Instruction
Helen Rose at Barr-Nunn Bikes is in her office on a Friday afternoon when one of the bike assembly line workers, Ernie, comes into her office. Ernie is upset and he wants Helen to take care of a situation for him. On the assembly line, two workers are assigned to each station. Each station has one complete set of tools and equipment that are required to carry out the work for that part of the assembly line. Ernie is complaining that his station-mate, Bert, is constantly misplacing tools and not keeping the station clean. Ernie says he has asked Bert to keep the station neat, but nothing changes. Helen asks Ernie if he has spoken to an area supervisor about this. Ernie says he has, but he does nothing to resolve this issue. The area supervisor, Steve, is also Bert’s sixth cousin, once removed. Ernie feels like his complaint is being ignored.
Respond to the following questions:
At this point, could Helen intervene in this situation? Explain if she has too much information to remain neutral.Assuming she is still neutral, she decides to talk to Steve and get his take on the situation. Steve tells her that Ernie and Bert never have gotten along. He can’t switch them with any other line worker right now, as they are really the only ones who can fully complete all the tasks required in that station. Should Helen now interview Bert or should she just have Ernie and Bert come to a mediation session? Is there a point where Helen should look for outside help?