken as a hard or official rule. Rather, this should all be taken as a set of guidelines.

Foundations and Governance/General Policies/Solicitation.md

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+Solicitation refers to things like advertising or selling something, collecting signature or donations, and that sort of activity.
+
+Soliciting for memberships, pledges, subscriptions, or collecting money isn't allowed during work or over company communication channels. This is especially the case if the solicitation is political in nature. However, it is allowed while on break or during lunches, as long as everyone involved is also off the clock.
+
+Posting signs, fliers, petitions, or anything like that on company property requires approval from the company. That includes posts on bulletin boards, the refrigerator, or other places.
+
+For example, imagine you're trying to raise money for a charity. It's okay to do that while on break as long as the people you're talking to about it are also on break. However, it's not okay to send a company-wide email or use our chat system to do it, even if you're on break. It would be okay to put up a sign about the charity, but only if you receive approval.

Foundations and Governance/General Policies/Volunary At-Will Employment.md

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+Unless an employee has a written employment agreement with Logistics Done Right Inc, which provides differently, all employment at Logistics Done Right Inc is “at‐will.” That means that employees may be terminated from employment with Logistics Done Right Inc with or without cause, and employees are free to leave the employment of Logistics Done Right Inc with or without cause. Any representation by any Logistics Done Right Inc officer or employee contrary to this policy is not binding upon Logistics Done Right Inc unless it is in writing and is signed with the approval of the Board of Directors.

