by pratt1 47 Replies latest jw friends
Personal advice since you are in management--do not let anyone know you used to be a JW. If the one who got disfellowshipped was ever reinstated, or he became angry at the active JW, he may spill the beans.Protect yourself, people can't keep secrets.
This is right on the money. If it is found out you are an XJW then any action taken against the practicing JW would be considered biased, no matter how right you are for taking action.
On of my best workers is a Dub doing a slow but progressive fade. He has informed me that another co-worker has personal issues (that he did not mention) with him and has been rude and unresponsive to him on many occassions concerning business issues.
My secretary who knows all the gossip in the company gave me the real story. The worker that is being rude is a dub, who has spoken to the elders about the unchristian conduct of the other worker. She decided to Mark him or shun him until the elders deal with his bad conduct.
This has caused considerable strife within the department and people are unsure of how to react around these 2 employees.
Incidently, neither know that I was once a dub and has been faded for over 10 years. Also neither has made an attempt to tell me the whole story.
My problem is that the work of the fading dub is suffering and he has dropped the ball on a few occassions where it appears that he should have consulted with the over righteous dub for imput.
I am pretty steamed that this sh@t is being brought into the work place, but I know I must reolve it professionally and quickly.
These things tend to get out of hand very quickly if they are not dealt with; you should meet with them seperately and possibly on an informal basis and identify the real issues at stake; you need to mention to both of them that their external views of each other should be left outside the office doors and both should act professionally. Ignoring someone, being unresponsive, keeping them out of the loop can be tantamount to harassment dependent upon the circumstances; if you have a policy on these sorts of things then you should reiterate its contents and warn whichever party that is at fault (or even both) that if they fail to deal with each other professionally in work then disciplinary action could well be taken.
If you have a Human Resources department it might be an idea to involve them in the discussions because no doubt they will be more aware of the labour laws applicable to your place of work (as opposed to myself in the UK).
Hope it resolves itself.
Nothing steams me more than gossip like this.
I'm sure the dub is an elder's wife or something...and sure enough found out what his sin was. My experience with the borg was that there was never any such thing as Private Reproof as eveyone knew your issue. It disgusted me.
They engage this legalistic mantra that is overwhelming, yet will not and do not follow it themselves. And when you point this out they simply dismiss you as lacking in faith of Jehovah. "Whole Congo found out that you met with the elders? Well, I guess you shouldn't have sinned then", would be the reply I got. Why am I here in the 1st place? Shouldn't that brother that had a problem approach me first? Entreat me to seek the elders out and if I didn't do so on my own then he could approach you? "Well in theory yes, but ...."
They don't have to follow the rules you do, and we will interpret those rules as we see fit.
I seriously would not mention religion at all. It is not any of your business as a supervisor. Just put your (valid) biases aside and address the inappropriate behavior as it is, outside of religious issues. If the issue is the employee is not responding to work-related issues, then that's what you deal with. She may very well try to defend herself by bringing up her religious beliefs, but just interrrupt the religion talk and focus on the fact that she is failing to meet objective, pre-established performance standards and reiterate what she needs to do to correct this performance issue.
In the meantime, consider writing a policy against gossiping in the workplace. Whether it's done in the work space/on company time or not, it is still destructive and unprofessional.
While that sounds gratifying it would also constitute workplace harassment.
TY adelmaal, that's exactly what I was thinking. Professional boundaries!
As far as I remember, witnesses who work with a disfellowshipped individual are supposed to do their best to maintain a professional relationship with the DF'ed individual. As a matter of fact, I believe that instruction is even found in the "organized to accomplish our ministry" book (the rule book!) I have to check that out when I get home but if I find it I will let you know.
Her causing a rift in a professional enviroment is really an excellent demonstration of her "spiritual immaturity"
Although I feel sorry for the fader, I now have something I can openly address. Since she made these comments openly I will formally reprimand the dub and warn her that any other comments about his personal life and her religious convictions and its effect on her work product will not be tolorated.Refusal to comply will result in further disciplanary actions.
