I have to admit that some of our Web site readers are pretty sharp…and pretty funny. From time to time.
Like last week when we broke the story about the drug raid at Goodyear’s Fayetteville, N.C., plant, where 14 plant employees were arrested on felony drug possession/distribution charges.
Some of the comments were, well, side-splitting:
“They were only trying to improve their rolling paper resistance.”
“Dear Goodyear: Please send me fifty (50) 235/75/15 Wrangler GSAs, a kilo of coke, and a couple of pounds of reefer.”
There was also a lengthy rant about the complicity of the union and plant management and what have you, which I had to remove because it got out of hand.
That one wasn’t at all funny. But, it did point to a couple of fundamental flaws in where employers of all types and sizes – not just giant tire companies – fail when it comes to illegal activity on-site and substance abuse issues.
The most important is: Never assume there isn’t a problem. A cavalier “That can’t happen here” mentality is an open invitation to these type of problems.
You cannot monitor employees 24/7/365 – and even during work hours, you have to walk a very, very fine line. But how many warnings and complaints and phone calls and e-mails did it take from plant employees before Goodyear management got involved? To read various news reports, apparently quite a few.
If you suspect a problem, or other employees have reported a potential problem to you, act. Immediately. Talk to the employee, share your concern (as the case may be) about their personal health or your policy regarding illegal activities at your business. You don’t have to accuse them of anything. A friendly reminder or an offer to help may be all it takes. Maybe they just need someone to listen to them. Maybe they just need someone to help straighten them out.
Speaking of greenery, Bridgestone Americas dropped some this week when it paid to have two 60-year-old trees relocated to help make room for its new technical center in Akron.
Large tree moving specialists were called in from Houston to dig out, secure and move the 70-foot-tall, 100-ton trees. It took two days – not including nearly two weeks of prep work by a local tree company – but the pair were safely relocated to another part of the property, away from the new construction work.
And what kind of trees were these?
Black gum, of course!