Foundations and Governance/General Policies/Write-ups.md

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+# Corrective and Disciplinary Action
+A write-up documents an employee has been told a behavior or action is the wrong way to do something and it shouldn't be repeated. This article covers how write-ups are meant to work and supposed to be handled.
+
+## 9 Types of Infraction
+Our company officially recognizes 9 types of infractions as outlined here.
+
+### Tardiness / leaving early
+Showing up late to work or leaving before a person is supposed to, especially without providing adequate notice. This is elaborated on in the expanded article about [[Tardiness]].
+
+When a person will be late to work they are expected to notify their supervisor an hour ahead of time. If that isn't possible, they are expected to notify as soon as they are able, with an explanation about why more notice couldn't be provided.
+
+In general, a person should be written up for Tardiness in the following cases:
+
+#### Late to work
+- More than 5+ minutes late 3+ times within 30 days;
+- More than 20 minutes late on a single occasion.
+
+#### Late from break or lunch
+- More than 5+ minutes late returning from break or lunch 3+ times within 30 days;
+- More than 20 minutes late on a single occasion.
+
+### Absenses or Absenteeism
+[[Absences and Absenteeism]] is when an employee exhibits unsatisfactory attendance by missing an unacceptable amount of their scheduled work hours.
+
+Generally, a full-time employee is expected to work at least 97% of their scheduled shifts, which means missing fewer than 7.5 days in a year.
+
+The expanded article on [[Absences and Absenteeism]] elaborates.
+
+### Safety
+A [[Safety]] infractions occurs when someone's actions or behaviors are harmful to (or could harm) people, property, or process in an irreversible way. Safety is very serious, so an employee should be written up whether any actual harm was caused. The write-up should specifically reference what kind of irreversible harm happened or could have happened.
+
+The expanded article about [[Safety]] expands on this.
+
+### Insubordination
+[[Insubordination]] refers to an employee who is outright disobedient or disrespectful to a supervisor or owner of a business. This includes engaging in actions or behaviors that undermine authority, like spreading gossip or rumors, or disrespecting a manager in front of other people.
+
+### Policy Violation
+A policy violation occurs when an employee violates or circumvents an official policy or process. It can either be one serious event or a pattern of smaller events. Something can be a policy violation even if no harm was caused.
+
+For example,  employees are supposed to put their barcode scanners on chargers when leaving their station. An employee who has a habit of not doing that could be written-up for a policy violation, even if it didn't cause some other kind of problem.
+
+Generally speaking, many examples of a policy violation could also be considered [[insubordination]] and vice-versa, but there are situations that might not be the case.
+
+The article on [[Policy Violation|policy violations]] explains in more detail.
+
+### Quality of Work
+A quality of work infraction happens when an employee's work has too many mistakes or errors. It can either be one serious event or a habitual pattern of making mistakes or errors.
+
+The article on [[Quality of Work]] elaborates on this.
+
+### Quantity of Work
+A quantity of work infraction happens when an employee gets less work done than is normally expected.
+
+The article on [[Quantity of Work]] expands on this.
+
+### Misconduct
+Misconduct is any behavior that goes against the 
+[[General Rules of Conduct]], [[Guiding Principles]], or other policies that dictate how employees should behave at work. This might include unethical, unprofessional, or even criminal behavior that takes place within a workplace setting.
+
+The linked article elaborates on [[Misconduct]].
+
+### Other
+Other reasons for a write-up may exist that aren't covered by the 8 major categories. The recommended way to identify this is when something an employee does upsets someone else and there isn't a good explanation for why they should be allowed to do it.
+
+Essentially, Other is for cases where a supervisor believes an employee's actions are hard to classify under any of the 8 other infraction types, but still aren't acceptable at work.
+
+## Who can or should initiate corrective action?
+All supervisors are expected to manage their direct subordinates and initiate corrective action when infractions occur. 
+
+### When should a supervisor issue a writeup to people who aren't their subordinate?
+Generally speaking, a supervisor should issue a writeup to other people's subordinates under certain circumstances. However, the write-up has to be reviewed by that person's direct supervisor at the nearest practical time, and doesn't take effect unless that kind of review isn't practical considering the situation.
+
+Supervisors can and should take corrective action towards another person's subordinates in the following sorts of situations:
+
+1. The employee is in the supervisor's area causing a problem of some kind, instead of being where they are supposed to be at.
+2. The employee is breaking a widely known rule and their supervisor isn't around to notice.
+3. The employee is creating serious disharmony or danger in the workplace and there isn't time to notify their supervisor about it before taking action.
+
+## Supervisors and infractions
+Supervisors are responsible for taking corrective action when their subordinates commit infractions. It is up to each supervisor's best judgment how to handle this, but there are some guidelines and expectations about it.
+
+Generally speaking, if more senior management has to initiate corrective action because a supervisor failed to do so, the supervisor may also be subject to corrective action.
+
+Take for example, an employee has particularly poor attendance, and it's causing their team not to get enough work done. Their supervisor hasn't initiated corrective action, so a senior manager has to do so. In a case like that, the supervisor may also be subject to corrective action because it's their job to manage their subordinates and they failed to do so.
+
+## Escalating response / 3 strikes
+In most cases, an employee who repeats the same kind of infraction more than once should be handled using a 3-step escalating response. However, there are exceptions. This section will explain that.
+
+Generally speaking, a write-up is considered a repeat infraction if the same employee has previously committed an infraction that checked the same box and that infraction hasn't dropped-off yet (explained in [[#Infraction drop-off fall-off period]]).
+
+### How to determine if it's a repeat violation
+The top of our corrective and disciplinary action form has 9 checkboxes, one for each of the violation types (like tardiness, absenteeism, and insubordination). The checked boxes are what determines the kind of infraction, not the circumstances or particulars.
+
+For example, an employee who has been corrected about being absent two different times, even though it was for different reasons, has still been absent twice.
+
+A lot of times when an employee is corrected about a repeating behavior they seem to think the most recent example is the only thing they did wrong.
+
+The main reason for this seems to be the employee is not understanding that the 8 types of violation are what's being counted, not the individual circumstances of each incident. For example, an employee might be habitually absent for several different reasons ranging from car problems to alleged food poisoning. The most recent time they called off work was because their kid was sick. The employee may not understand that Absenteeism is the problem, and it doesn't actually matter that each reason they were absent was a different reason.
+
+Also, a single incident may actually be more than one kind of violation. For example, an employee called off work without giving appropropriate notice after you recently explained to them what the expectations are about that. That single incident may be Absenteeism as well as Insubordination.
+
+### Escalating Approach
+The steps to escalating infractions are briefly outlined in this section. Please be aware that while we strive to give everyone chances and retain a great workforce, there are situations where an escalating approach may be impractical or unwarranted, and more serious action should be taken.
+
+#### Step 0 - verbal warning
+The first time an infraction occurs the employee should be given a verbal warning or explanation about what they've done wrong. The supervisor is then expected to document this happened in the [[HR Tracker]] or by emailing hr@ldrprep.com.
+
+#### Step 1 - written warning and coaching
+The second time an infraction occurs the employee should be given an official written warning and [[Coaching]]. Coaching is essentially a structured conversation that points out what the employee did wrong and what they are expected to do instead. The employee is then expected to sign-off that they were talked to about it and understand what's expected.
+
+This is the employee's opportunity to highlight any reason they can't do what's expected. Employees are expected to clearly state what they need in order to do what's expected. Requests that are reasonably practicable should be granted.
+
+#### Step 2 - counseling and corrective action
+If an employee repeats the same kind of infraction again [[Counselling]] may be appropriate. The goal of [[Counselling]] is to understand why the behavior is happening and then assess what to do about it next.
+
+The distinction is that Coaching is focused on what is needed in the future, how to do it, and identifying what the employee needs to succeed. Counselling focuses mainly on the past, and strives to figure out why the employee isn't succeeding after we've made clear what's expected and given them what they claim to need.
+
+A variety of [[Corrective Actions]] could be taken during this stage, including alternative remedies agreed to by the employee. The goal is to ensure the same type of infraction doesn't happen anymore, and make sure the employee understands they could be terminated if it does.
+
+In some cases at this stage, we may not be able to work out a solution that enables an employee to continue working with us. In such cases, we may ask the employee to resign, or if they are generally uncooperative or exhibiting hostile, defensive behaviors they could be terminated.
+
+#### Step 3 - termination
+At this stage, an employee should be terminated unless there are prevailing reasons doing so will cause a problem worse than a repeat of the same behavior. In which case, we will seek to isolate the harm they can cause while we work on solving whatever issue is preventing them from being terminated.
+
+### Infraction fall-off period
+Written warnings and counselling statements generally "fall off" after a period of good behavior. This means they aren't generally considered when making employment decisions about the employee. In most cases, this is expected to happen after 12 months without any further infractions for the same thing. There may be some exceptions, particularly for patterns of inappropriate behavior or more egregious behavior, such as harassment, violence or safety and security violations.
+
+Example A: An employee has a written warning from two years ago about attendance issues. Recently, they've begun to have some attendance issues for personal reasons. However, their attendance has been outstanding since they were last warned about it 2 years ago, so the company doesn't consider the new attendance issue a repeat of the same thing.
