something new

[white eagle]

to me.I started a new job as a maintenance supervisor at a gaming establishment.
I have come to find out that the staff there is a bunch of lying,back stabbing lazy sort,and do not know how to deal with them....:coffee: I have tried to gain some authority but get no support from fellow supervisors [smilie=s: really at a loss :violin:

[Lee]

Good luck. Without support from other Sups' and the higher up management, your best bet is to take the money and run.

How would I know? I'm there.

[tubb_ooh_lard]

how much authority do you have ?
sending a few bums to the unemployment line might help improve the attitudes a bit

[starmac]

Pretty much ever time I took over a new crew I had to fire some of them, and sometimes all of them, face it if everything was going smooth, they wouldn't have been looking for a super.

[runfiverun]

just finding the one dude and then giving him a good tongue lashing in view and kinda in earshot of the others usually sets a tone of who is in charge.
you have to pick a spot that's private enough to be comfortable yet close enough for the others to see that you are serious and have the balls to handle them.
this needs to be out of the customers view, your words need to be chosen carefully.

remember you are the new guy.
you are also the boss, and most of the time the boss does not get results without respect and a slight attitude.
your immediate supervisor needs to know before hand that you will be addresing some issues that need to be fixed,you should have thier support.
they hired you to do a job do it.

yeah it sucks, but it is your responsibility to produce results,and to provide them the tools necessary to perform thier job, it is a team effort...
once the line is set be yourself.
give them information and advice, be fair, be honest, and be consistent.
this worked for me when i was running a crew of 22 guy's in the oil field,and when i was a foreman pipe fitter with deadlines to meet.

[Frank46]

I was a operations supervisor and maintence supervisor the last three years at an oil storage plant. Had more problems with the operations people that the maintence people. Caught one guy sleeping while doing a fuel transfer and the other guy was not where he was supposed to be. Had to suspend both that day and meet with the higher up next morning. Since our company had a zero tolerance drug and alcohol policy both of them had to do drug tests. Both came up dirty and spent 45 days at a rehab facility. Well that didn't exactly endear me with these guys with whom I worked with for 25 years. Next guy made comments about me being on drugs. Both of us took the test. I'm clean and he gets to go to rehab. Now they sit up and figure which one was next. We were subject to random drug tests by the dept of transportation since we ran a bunch of oil lines. Eventually they learned that I would not tolerate their bs and figured it was better to do what they were supposed to do. Besides I did the quarterly reviews. If they did not perform as expected they did not get their quarterly raises. All that was at least 16 years back. I'm RETIRED. Frank

[gabe123]

As an Operations Manager for a public transportation company with 100 drivers, I can give you some helpful steps to undertake. I came into a situation where the previous Manager was lazy, did not want conflict, and was lying to the absentee owner about the conditions at the facility. To say that the inmates were running the asylum would be putting it mildly.

If you have not already, you need to meet with your immediate supervisor to discuss the issues you have observed. Go prepared, have a list of items to be discussed, including the steps needed to remedy the problems. Ask for their input and inform them that you have educated yourself as to the following steps I included. Be sure to meet with your supervisor when it is convenient for them, even if it means coming in on your day off.


#1 Find and read all of the job descriptions for the positions you supervise. Know their job responsibilities better than they do.

#2 Find and read all of the written policies the company has for disciplinary actions.

#3 If the positions are unionized, get a copy of the contract and read it as many times as you need to so that you can go toe to toe with the union representative in a non-confrontational manner.

#4 Document, document, document then document some more. A digital voice recorder and camera are essential.

#5 Keep your cool. You need to present a calm, professional demeanor. The last thing you want to do is get in a shouting match with anyone you supervise.

#6 When you discipline someone, always have a witness. Another supervisor at your level should be present. But remember, YOU are in control of the meeting, they are just there to ensure no one makes a false claim against you. Have a list of your talking points written down and be specific about the infractions, stay on topic. Use a professional looking "write up sheet" and have it filled out. The employee should sign it and receive a copy immediately after the discussion before they leave the office. You do not want to fill out a disciplinary form while the employee is sitting there stewing.

#7 Accept the fact that you will never be friends with anyone that you supervise. They are co-workers, they are not signing your check.

#8 Walk the Walk! It will do no good if you are enforcing company policy in regards to the employees you supervise if you are not fulfilling all of your job duties. You can bet your bottom dollar that your subordinates will have you under a microscope just waiting for you to slip up once you begin to exert discipline.

#9 Don't talk about the disciplinary proceeding with anyone other than your supervisor. When the meeting is over, it is over. Do not try to justify your actions to your equal level counterparts. If they have a problem, direct them to your supervisor. Your supervisor should already be aware of what you should be doing since you already met with them.

#10 Don't bring work home with you. Hard to do sometimes but you have to turn it off.

