Treating Employees Like Adults: Discipline versus Empowerment

Why Should You Attend:

Disciplining an employee is the start of what can be a long, costly and relationship damaging process with the potential to have that discipline reversed or lessened even if your facts are correct and you followed your process to the letter. Additionally, discipline does not always have a long term, or sometimes even a short-term effect. So, the question is what is the purpose of discipline in your organization? Is it punishment? Or is it for behavioral change? Would you like to stop the “shame and blame games” and perceptions of victimization resulting from discipline? If the answers are “yes’ than this webinar is for you! By learning and using the techniques discussed in this webinar you will be able to empower employees in the best interests of their own future as well as for the organization. Additionally, should you have no other choice but to proceed with discipline these methods can help you to make a good case even better.

Is traditional discipline always the best choice? Does it always provide the best result? How productive is it for parties to expend resources in a grievance/appeals process or before a federal/state/local board or commission to make its case? And even if the facts are clearly on your side the discipline might still be mitigated or even reversed! Alternatively, are there better options and if so, what are they and how do they work? The answer is “yes” there are options and when used properly they can promote and enhance the empowerment of all parties. Can such options serve to de-escalate grievance/appeals procedures? Again, the answer is “yes” and this webinar will introduce several alternative approaches designed to evolve your disciplinary process from punishment into empowerment and accountability.

Areas Covered in the Webinar:

• Documenting the Empowerment Agreement (with and without a Collective Bargaining Agreement)
• Rights of the parties.
• Avoiding setting a precedent or establishing a past practice
• Empowerment Process.
• Exemption from the grievance/appeals process.
• Final and binding nature of the understanding.
• Following up = Following through.
• Elements and application of:
• Limbo (or “Cryogenic Stasis”) Agreements
• Mirroring for discipline or bidding
• 90-60-45-30 Performance Improvement Program
• Conditional Discharge
• LCAs (Last Chance Agreements
• Pre-bid award conference for mandated seniority-based position.
• The Left-handed compliment

Who Will Benefit:

All level managers, supervisors, and executives. All Levels of both in-house and outside counsel. All levels of Union representation and officers (stewards, Business Representatives, Business Managers, Presidents, and all officers/ board members). All levels of Human Resources. Organizational or external investigators, Ombudspersons, and mediators (internal and external).

Bob Oberstein
Trainer, Self employed

Bob Oberstein is uniquely qualified with over 50 years of Labor Relations experience on both sides of the table in both the private and public sectors and is the recipient of the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service Director's Award for lifetime achievement in promoting positive Labor Management Relations. Bob also was the Director of the Labor Management Relations BA and certificate programs at Ottawa University, Phoenix where he also developed and taught Labor Relations and Human Resources related courses on both the graduate and undergraduate levels. Bob has several published articles to his credit in addition to his arbitration awards and has also been recognized in Who’s Who Among America’s Teachers. Additionally, Bob has served on several boards and commissions and panels where he participated in resolving or adjudicating all manner of workplace issues in a variety of industries. Moreover, Bob also holds a Master of Jurisprudence in Labor and Employment Law from Tulane University's School of Law. Bob has and continues to serve the labor management community as well as other groups as an Arbitrator, Mediator, Facilitator, Investigator, Trainer and Educator.

Follow us :