+
+Example B: An employee has a written warning on file from 3 years ago about making innappropriate comments and gestures to another employee. A similar situation has occurred recently. In this case, the underlying infraction might be deemed serious enough to warrant stronger corrective action, like a final warning or termination.
+
+Generally speaking, infractions in the following categories are more likely to be considered beyond the 12 month fall-off period:
+
+- Safety
+- Misconduct
+- Insubordination
+- Policy Violation
+
+The categories for absenteeism, tardiness, quality of work, and quantity of work are generally less serious. If the infraction occurred over 6-12 months ago, it should be overlooked if the employee has had no related infractions in that time period.
+
+### Alternative solutions to write-ups
+Supervisors are allowed and encouraged to work out alternative solutions with employees to maintain an efficient, sane, and productive work environment. An alternative solution is basically giving the employee an alternative to being written up.
+
+The key thing about alternative solutions is they must actually resolve the underlying problem.
+
+Alternative solutions are allowed providing they're documented and the employee agrees without being pressured. A supervisor who enacts an alternative solution is responsible for making sure it complies with all relevant labor laws and the employee is informed it is entirely optional.
+
+#### Examples of alternative solutions that are probably acceptable.
+
+##### Pushups for being late
+A supervisor makes a team policy that people who are late to work have to do one pushup for each minute they are late, otherwise they can be written-up for tardiness. Nobody can be forced to do this, but if it actually improves punctuality for the team, it is probably an acceptable alternative solution.
+
+
+### Pre-escalation
+There are certain factors that can make a single infraction more serious than normal. In those cases, the escalating steps to resolution might be skipped. It is up to each supervisor's best judgment, and these just serve as examples and guidelines.
+
+#### Omnibus Infraction (2+ infractions at the same time)
+Two or more different infractions were committed at the same time.
+
+For example, an employee was 2 hours late without notice (tardiness) and called their supervisor an asshole in front of other people (insubordination).
+
+Another example would be an employee is getting less work done than they should be (quantity of work) and when asked they lied about it (misconduct).
+
+#### Safety - actual harm caused
+A safety infraction where actual irreperable harm or damage was caused.
+
+#### Gross misconduct / breaking laws
+The employee engaged in some kind of misconduct that is clearly illegal. For example, selling drugs at work, passing bad checks, or stealing customer inventory.
+
+#### No-call, no-show
+An employee was absent for a whole day and couldn't be reached.
+
+#### Major work stop
+An employee's actions caused a major pause in operations for several people.
+
+## Actions vs. Behaviors, and when to call it
+Some actions are so serious a single incident warrants corrective action, like if an employee punches somebody. In other cases, an individual occurence isn't really a problem unless it becomes a habitual behavior.
+
+Take this example: employees aren't supposed to use company supplies for personal projects. An employee caught using a printer to print out plane tickets isn't that serious, and neither is an employee who takes a cardboard box home to pack some junk. Neither of those things generally constitute a write-up unless they start to become a habit.
+
+However, an employee who loaded up 25 boxes, two tape guns, and a case of tape to take home with them... that's an action worth a write-up if they didn't have permission to do that.
+
+Generally speaking, if any particular situation caused a work stop for 15 minutes or more, it's worth issuing a write-up. So for example, if an employee is 15+ minutes late in a single event, it makes sense to write them up for [[Tardiness]].
+
+## Defense against write-ups
+There are certainly cases an employee may be written-up when they shouldn't have been, and this section talks about how employees are expected to handle it if that happens.
+
+There are a few major ways a write-up can be nullified or amended. The goal will be to make sure the write-up is accurate and truthful.
+
+The primary ways a write-up can be nullified or amended are if any of the following things are true:
+
+1. The information in the write-up is not true.
+2. The situation described in the write-up was caused by a different employee.
+3. The supervisor was acting in bad faith when conducting the writeup.
+4. Whatever you did, while technically against the rules, was more beneficial to the company than harmful.
+
+### How to get a write-up amended or canceled
+Write an email to hr@ldrprep.com referencing the write-up and explain the reason you think the write-up should be amended or canceled. Be sure to include evidence, and cite which of the following general reasons it should be canceled or amended.
+
+#### The information in the write-up is not true.
+Be sure to explain what exactly isn't true and include any evidence, witnesses, etc.
+
+For example, you were written up for being absent without notice. However, you actually did notify your supervisor and you have a screen shot to prove that.
+
+#### The situation described in the write-up was caused by a different employee.
+Essentially, you're saying you've been accused of something a different person did or that somebody else made you do it. Back up your claim with evidence, witnesses, and anything else. Don't leave out information we might have to later ask you about.
+
+For example, you were written up for quality of work because a bunch of your work had mistakes that needed to be fixed. You've been distracted by another employee who is constantly interrupting you, and that's what is causing the mistakes. You have previously complained about it and nothing has been done.
+
+In that case, your email should reference the times you've reported the distraction and that nothing has been done about it.
+
+#### The supervisor was acting in bad faith when conducting the writeup.
+Essentially, this argument claims the supervisor issued the write-up in bad faith. Meaning, they aren't really trying to fix a problem in the company, instead they are acting on some person motivation like revenge, a grudge, hatred, etc. If you're going to make this kind of claim, make sure you have evidence to back it up.
+
+#### Whatever you did, while technically against the rules, was more beneficial to the company than harmful.
+This sort of argument should be premised on which of the [[Guiding Principles]] you were upholding through your actions.
+
+For example, let's say you are three hours late to work without providing notice, and your supervisor wrote you up for it. The actual reason was because you stayed up all night long to finish a proposal for a major customer, and then you slept through your alarm. One could argue that upholds principles 2, 8, and 9 because otherwise the customer would not have been satisfied.
+
+### What happens next and what to expect
+If you follow the proper instructions for defending against a write-up the company will evaluate your claims. The write-up may then be amended or canceled.
+
+If some kind of adverse, corrective action was already taken the company will make all reasonable efforts to reverse it.
+
+A copy of the write-up, your defense against it, and the determination will be part of your permanent personnel file.
+
+### Ineffective defenses against write-ups
+These are some things people try from time to time to cancel out a write-up and these things don't work. In fact, they usually make the situation worse.
+
+#### Arguing with the supervisor / storming to the office
+Imagine what would happen if a person was pulled over for running a stop sign. Instead of cooperating with the officer they get into a loud shouting match. The officer has to call for backup. Then, the person runs away from the police and storms into the local courthouse, demanding to speak with the judge.
+
+Arguing with a supervisor about a write-up or storming up to the front office are about the same. They won't help your case.
+
+It is much better to [[#How to get a write-up amended or canceled|follow the proper procedure]] of emailing hr@ldrprep.com about the situation.
+
+#### Claiming to be singled out / pointing out stuff other people are doing
+If you wait to complain about someone's behavior until you're in trouble it's probably going to make the situation worse. Especially if the other person's alleged behavior is a totally different kind of infraction or has no impact on your actions.
+
+If you claim something like this and we're not able to find evidence your accusation is true you could be written-up an additional time for lying (misconduct).
+
+Take this for example:
+
+Employee A is being written-up for safety because they have been caught talking on their phone in the middle of busy warehouse aisles. Employee A says "why are you singling me out! Employee B is leaving early all the time and Employee C smells like weed."
+
+Let's break down why this doesn't make sense:
+
+First, Employee B leaving early, even if it's true, has absolutely nothing to do with safety. It also has nothing to do with why Employee A is talking on their phone in a dangerous area.
+
+Second, if Employee C *does* smell like weed and Employee A hasn't said anything about it, that only strengthens the point that Employee A is disregarding workplace safety.
+
+Here's what could happen in that situation.
+
+Employee A is still written up for safety, because talking on the phone in the middle of dangerous areas is still a safety violation.
+
+Employee A receives an additional write-up for knowing about a safety problem and failing to report it.
+
+Next, we investigate to see if Employee C is actually high at work. We can't find any evidence, so then Employee A gets a third write-up for lying (misconduct).
+
+## Independant contractors and infractions
+Independant contractors, such as people paid on a 1099 basis for a particular project, are not employees. As such, they can't be corrected the same way as employees. When a contractor does something we disagree with or dislike our primary option is to consider whether or not to terminate their contract.
+
+General rules and policies about independant contractors can be found under [[Contractors and Subcontractors]].
+
+Generally speaking, a contractor can still be written-up as a way to record they've done something we find unsuitable or unprofessional, but none of the corrective actions or escalating process can be applied to a contractor.
+
+Instead, the write-up just serves as internal documentation the contractor did something we feel is worth holding in consideration when evaluating whether or not to continue or renew their contract, or whether to hire them as an employee.
+
+For example, a contractor who doesn't show up to do the work they agreed might be annoying. If an employee did that, it would probably be considered absenteeism. We can still sort of think of the contractor as being absent as a simple way to talk about it, but we can't enact any corrective actions like suspension, retraining, reassignment, or anything like that. Our only real option is to cancel or renegotiate the contract.
+
+However, if the contractor later wants to be hired as an employee would still want to have a record of how they behaved as a contractor and use that to evaluate whether or not hiring them as an employee is likely to be a successful relationship.