If you are not willing to put in the effort, then you have a couple of choices. Go along with the flow and put in your time to collect a paycheck or resign.

gabe

[white eagle]

thanks fellas

[44man]

I worked for UAL for 42 years. They spent a bundle training but once let loose to work, supervisors would do all they could to catch people to fire. It was a fine line to walk. Advance went to the supervisors that damaged good workers the most and it was a bunch of bad sorts that even got rid of their own if he got along with workers and had more production. We really did work harder for some but they would be soon gone.
There are bad workers that must go but at UAL, if you stood up for a good worker that made a little mistake, YOUR job would soon be gone.
One thing that was common at UAL was to take the worst worker and make him a supervisor, he would turn 180* and be hell to work for.
We had a good lead on our gates and we worked for him very hard. Then he became a supervisor and turned on us. He never got another flight out on time! :drinks:
Take care of the best, get rid of leeches and never think you are above those that make the money for the company.
I was smart, they asked me to be a boss many times but I said no, I could not treat my people like they wanted. Being a boss and getting along with your workers was a short run to a lay off.
I hate unions but UAL NEEDED one. You were only a number in some dark hole.

[BoolitSchuuter]

+1 to everything Gabe wrote.
I've been Maintenance and production supervising at different places for 35 years. You can be friendly, but you can't be their friend. You are the Alpha dog and they are gonna need to understand that pronto. See Gabe, verse #7
There will be things you will want to change, go slow! If you see something being done in an inefficient manner, ask why. If the answer is "because that's the way we've always done it", change it.
You are gonna have one or more that will resist your authority, it's the nature of humans to test boundaries. Firmly show where those boundaries are. Guaranteed you're gonna have at least one that will keep trying to push your buttons. This person you will have to treat like a Missouri mule. Hit'em 'tween the eyes with a club to get their attention, then speak softly. That personality type I give one chance, then I start getting my ducks in a row if they don't come around. Understanding they could lose their job for being argumentative, recalcitrant and insubordinate can be a great attitude modifier.
Good luck with the new job!!!!!!!!!!!!!![smilie=s:

[blackthorn]

Gabe and 44man gave good advice! Here are a couple more suggestions: Don't ask/tell someone to do something you can't do yourself (in the same way and for the same length of time) as you expect him/her to do it. Respect is earned, it does not come with the job title! Come down hard on the individual slacker, not on the whole crew! Nothing will tick off your people more (or lose thier respect quicker) than being lumped in with one or two bad eggs. Believe this or not (I don't care) a Union is good for both sides. If you are in a Union shop the rules are there in writing for both sides and (as stated above) a problem child can be dealt with by good documentation. My personell opinion is that ALL supervisers (or wanna-be's) should have to run a volenteer organization for a month where there are at least 20 volenteers to direct and the operation depends on keeping the volenteers willing to show up and work.

[Echo]

+1 for most of the above. As a Management Consultant (worked from Prudhoe Bay to Ft. Lauderdale, Boston to San Diego, & 3 western provinces of Canada), my only additional comment is to ensure your immediate supervisor is aware - and ask him, 'Are we running a business, or a Social Service Agency?'. In other words, are we doing a job, or are we simply keeping some people on the payroll. If he can't give the right answer, the question may have to be referred up the chain of command.

[MT Gianni]

Three rules to remember are to be Firm, Fair and Friendly. Friendly in this situation means being curteous, not having everyone over for a BBQ.

[captaint]

After being a supv. for 16 years, it's exactly (for me anyway) like r5r said. It's like I wrote those words. Well done r5r. enjoy Mike

[725]

Seems like all good advice, but Mt Gianni nailed it. I spent most of my time on the job as a Sergeant and all of my time on the street. Always wanted to be just a line supervisor. Never took the Lt's test. Be very firm (know all the rules inside and out), conspicuously fair, never back down unless you are wrong (and then and only then freely admit it), and start each day with a smile - even when you don't want to. I told all my guys when it's time to work, we work, when there is room to play, we get a pizza. I had to build several squads over the years, and it always took awhile to weed out the trash. In the end, I was lucky. People never wanted to leave my squads even though I drove them to do exceptional work.

[white eagle]

solid advice fellers
had a talk with my manager today and gave him the heads up on
where I am coming from and how I operate :killingpc

[41 mag fan]

Try supervising 76 women.
Not a walk thru the park. 50 of them were under the age of 50, so every week of the month was pure fire.
Of those 50 about 8 of them were actually there for the paycheck and wanted to work. The other 42 their husbands had good jobs or were farmers. So they were there just for the 401K and insurance.
The other 26 were going thru various stages of menopause
That was just about as horrible.
Regardless, the gossip going around was quite interesting.
I did figure out one thing though, when it came to productivity, the women over 40 were slower than the ones we had who were 18-40 yrs old.
But when it came to reliability, the ones over 40 were more reliable than the 18-40 yr olds.
The ones over 40 regardless of the jobs I put them on, would show up to work daily, and very seldom take off during the shift.
They might not get the % of production required daily, but they showed up to work.