The workplace is not the place for people to trample other peoples' constitutional rights or persecute them for any reason. She's lucky to get off with a reprimand. If she was working here she would have been escorted out of the building within an hour of opening her mouth.
Walter
We all know how some JW's will lie through their teeth to protect themselves, especially in the workplace. They will build themselves up as the perfect JW Christian who never lies, cheats, steals, etc. So when the time comes and it is their head on the chopping block, they will say one thing, but never give the whole truth - i.e. Theocratic Warfare. It always comes down to protecting their image, and the organization's, regarding how other people perceive them.
The best way to counteract this warfare is to record any and all conversations with the JW. Just one admission of her saying that she is to shun df'd ones or blabbing away to her workmates about the reason for the df'ing is religious harassment. Check your breakroom or wherever - there should be a placard on the wall showing your state's laws on workplace harassment. Religion is right up there with Race and Color.
Personally, I would confront the JW and ask her why she feels it is imperative to let her coworkers know about the personal religious disciplinary actions that were taken against the fader. Was there a reason for doing so? With her stating that she will now shun this person in the workplace due to a religious stance is grounds for dismissal. Every employee in the USA knows about these laws. If you discriminate or openly acknowledge your religious bias towards other coworkers, you have no right to work there. Most companies and states are based on a right-to-work status. This means that you may leave your employment at any time for any reason and that the company may let you go at any time for any reason. Of course in practice, this is almost unheard of in many larger corporations. It gets even stickier when the employee mentions the 'race' card. HR departments want management to straighten things out to avoid any potential lawsuits.
Businesses are not Theocracies. CEO's are not Gods. If the JW was to be fired and she sued, even WT Legal wouldn't stand by her in this case. In fact, I wouldn't be surprised if she were to be publically reproved if this came out.
Thanks for everyone's comments and advice.
I spoke with the newly Df'ed worker and he literally brokedown in sobs about how terrible his life ha become and the effect he realizes it is having on his work product. Interetingly enough, the only instances were from my viewpoint where he ha not preformed well is when his dutie involved the dub. Otherwise I have no complaints. I explained this to him and tried to boost his ego by relating various iexamples in the recent months where he exceed expectations in hi job performance and I have always considered him as a member of my "A" team, with a potential to go on to bigger and better jobs within the company.
When he brought up his grievances with the Dub he was adamant that I do not approach the dub and that he would handle the situtation better in the future. Unfortunately, I had to tell him that I had a obligation to not only him but my superior to address the problem because of dicusion that were made in the open to other employees and that I need to defuse this problem immediately.
After talking with him, I spoke with the dub. She walked into my office with such attitude and defiance, I actually think that she thinks that she is being perscuted. Related the issues to her and he did not deny anything that I was told. She also stated that she wanted a transfer from her unit to another unit where she would not have any interaction with the Df guy. Since there are not any other openings with my division, I could not accommodate her request. By the way I had poke to the head of HR and was advied to immediately place her on corrective action and her work will be monitored for the next 3 months. Any reaction similar to the last one, could reult in her dismissal. I related all of this to her and explained to her that if for any reason she felt that she could not carry out her job duties as expected by management, she should either post for a job outside of my area, or find employment with another company.
Of course he walked out of my office in a huff and no doubt went straight the HR.
I'll keep you guys updated.
Note: The newly DF'ed guy really felt bad for him. I remember vividly feeling exactly the way that he does right now. Don't quite what to do
The newly DF'ed guy really felt bad for him
Isn't it sad how when we are initially DF'd some of us feel so bad that we don't feel we deserve to be treated with respect. We actually feel bad for the guy who is treating us with outright disrespect. It's amazing how spiritual abuse works!
It sounds to me like you handled the situation well and I am not surprised that the harasser felt no shame whatsoever.