Foundations and Governance/General Rules of Conduct.md

@@ -0,0 +1,212 @@
+These general rules apply across the whole business, although individual departments or groups expand on them where necessary.
+
+Everybody working with us is expected to be familiar with these rules and abide by them to the best of their ability. The goal is that any reasonable person should be able to get a gist of the rules by skimming the table of contents, and then get more detail by reading that section.
+
+## How to understand these rules
+We strive for a harmonious workplace and these rules are designed to foster that. These aren't a comprehensive list of things people could get in trouble for. For that, have a look at  [[Write-ups|infractions]], which outlines the 8 major situations that can cause someone to be in trouble. These rules are designed to help people avoid those 8 situations.
+
+- [[#1. Firearms and weapons are prohibited with limited exceptions|1. Firearms and weapons are prohibited with limited exceptions]]
+	- [[#1. Firearms and weapons are prohibited with limited exceptions#2nd Amendment Workplace|2nd Amendment Workplace]]
+- [[#2. Violence and excessive horseplay aren't allowed.|2. Violence and excessive horseplay aren't allowed.]]
+- [[#3. Sexual harassment and discrimination is not permitted|3. Sexual harassment and discrimination is not permitted]]
+- [[#4. Sexual materials, like porn or sex toys, are not allowed at work.|4. Sexual materials, like porn or sex toys, are not allowed at work.]]
+- [[#5. Use of mind altering substances must be limited and moderated|5. Use of mind altering substances must be limited and moderated]]
+- [[#6. Stealing and conversion of property is not allowed.|6. Stealing and conversion of property is not allowed.]]
+	- [[#6. Stealing and conversion of property is not allowed.#6.1 Customer inventory and disposal|6.1 Customer inventory and disposal]]
+	- [[#6. Stealing and conversion of property is not allowed.#6.2 Personal property at work and cameras|6.2 Personal property at work and cameras]]
+- [[#7. Strong smells aren't allowed around customer inventory.|7. Strong smells aren't allowed around customer inventory.]]
+- [[#8. Messing with other people's work area, tools, or creating distractions is not allowed unless it's your job|8. Messing with other people's work area, tools, or creating distractions is not allowed unless it's your job]]
+- [[#9. Keep common and shared use areas and equipment clear.|9. Keep common and shared use areas and equipment clear.]]
+- [[#10. Don't "help" other people without asking first.|10. Don't "help" other people without asking first.]]
+- [[#11. If your work can't be finished you're responsible for proactively documenting that and notifying people|11. If your work can't be finished you're responsible for proactively documenting that and notifying people]]
+- [[#12. Delays, mistakes, or other problems are to be reported efficiently and proactively.|12. Delays, mistakes, or other problems are to be reported efficiently and proactively.]]
+- [[#13. You are responsible for being honest about what we should expect you to accomplish.|13. You are responsible for being honest about what we should expect you to accomplish.]]
+- [[#14. The concept of "ASAP" is frowned upon and should be avoided.|14. The concept of "ASAP" is frowned upon and should be avoided.]]
+- [[#15. Gossip, rumors, and lying are strongly frowned upon.|15. Gossip, rumors, and lying are strongly frowned upon.]]
+	- [[#15. Gossip, rumors, and lying are strongly frowned upon.#Socializing and personal issues from outside work|Socializing and personal issues from outside work]]
+- [[#16. You are responsible for valuing your own time and that of others.|16. You are responsible for valuing your own time and that of others.]]
+- [[#17. Individual teams and business units can have additional rules.|17. Individual teams and business units can have additional rules.]]
+- [[#18. People allowed to work remotely or on a different schedule are still expected to communicate with the team while on the clock|18. People allowed to work remotely or on a different schedule are still expected to communicate with the team while on the clock]]
+- [[#19. Quality control and assurance measures, as well as posted signs are important and not to be ignored.|19. Quality control and assurance measures, as well as posted signs are important and not to be ignored.]]
+- [[#20. Visitors are generally not allowed without advance permission -- not open to the public|20. Visitors are generally not allowed without advance permission -- not open to the public]]
+- [[#21. Blame games, deflections, and excuses don't fly here.|21. Blame games, deflections, and excuses don't fly here.]]
+- [[#22. Breaks room, rest areas, and dining areas are to be used politely and with personal integrity.|22. Breaks room, rest areas, and dining areas are to be used politely and with personal integrity.]]
+
+
+### 1. Firearms and weapons are prohibited with limited exceptions
+Unless there is special authorization or the weapon is related to the work being done, weapons aren't allowed at work. A weapon is anything that's designed to be a weapon, as well as anything that can be used in an unusual or dangerous way to injure someone else.
+
+To understand "unusual or dangerous" consider a screw driver. When used in the normal, intended way a screw driver isn't a weapon. However, it's entirely possible to stab someone with a screw driver by using it differently than it's supposed to be used.
+
+#### 2nd Amendment Workplace
+However, we are a 2nd amendment workplace, and we do allow many people to carry their personal firearms after they've demonstrated they are a sane, safe, and reasonable person who has adequate training in the proper carry of firearms.
+
+Those carrying firearms are warned they are not to use them except for personal defense in life threatening situations. They must not be used for any other purpose, especially not defending property or threatening people.
+
+### 2. Violence and excessive horseplay aren't allowed.
+If you're using violence or threats to control someone else's behavior, that's not okay. Neither is pranking people or playing practical jokes if you're not reasonably sure they're okay with that. On top of that, horseplay is a great way to cause accidents, injuries, and mistakes so don't do it.
+
+### 3. Sexual harassment and discrimination is not permitted
+Treating someone differently because of sexual motivations is not alright, and neither is sexually imposing yourself on somebody else. If you feel like someone is harassing you, report it promptly by emailing hr@ldrprep.com. The same applies to treating people differently because of characteristics like their age, ethnicity, religious beliefs, [[military service]], sexual orientation, or gender.
+
+### 4. Sexual materials, like porn or sex toys, are not allowed at work.
+These kinds of materials aren't allowed in the workplace unless they're directly related to the work somehow. Use common sense: people do sell and ship these kinds of things, so there might be cases the work involves these kinds of materials. If that happens be an adult about it, and don't make jokes, innuendos, or anything else that could make someone uncomfortable.
+
+### 5. Use of mind altering substances must be limited and moderated
+We're talking about medications, alcohol, tobacco, prescription drugs, supplements, and anything else that's mind-altering or performance-altering.
+
+Using any substance in a way that causes a risk to process, property, or limb is not allowed.
+
+People using these kinds of substances are responsible for communicating to the people working around them about any effects on their performance, behavior, or safety.
+
+Use of substances on the premises or during business hours is generally frowned upon, but may be permitted occasionally if there is a good reason for it and it's not hurting anything.
+
+For example,  drinking a beer at lunch is fine for most people, especially if they're not keeping it a secret from people working around them and it doesn't mess up their ability to do the job correctly and safely. It's a totally different story to be drinking shots of whiskey while driving a forklift. By the same token, some champagne or even liquor at a company celebration is probably fine, but not if it causes people to do stupid or harmful things.
+
+### 6. Stealing and conversion of property is not allowed.
+Messing with another person's property without permission isn't allowed. That includes borrowing, moving it around, etc. This also includes using company supplies for personal use without permission, as well as taking customer inventory without authorization.
+
+#### 6.1 Customer inventory and disposal
+Sometimes our customers will ask us to dispose of their inventory (which does not necessarily mean throw in the trash). This inventory is not "up for grabs". If it's available for staff to take home we'll make an announcement about it.
+
+#### 6.2 Personal property at work and cameras
+The company is not responsible for anything that happens to personal property you bring to work. Do not expect us to watch surveillance records upon request to investigate mysteriously missing or damaged personal property. If you have something you're worried about being lost or stolen don't bring it to work.
+
+### 7. Strong smells aren't allowed around customer inventory.
+Anything that could leave a lingering smell on customer-owned property isn't permitted around the inventory. That includes things like incense, cigarettes, or strong smelling cleaning products.
+
+### 8. Messing with other people's work area, tools, or creating distractions is not allowed unless it's your job
+Everyone is expected to keep distractions to a minimum and avoid messing with other people's work areas.
+
+Unless it's specifically your job to do these things (unlikely), avoid doing these sorts of things:
+- Loud or excessive phone use;
+- Loud music when people need to concentrate;
+- Interrupting or barging into conversations;
+- rearranging someone's work area;
+- personalizing a shared space, like putting personal decorations on a table used by multiple people;
+- Changing settings on a computer multiple people need to use.
+
+### 9. Keep common and shared use areas and equipment clear.
+Everyone is expected to keep work areas neat and organized, free from debris, trip hazards, or trash. This is especially important for common use areas like hallways, meeting rooms, walkways, etc.
+
+This also applies to equipment, like rolling carts. Those kinds of equipment shouldn't have work left on them without a good reason.
+
+If there is some reason you have to leave a mess in one of these places, you're responsible for leaving a note with your name, the date, and the general reason it was left there.
+
+Ideally, the note should provide enough information they can pick up your work where you left off. That way, they can *finish* it, instead of adding double-handling by having to move it out of the way to a temporary spot.
+
+Failing that, your note should explain enough about the work a person moving it out of the way won't make your job uncessarily more difficult or time consuming.
+
+Often, the best thing to do is make a [[Redmine]] ticket explaining what needs to be done with the stuff, and then leave the ticket number written the note. That way, other people can actually finish what you were doing if you're not available.
+
+### 10. Don't "help" other people without asking first.
+Unwanted or unexpected help can create a safety issue, inject unexpected problems, or waste time.
+
+Here's an example of what we mean: one time the CEO was pushing a heavy pallet onto a truck. Another guy came over and started pushing it really hard without warning, and it caused the pallet to fall over.
+
+Avoid that kind of thing, because it can cause people to get hurt, start arguments, or cause other problems.
+
+On top of this, getting a helpful person to stop doing something can be really difficult. Think about overly helpful family or neighbors who are pushy about "helping" in ways you don't appreciate. It's almost impossible to get them to stop without offending them. It's best to avoid this kind of interaction at work -- so before helping someone, ask if they actually need it.
+
+### 11. If your work can't be finished you're responsible for proactively documenting that and notifying people
+If there is any reason you think your work won't be finished on time or the results won't be correct, you are responsible for telling the involved people about it before they need to ask.
+
+This includes if you notice there is more work to do than usual, and you're not sure whether or not you'll be able to finish it. You're expected to tell the effected people about that before they have to ask you about it.
+
+Here's an example of this.
+
+Imagine you normally work on repacking items, and usually you repack 100 items a day. During your shift something goes wrong about half way, and you realize you probably won't be able to finish all 100 items. We expect you to tell your supervisor about it or make a [[QC Report]] as soon as you notice that.
+
+### 12. Delays, mistakes, or other problems are to be reported efficiently and proactively.
+This hinges on rule 11. Any kind of problem or mistake is expected to be reported before anyone asks or complains about it, and it needs to be done in an efficient manner.
+
+By efficient, we generally mean recording the issue through written or electronic means, instead of interrupting other people to tell them about it. The general expected flow is like this:
+
+If you notice a problem of some kind, ask yourself will this get worse and create more problems if nobody acts right now? If the answer is yes, then interrupt other people, yell for help, etc. Otherwise, just make a [[QC Report]] about it and move on to a different task without interrupting other people or making a panic.
+
+In general, we take failure to proactively and efficiently report issues more seriously than accidents or mistakes.
+
+### 13. You are responsible for being honest about what we should expect you to accomplish.
+You should not accept assignments you think are impractical or unfeasible. You also should not agree to do anything you have no intention of actually doing, or which you think you aren't able to do.
+
+It is your responsibility to clearly and promptly communicate when an assigned task is impractical or unfeasible. Don’t just say “okay, I’ll do it” if you think it’s a bad idea or it’s impossible. In other words don’t be a “yes person”. Instead, politely explain the problem to your supervisor in a manner which does not undermine their authority in front of coworkers.
+
+### 14. The concept of "ASAP" is frowned upon and should be avoided.
+When everything is "as soon as possible" nothing has a priority. ASAP does not value time. ASAP quickly leads to a culture where priorities are unclear or conflict, and no real deadlines or schedules exist. ASAP should only be used when something truly should take priority over everything else.
+
+Some people tend to use ASAP when they actually mean "this isn't a priority, but as soon as I'm done with everything else I care about, I'll do this". That's what we want to avoid.
+
+### 15. Gossip, rumors, and lying are strongly frowned upon.
+Lying about work-related matters is a quick way to get fired. Beyond that, rumors and gossip can be generally harmful to the workplace and are strongly frowned upon.
+
+You are strongly advised to ask yourself the following three questions before making statements at work:
+
+1. Am I certain this is true?
+2. Is this a positive thing people will like to hear?
+3. Is it useful for others to know this?
+
+If you can't answer "yes" to at least 2 of those questions, you should probably keep it to yourself.
+
+#### Socializing and personal issues from outside work
+Sometimes people are tempted to talk about personal issues from outside work, like relationships, neighbors, family, etc. That's unavoidable and part of being human, but it crosses a line if it's upsetting other people or preventing work from being done. The same is true about politics, conspiracy theories, or other controversial topics.
+
+It's also pretty normal for people to socialize at work to some degree. However, we're here for a job, not to make friends. We can't make anyone socialize with you or agree with you. Treating someone differently, failing to get your work done, and stuff like that because a person doesn't want to socialize with you is not acceptable.
+
+On the topic of personal issues relating to work, you should look at the articles about [[Employee Assistance]] and [[Counselling]].
+
+### 16. You are responsible for valuing your own time and that of others.
+This is mostly about meetings and conversations. If you're part of a conversation or meeting and you believe there's a better use of your time, you're expected to politely interrupt and say so. For example, "I'm unclear on the purpose of this conversation and what's needed from me. I have this other thing I need to work on, is it okay if go do that instead?"
+
+Likewise, before striking up a conversation or calling a meeting with other people, you're expected to make sure they have time to talk about it first. The best way to do that is usually to state the general topic, how urgent it is, and how much time you're asking for.
+
+When possible, [[asynchronous communication]] is strongly advised.
+
+### 17. Individual teams and business units can have additional rules.
+Individual areas of the company can have additional rules or regulations, and you're expected to abide by them if you're in that area. If you're working in a different area than usual you should ask the supervisor if there are any rules in that area you might need to know about.
+
+### 18. People allowed to work remotely or on a different schedule are still expected to communicate with the team while on the clock
+From time to time we have people who work slightly different schedules than others or work remotely. If that's the case, those people are still expected to attend meetings or scheduled events that involve them. If for some reason they can't, they should not expect the company to reschedule the events or meetings. Likewise, a personal working remotely is expected to be contactable by coworkers. For example, if somebody is working remotely but they keep their noticications muted all day and won't answer the phone, that's a problem.
+
+### 19. Quality control and assurance measures, as well as posted signs are important and not to be ignored.
+Quality control and assurance methods, as well as posted signs or warnings are there for a reason. Neglecting or ignoring them can have serious consequences.
+
+### 20. Visitors are generally not allowed without advance permission -- not open to the public
+We are generally not open to the public without an appointment.
+
+Employees are not allowed to bring visitors, guests, or delivery people into the workplace without permission in advance.
+
+Friends, family, or delivery people can visit during breaks or lunches, providing they don't cause any problems or disruptions, and they're only allowed in the public areas like the lobby and break room. By delivery people, we're talking about stuff like DoorDash. If you want to order DoorDash for lunch, you're expected to clear that with your supervisor and/or make sure it doesn't disrupt other people who have to deal with the unexpected dasher showing up.
+
+### 21. Blame games, deflections, and excuses don't fly here.
+You are responsible for your performance, behavior, attendance, and adherence to rules and regulations. Pointing out somebody else did something wrong won't be accepted as an excuse, especially if you didn't previously report it as mentioned in rules 11, 12, and 13.
+
+Generally speaking, any unscheduled conversation about performance, behavior, attendance, or adherence to rules is expected to last less than 15 minutes. If it involves more than two people total, it should take a max of 5 minutes. If everyone can't get back to work before the time's up, you can expect whichever people are prolonging the discussion to be removed from the work area, which can mean being sent home for the day or even terminated depending on the circumstances.
+
+Instead of creating a lengthy work stoppage over these matters, people are expected to use their own time to write down what the complaint is and then schedule a time to talk about it in depth.
+
+### 22. Breaks room, rest areas, and dining areas are to be used politely and with personal integrity.
+This section almost needs to be it's own article because of how much contention these areas have created in the past.
+
+1. Personal food or beverages placed in storage areas should be labeled with the owner and date. Anything not labeled will be considered communal property, free for use or consumption by anyone who desires.
+    
+2.  The company may provide various food preparation appliances and equipment, such as microwaves, electric skillets, toasters, or coffee makers. Employees are responsible for cleaning any equipment or appliances they use.
+    
+3.  In general, open beverage containers should not be transported or used outside of designated break areas. Exceptions can be made where there is a low likelihood of spills, such as a coffee mug on a desk that isn’t near customer products. This is *especially* important during the warm months because open containers or beverages thrown away in open trash cans attract hornets.
+    
+4.  The volume level of activities in break areas should be kept low enough that people who are working nearby are not disturbed or disrupted.
+    
+5.  Posted “open hours” or occupancy limits of break and rest areas must be adhered to. If no occupancy limit is posted, the default limit is the number of seats normally available in that room. If no “open hours” are posted, employees should assume the area is off limits during the first and last hours of their shift, except for emergencies.
+    
+6.  Employees are responsible for restocking consumables in rest and break areas, such as napkins, paper towels, and toilet paper providing the necessary supplies are available. Likewise, an employee who creates a mess in any such area is responsible for cleaning it up if appropriate supplies are provided.
+    
+7.  The Company is not liable for any issue arising from food, beverages, or OTC medications an employee chooses to use, whether they are pre-packaged items made available in break or rest areas, a personal item brought to work, or an item provided by another employee. For example, if an employee has an allergy to something like peanuts, and they eat something at work with peanuts in it, the Company isn’t responsible. It is the employee’s responsibility to ask and double check about their allergy.  
+    
+8.  Food and beverages provided by the Company are a privilege that employees aren’t entitled to and is not part of their compensation. The Company has no responsibility to provide snacks or foods beyond water, and is not responsible for providing food or beverage items to adhere to or accommodate spiritual, cultural, or ethnic beliefs, particular diets, or preferences.  
+    
+9.  Any employee, regardless of job description or position, is expected to assist with cleaning of break and rest areas when asked to do so.  
+    
+10.  If any employee violates the rules about break and rest areas their usage of those areas may be restricted.
+
+
+
+#workplaceRules

Foundations and Governance/Guiding Principles.md

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+# LDR Guiding Principles
+
+We strive to live and breathe by our guiding principles. We believe that through these principles we can improve lives, for ourselves and our customers.
+
+1.  **We are motivated.** Everything starts with motivated people. We strive to understand what motivates people and how it can be harnessed.
+    
+2.  **We are obsessed with the customer.** We work tirelessly to earn the trust of customers and solve their needs, whatever they are. Every ask is an opportunity to delight our customers. We make short term sacrifices to earn lifetime loyalty.
+    
+3.  **We do what we say.** We do what we say, and say what we do. We decide what we are going to do, and we work towards it regardless of roadblocks or challenges. We under promise and over deliver. When challenges arise or something changes, we are proactive about communicating in a frank and earnest way. There is no confusion or surprise when we operate this way.
+    
+4.  **We do the right thing.** Period.
+    
+5.  **We persevere.** We believe in the power of walking the hard road, finding comfort in discomfort. We seek difficult challenges and push as hard as we can. Our collective resilience is unexpected in this day, age, and industry. All the best things in life are on the other side of fear. We find comfort in discomfort. We relentlessly improve and find innovative solutions. Calm seas do not make good sailors, nor do winners play it safe.
+    
+6.  **We value ideas over hierarchy.** Good ideas can come from anywhere, inside or outside our company. We don’t allow rules or hierarchy to get in the way.
+    
+7.  **We are humbly confident.** We approach situations from a mind set of “we can solve this, we will find a way”. We do not brag or exaggerate, and we do not say “we can’t do it” or “this is too hard”. We don’t limit ourselves with fear or doubt.
+    
+8.  **We value time.** Time is the only thing anyone has. We seek to ensure the time of our customers, employees, and partners is always valued, respected, and honored. We constantly seek to maximize the impact of our actions and usage of our time. Through this, we can do more with less, and move faster than any competition.
+    
+9.  **We act like owners.** We look for problems to solve and we solve them. We help each other and those who matter to us. We have a bias for action and accountability. When we make mistakes, we own up to them. We learn from our mistakes and try again until we succeed.
+10. **We make it fun.** Period.
+
+## How these principles are applied
+These principles are intended to be the "spirit" of the law and the factors we consider when making decisions. A person who does something we initially dislike but who has done so in a manner that demonstrates understanding of the principles should be granted a pass.
+
+## How to interpret the principles
+The principles were written as above by one of our founders, Jason, at the beginning of the company. They were condensed to fit on a single page. This section talks about the deeper meanings and applications of them.
+
+A principle is meaningless when it's only aspirational. To be effective and understood, each principle needs to explain what is being prioritized over something else, and that's what this section aims to do.
+
+### 1. We are motivated
+This means we prioritize analyzing the motivations of ourselves and others before making decisions, rather than making assumptions or jumping to conclusions.
+
+This is especially true when it comes to unwanted or unexpected results or behaviors. Where possible, we strive to figure out what motivated the actions and harness that for positive gain, rather than simply assume a person has bad intentions.
+
+### 2. We are obsessed with the customer
+We focus on building long term, repeating relationships with healthy businesses rather than making a quick buck. Every time we make a decision that affects customers we need to consider how it will effect their business, employees, and income.
+
+Put together with the 1st principle, before we make changes or decisions we strive to think about how it will benefit customers. If we can't identify how something benefits, or at least doesn't inconvenience a customer, we don't recommend doing it. For instance, we don't want to do something like change our business hours to be more convenient for ourselves if that will aggravate our customers.
+
+### 3. We do what we say
+This means we are careful not to commit to things we aren't positive we can deliver, and if some issue happens we try to communicate about it before someone has to ask us what's going on.
+
+The power of "no" is very important -- if someone asks us to do something and we don't think it can be done, we should say that instead of getting people's hopes up. By the same token, if we agree to do something and then find out it's not as easy as we though, we strive to communicate that before being asked what the problem is.
+
+### 4. We do the right thing
+We strive to prioritize the greatest good for the most people at the end of the day, even if that means short-term pain or difficult situaions. When we find ourselves tempted to make selfish decisions at the expense of others we strive to stop and dig deep into why we're even thinking about that.
+
+### 5. We persevere
+We don't just give up immediately when something's not working well, and we try not to let fear of failure hold us back unecessarily. This means when we commit to doing a project, we do so with the committment of seeing it through to the end, even if it really sucks to do that.
+
+### 6. We value ideas of heirarchy
+Ideas are often worthless, and the execution of them is what matters. It doesn't really matter where an idea came from, it's about who is able to execute it. That said, we want to avoid the common organizational problem of good ideas being supressed, discounted, or stolen.
+
+In practice, this means upholding radical transparency within our organization so the most people possible can grasp reality and put forth ideas about it. However, we have to balance that with the amount of organizational bandwidth any individual is allowed to consume. We try to do that by creating methods any member of the company can use to voice ideas clearly, efficiently, and safer without bogging everyone down.
+
+Our QC Report system is an example of this: it's an anonymous way anyone can point out a concern or make a suggestion that can be read and then chat about by anyone who works with us. That allows anyone to surface an idea and bring it to the forefront of discussion without interrupting other people or sidetracking conversations.
+
+### 7. We are humbly confident
+This is really about experiments and trying new things.
+
+When something new comes up we're unfamiliar with we strive to at least try it before getting bogged down worrying about all the what if's and corner cases.
+
+This has a lot to do with how our company started. Our founders worked somewhere else that was winding down operations and some customers asked for an alternative. Before worrying about even getting insurance or even a corporate bank account, Jason and Brice found a warehouse they could sublet without a lease, and just *tried* it for a month.
+
+If they had spent months planning and reseaching every kind of problem that could happen, we wouldn't be here.
+
+Many people and organizations limit themselves by being overly risk-averse. They are tempted to spend an inordinate amount of time planning, worrying about all the details, and quibbling about fears. We strive not to be that way, and first test whether an idea even makes sense by trying it.
+
+### 8. We value time
+We try to invest time now to save time later. We try to avoid spending all our time doing repetive tasks, especially ones that make us unhappy. We try to avoid the attitude of "work harder" or "do it faster", and instead try to think like the laziest person you could ever imagine.
+
+For example, if there is a door that sticks and we have to open that door 5-6 times a day for the forseeable future, we believe it's a better use of time to spend an hour fixing the door. That way, it's just one less thing we have to do from now on, so we can focus on things that make us happy.
+
+### 9. We act like owners
+We try to look for problems that need solved and find solutions without being asked to do so. This can mean our organization is really unstructured in some areas, which is difficult for people who like being told what to do.
+
+It's like this because we're a B2B solutions provider -- our customers are business owners who want us to solve problems for them. To be good at that, we have to be good at solving our own problems without being told what to do or waiting for permission. It's often much better to call out something we think is a problem, announce what we plan to do, and then just do it unless someone objects.
+
+This also means that rather than devoting resources to making sure people do things like mow the lawn or clean the bathroom, we put the tools where everybody can access them. If the lawn is still a problem, it means nobody cares enough to do anything about it.
+
+This is always a point of contention within our organization, especially among newcomers. It's easy to see that various "common sense" issues get basically no attention, and that can be frustrating for people. However, operating this way is what's allowed us to grow into the business we are and it's crucial to our success. Our best ideas and projects came from people taking the sort of initiative this allows for.
+
+### 10. We make it fun
+No matter what is going on, we try to prioritize making the situation fun. We believe an angry or upset person can't do their best work and it's bad for everyone if we take ourselves too seriously.
+
+A core insight we have is the whole supply chain is mad. Thing about it: everywhere from the truck driver, the cashier, the warehouse worker, to the consumer is upset. Nobody can seem to fix any of the issues. Our theory is that's *because* everyone is upset. Even when something bad or inconvenient happens we recommend trying to make solving it fun and engaging.

Foundations and Governance/Infractions/Absences and Absenteeism.md

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+---
+aliases: 
+infraction: absenteeism
+tags:
+  - workplaceRules
+  - accountabilty
+  - attendance
+---
+Absenteeism occurs when an employee exhibits unsatisfactory attendance by missing an unacceptable amount of their scheduled work hours. Mainly, that means missing scheduled shifts, but there are some other forms of absense this article will cover.
+
+To a certain extent, absences can be excused or overlooked. This is mainly the case when an employee has otherwise very good attendance and is absent for reasons outside of their control. The same is often true if an employee who has great attendence needs to unexpectedly take a day off work for personal reasons.
+
+In general, an employee is considered to have [[satisfactory attendance]] if they are at work for 97% of their scheduled hours. For a person who works [[full-time]], that roughly means they can miss about 7.5 days a year. More than that generally means the employee does not have satisfactory attendance, and even absences for "good reasons" could be considered absenteeism.
+
+## Other types of absense
+A person is normally considered absent when they miss all or most of a day they're scheduled to work. However, there are some other kinds of absense. The article on [[Foundations and Governance/General Policies/Attendance]] goes into more detail about this.
+
+The primary forms of absense aside from the obvious (missing work completely) are as follows:
+
+- **Missing from post**: an employee is mysteriously missing from their assigned or expected work area. This could be considered absenteeism if it happens often.
+  
+- **Presenteeism**: a person is at work when they shouldn't be. Examples include being very sick and contagious (presenting a risk of getting other people sick) or being in a state where they can't actually do their job (like a bad hangover or without sleep). This could be considered absenteeism if it occurs often.
+  
+- **Virtual absense**: The employee is working remotely or at a satellite location but they're not reachable by coworkers or managers. For example, an employee working remotely has their chat app muted and isn't responding to messages. Another example might be the employee is supposed to be on the clock but isn't answering the phone.
+
+## Examples of Absenteeism
+
+An employee should be written up for Absenteeism in any of the following cases:
+
+#### Absent with inappropiate notice
+The employee should be written up if they were absent without appropriate notice and they don't have evidence they couldn't have provided notice.
+
+##### Example 1: Sick kid magically feeling better
+A person texts you an hour before their shift is supposed to start and they tell you they're going to be absent because their kid was puking last night and is still sick this morning. They don't have any real explanation for why they couldn't send notice last night or the reason they thought their kid would magically feel better this morning.
+
+##### Example 2: Notified the wrong way
+A person is absent from work, and they notified you by emailing about or texting a coworker instead of reporting it in the online timeclock software. Their reason for not using the timeclock is their computer was messing up, but they don't have any evidence of that or the same thing has happened several times.
+
+#### Multiple absences with a pattern
+ An employee who is absent more than once for the same general reason over a period of 90 days should be evaluated for a write-up. Factors to consider include:
+
+- Do they have proof the situation is real?
+- Do they have proof the situation couldn't be avoided or planned for?
+- Do they have proof they have taken reasonable actions to prevent similar situations from happening again?
+
+ If the answer to any of the above questions is no, the employee should be written up for Absenteeism.
+
+##### Example 1: Particular days
+The person has shown a trend of being absent on a particular day the week or month, like calling off on Mondays or Fridays. For example, the employee has called off work on a Monday every month for the last 3 months. In one case they said it was because of a broken water heater. Another time it was a sick kid. A third time it was car trouble. However, it always seems to be on a Monday or Friday.
+
+##### Example 2: Reactive to situation
+The person has a pattern of calling off work based on a particular kind of event or situation. For example, an employee who is supposed to assist with unloading trucks calls off work for some reason the day after actually having to unload a truck. It's happened 2-3 times within the last three months.
+
+#### Excessive absences
+ If an employee is absent too often, regardless of why they are absent, they should be evaluated for a write-up. Factors to consider include:
+
+- Have they been absent for more than 3% of their scheduled days over the last 90 days? For most people, this means missing more than 2.5 days.
+- Did their life circumstances change, but the employee failed to update their schedule availability to reflect when they can work?
+- Will they have less than 8 hours of PTO remaining if we were to apply PTO to the most recent absence?
+
+ If the answer is yes to any of the above questions, the employee should be written up.
+
+
+#hr #infraction #attendance
+

Foundations and Governance/Infractions/Insubordination.md

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+[[Insubordination]] refers to an employee who is outright disobedient or disrespectful to a manager or owner of a business. This includes engaging in actions or behaviors that undermine authority, like spreading gossip or rumors.
+
+Insubordination is one of the most serious infractions at our company, and the linked expanded articles explains more about it.
+
+Examples of insubordination include:
+
+- Refusal to obey commands of a supervisor
+- Disrespect shown to higher-ups in the form of vulgar or mocking language
+- Directly questioning or mocking management decisions
+- Defacing posted signs or policies
+
+Additionally, disobedience can mean gestures such as non-verbal cues showing dissatisfaction or eye-rolling.
+
+#### Bad Employees
+An employee might not show outward or obvious signs of insubordination. For example, an employee that gossips about others or spreads false information is being insubordinate because they are undermining authority by doing so.
+
+#### When to Detect Insubordination
+
+You can spot the signs of insubordination when:
+
+- A directive was issued, but it was never followed through, intentionally.
+- The employee understood instructions that were given but refused to comply.
+- Non-performance or outright refusing to conduct a task.
+
+Not all factors may be present when it comes to spotting disobedience, but it is best to use good judgment based on each situation.
+
+#### What Is Not Insubordination
+Some nuanced workplace misunderstandings or miscommunications will happen, and shouldn't be considered insubordination.
+
+- If the employee misunderstood instructions and did not complete a task as a result.
+- The employee questions any ethics or legalities of a particular directive coming from a manager and did not follow through with the command. An employee should express such concerns to another higher-up.
+- If an employee engages in a private conversation conveying why a direct order was not satisfied.
+
+#### Solid grounds for termination
+In some cases, insubordination is solid grounds for fast-tracked termination, such as:
+
+- The employee makes multiple excuses and will not apologize for missed deadlines or incomplete work.
+- The employee blames other people for missed or incomplete work.
+- The employee won't take responsibility for their actions.
+- The employee is blatantly or consistently disregarding a workplace policy, like a posted sign in the work area.
+
+#### Examples of Insubordination
+This section includes some examples of insubordination.
+
+##### Example 1: Habitual
+You ask an employee to do something they clearly understand how to do, like take out the garbage before they leave. They keep leaving for the day without taking out the trash, and they don't come and tell you the reason unless you ask. Every time you ask about it they have an excuse, they try to complain about other people, or they tell you they need to be reminded.
+
+The person is insubordinate because they are repeatedly failing to do what they're told and they aren't taking constructive steps to fix the reason.
+
+##### Example 2: Direct
+You ask an employee to do something specific which you know they're able to do, like unloading the UPS truck. They outright refuse to do it by saying something like "why can't Bob do it?", "fuck you, unload it yourself", or "nah, that's not my job".
+
+##### Example 3: Undermining
+An employee isn't directly refusing to follow orders or obey policies. Instead, they are indirectly undermining your authority in a way that causes other people to disrespect authority or feel like disobedience is acceptable.
+
+For example, you post a sign reminding employees to take out trash at the end of the day. Then, you find out an employee is defacing the sign and joking about it to other people. They post a sign next to yours that's a parody or a joke.
+
+##### Example 4: Chain jumping
+This is when an employee disobeys what you've told them and tries to excuse it by asking a different person.
+
+Here are some examples:
+
+An employee asks if it's okay to play music over the loudspeaker and you tell them it's not okay because it causes a safety issue if other people can't hear important things over loud music. They don't like your answer, so they go ask somebody else what they think about the situation. They don't mention they already talked to you about it.
+
+##### Example 5: Derailing or muddling
+You're trying to talk to employees about what tasks you need them to and a person keeps interrupting the conversation with unrelated things. Despite asking them to hold any questions until you're finished speaking, they keep interrupting or distracting. For example, you're trying to explain which projects everybody should be working on, but somebody keeps making suggestions about how to do the work a different way.
+
+Another example: you're speaking to several employees about the appropriate way to do the work. An insubordinate keeps re-phrasing what you're saying in a way that over-simplifies or twists the meaning. Like you're trying to explain to people how distractions around the packline can cause all kinds of problems, and you give a bunch of examples of distracting behavior. The person keeps making positive-sounding statements that actually conflict with what you just said. You said "no phone use in the area" and they're saying "if you get a call remember to go outside to take the call"... except that isn't what you want people to do. You want them to turn their phones off while working.
+
+##### Example 6: Willful Miscommunication / Misunderstanding
+You're trying to explain to employees the correct thing to do when unloading a truck. One person in particular is more focused something unrelated like playing on their phone or emptying trash. Later on, they don't unload trucks correctly. When you ask them about it, they have excuses like "I didn't know that", "I misunderstood", "I don't remember", or something like that.
+
+In another case, you've told a person that they are supposed to clock out for break. Instead of doing that, they just text you when they go on break. You tell them they need to use the time clock, but they respond by saying "I just thought you needed to know when I'm on break". You explain to them they need to use the time clock, and instead of agreeing to do that or apologizing for not doing it, they start complaining about other people or they try to change the topic to something else.
+
+##### Example 7: [[Shadow process]] champion
+This is where a person champions or encourages an unofficial process to other employees that produces unwanted results and they didn't talk to you about it beforehand.
+
+For example, you recently talked to employees about making sure they get permission from their supervisor before leaving for break and using the timeclock to clockout. An employee doesn't use the time clock or talk to you about leaving for breaks. Instead, they send a group chat message that they are going on break. After making it clear that is not what you expect them to do, they keep doing it anyway. This is insubordinate because the person is showing other employees it's okay for them to do the same thing, even when it's not.
+
+##### Example 8: The non-participant
+This is where a person is habitually a non-participant in training sessions or discussions where processes, rules, or policies are being discussed. Then later, the person claims they didn't know what was expected, misunderstood, etc.
+
+For example, this person is constantly doing things like the following during meetings:
+
+- Repeatedly leaving to use the bathroom or check their phone;
+- Sleeping or pretending to sleep;
+- Making small talk and changing the subject;
+- Asking repetitive questions that have already been discussed.
+
+This is insubordinate for two different reasons. First, it's demonstrating to other employees they can be disrepectful and disruptive. Second, it's providing a later "excuse" for why this person will not do their job correctly.
+
+#hr #infraction 

Foundations and Governance/Infractions/Misconduct.md

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+Misconduct is any behavior that goes against the 
+[[General Rules of Conduct]], [[Guiding Principles]], or other policies that dictate how employees should behave at work. This might include unethical, unprofessional, or even criminal behavior that takes place within a workplace setting.
+
+Some examples of workplace misconduct include sexual harassment, discrimination, bullying, violence or threats of violence, falsifying records or documents, dishonesty or theft, and misuse of company resources. Misconduct may also occur when an employee's actions or behaviors make the company look bad or sour the company's reputation.
+
+1. Sexual harassment
+2. Discrimination
+3. Using company resources for personal gain
+4. Unprofessional behavior, such as shouting or swearing
+5. Unauthorized sharing of confidential information
+6. Plagiarism or stealing of ideas
+7. Refusal to follow company policies and procedures 
+8. Falsifying documents or records 
+9. Physical violence or threats in the workplace 
+10. Theft of any kind
+11. Intimidation or bullying
+
+In other words, misconduct occurs when an employee does something for personal gain that is harmful to other people.
+
+## Notification stance
+When an employee is terminated for misconduct an announcement should be made in most cases.
+
+Internally, the announcement should explain what happened and cite the particular policy or type of action, but specific details should be excluded. This is to make sure other employees know we take the policy seriously.
+
+Externally, customers who have had communications with the employee should be notified in a less specific manner. This is to achieve two things. First, if the customer had a bad experience with that employee, they don't blame the rest of us for it. We're demonstrating that we clean up our own mess. Second, if the employee tries to contact the customer later on, the customer will know the employee was terminated for a reason.
+
+The exception to this notification is where some kind of legal action is expected to take place or where making an announcement might actually cause further problems.
+
+## Potentially non-obvious types of misconduct
+
+### Actions outside work
+Some actions taken outside work may still be considered a Misconduct infraction where the actions make the company look bad, compromise the trustworthiness of the employee, or involve a coworker.
+
+Some examples might be:
+
+- An employee who sends inappropriate text messages to a coworker outside hours.
+- An employee gets into a bar fight while wearing a company logo.
+- An employee is convicted of a crime that infringes on our trust in them, like stealing or fraud.
+
+### Time Theft
+Time Theft occurs when an hourly employee claims to have worked hours they didn't actually work, or remains clocked in when they are not actually working.
+
+Here are some examples of Time Theft.
+
+#### Ex1: Breakfast hour
+An employee comes to work, clocks in, and then eats breakfast. While eating they aren't doing any work. They're just looking at social media on their phone or chatting with coworkers about personal topics.
+
+While this might happen from time to time, people are not robots, a person who makes a habit out of it is guilty of Misconduct.
+
+#### Ex2: Dragging out the day for personal reasons
+Imagine an employee wants an advance on their paycheck so they can put a new tire on their car. They wait until five minutes before their shift ends to ask about it, and the manager informs them we can't help on such short notice. Instead of accepting that answer, the person continues to argue about why they should be given a pay advance, and it causes both them and the manager to be at the office for a half hour after close.
+
+The employee should not expect this to be paid time. However, the manager can't leave until the employee leaves, so the manager does have to be paid for this time.
+
+This is also a form of Time Theft, and therefore Misconduct.
+
+
+
+#hr #infraction
+

Foundations and Governance/Infractions/Other.md

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+An infraction for "Other" is used when an action or behavior doesn't clearly fall under one of the major 8 categories. Really, it means whatever happened appears to cause some kind of problem, there might not actually be a rule about it, and we need to decide if there should be.
+
+Here's an example of this:
+
+At one point, we had a situation where an employee was parking their car on the sidewalk. That wasn't clearly against any rule, but some people were upset about it. Some people were concerned it made the business look bad. Other people were upset because it made it harder to take out trash. The person who was parking on the sidewalk wasn't aware it was causing an issue for anyone else.
+
+In that case, a written warning as "Other" is basically saying we need to decide on a policy or rule about it, because nobody can seem to agree about the situation.
+
+In general, written warnings for "Other" don't trigger any corrective action unless we determine some other box should have been checked and wasn't. Rather, we might ask the employee to stop doing whatever action it is until we decide what the policy should be about it.

Foundations and Governance/Infractions/Policy Violation.md

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+A Policy Violation occurs when an employee ignores or disregards official methods or rules. A person can be cited for a policy violation even if skipping or disregarding the policy didn't cause an immediate problem.
+
+The reason is that official processes and methods have been developed over time with care and thought. Each policy and step exists for a reason, usually to avoid some kind of accident, loss, or other problem. When an employee doesn't follow official policies and methods they could be unwittingly creating risks that aren't immediately obvious.
+
+## Why policies and processes exist and need to be adhered to
+In general, a policy or process exists because otherwise there won't be any common sense. Policies are generally created around situations where 2-3 people presented with the same decision would likely reach slightly different conclusions or need to debate what to do. That's especially true if they have different levels of experience or perspective about the situation.
+
+For example, when confronted with a ringing telephone three different people might reach three different conclusions about what they should do:
+
+- Person A thinks they should get a supervisor.
+- Person B thinks they should ignore the phone and keep working.
+- Person C thinks they should answer "Hello, LDR, how can I help you?"
+
+All three people are probably reaching conclusions that feel like common sense. The problem being, each of them would probably disagree with each other or be surprised by each other's decision.
+
+Policies and processes exist to eliminate that kind of confusion and frustration, as well as protect us from non-obvious risks that might be unapparent to people in a given situation.
+
+### A policy may exist to protect from harm
+In many cases policies may exist to protect other employees from some kind of unforseen or non-obvious danger.
+
+For example, if an employee answers the phone, they are not supposed to answer any questions about who's at work or what their schedules are. That might seem arbitrary to people who don't understand the reasons, so they might be tempted to fudge that rule. The problem being that answering questions about who's at work or what their schedule is could aid a stalker in accosting an employee or let a burglar know the employee isn't home.
+
+### Policies may exist to ensure consistent results
+In other cases policies may exist to ensure the results of our work are consistently what the customer wants.
+
+For example, when a person is doing picking or STOW, the placement of barcodes on items matters a lot. However, it's not really important for people doing other jobs. That's why we have a policy to always put the barcode on the smallest side of a product because it makes the work easier for other people. That's important because our customers expect us to locate and ship items on a deadline, which we can't do if picking or STOW are bottlenecked.
+
+### Policies may exist to reduce communications overhead and meetings
+For common decisions arising in the business, there may be policies that act as a decision-making framework for how employees are supposed to respond. The purpose of these policies is to improve the consistency of decision making and reduce the time it takes to respond to situations.
+
+For example, it is unfortunately a situation that sometimes people no-call, no-show, meaning they don't show up to work or contact us. Our policy is if a person does that two days in a row we just assume they quit. That's to avoid needing to have a lengthy debate or discussion about it each time it occurs.
+
+
+## How to avoid and prevent policy violations
+As an employee, the best way to avoid policy violations is checking with your supervisor to clarify any rules, policies, or processes so you fully understand what they are. Before deciding to skip or bend the rules, run it past your supervisor to make sure it won't cause some kind of unforseen problem. This is especially important if you hear something that seems to contradict what you've read or heard.
+
+As a supervisor, focus on the most important processes and rules in your area. Regularly touch base with your subordinates about them. It may be helpful to distribute memos or post signage to remind employees about important policies.
+

Foundations and Governance/Infractions/Quality of Work.md

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+A Quality of Work infraction occurs when an employee's work has too many mistakes or errors. Quality of Work is an issue when either an employee's work has too many minor mistakes or errors over a period of time or a single major mistake, especially if the mistake isn't reversible.
+
+The quality standards vary by task and project within the business, and they sometimes change based on customer demands.

Foundations and Governance/Infractions/Quantity of Work.md

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+A quantity of work infraction happens when an employee gets less work done than is normally expected. In rare situations, an employee who overproduces may also be created a quantity of work issue, which is explained further below.
+
+## Not enough work completed
+Af an employee has a habit of not completing the expected amount of work or they perform a drastically low amount of work, they should be subject to [[Corrective Actions]]. This includes situations where an employee is virtually absent. Like, they were technically at work, but they were so off their game or distracted they didn't really get any work done.
+
+The best way for employees to avoid this is through proactive communication with their supervisor about any issues that might result in getting less work done. Generally, when an employee is proactive and solution-oriented about this no corrective action will be taken.
+
+## Overproduction
+In rare cases it's possible an employee will get so much work done it actually causes a problem for somebody else. This is another kind of quantity of work issue.
+
+Here's an example. Let's imagine an employee is supposed to build boxes for the packing team to use for shipments. However, the person builds far more boxes than the packing team needs and now they're taking up so much space it's hard to move around the workplace. That might be a case of overproduction. However, cases of overproduction shouldn't normally trigger corrective action unless it's a repeating trend. Instead, a policy should be made about it and discussed with the workforce to avoid the same thing happening again.
+

Foundations and Governance/Infractions/Safety.md

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+A [[Safety]] infraction is when someone's actions or behaviors are harmful to (or could harm) people, property, or process in an irreversible way. Safety is very serious, so an employee should be written up whether any actual harm was caused. The write-up should specifically reference what kind of irreversible harm happened or could have happened.
+
+To elaborate on this, here's what we mean by people, property, or process and irreversible harm.
+
+#### People, Property, or Process explained.
+
+##### People
+The kind of harm would degrade a person's quality of life in a way that can only be healed with time, if at all.
+
+##### Property
+The harm would make someone's property less valuable or useful in a way that can't be fixed besides repairing or replacing the property.
+
+##### Process
+The harm causes (or could cause) a process to produce incorrect or substandard results in a way that can't be corrected, even by redoing the work.
+
+#hr #safety #infraction 

Foundations and Governance/Infractions/Tardiness.md

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+Tardiness occurs when a person is late to work or leaves early, and this includes returning late from a break or taking a break earlier than permitted. In other words, tardiness is about a lack of punctuality.
+
+Tardiness can occur for three primary reasons, and the reason for the tardiness should be considered when evaluating whether an employee has committed an infraction.