Job Loyalty

My workplace in in the process of creating a more formal 'handbook' with regard to workplace policy and habits.

When I first began working here there was a feeling of trust that was given to each employee. We were not told that we couldn't have our cellphones on, we were given full access to the internet, we were permitted to use office phones for personal use and we have MSN for inter-office communications and are permitted to have outside contacts on MSN. The employees were accountable for their day to day work and nobody has ever been known to abuse these privileges. Productivity was up and employee loyalty was through the roof.

Recently we have had a new manager come on board who is from a much more stringent corporate background. His thought is that we should eliminate a lot of the current privileges enjoyed by the staff. His reasoning is simply "Other companies don't do this.".

I am very worried that some of the new hardline policies that they may create will upset the staff and cause a high rate of turnover. I am one of those people who would prefer low turnover and high loyalty.

How would you react if your job decided suddenly that the privileges that your currently have will be modified or stripped entirely - and that this decision was NOT being made because of abuse?

Additionally - what kinds of things do you think really engender job loyalty?

ETA: I am also a manager. The new manager is technically the same 'level' as I am. I have been HERE longer - but he has been a personal friend of the owner longer. The Director of Operations feels the same way as I do - but the 'new guy' is very persuasive and a lot manipulative...

Message edited 2/8/2008 12:57:12 PM.

Re: Job Loyalty

i had a job like yours and someone came in (not even a manager type thing) and decided to chip away at all our "fun"...same stuff that noone abused like your office... i am no longer there.. so that should say it all...

Re: Job Loyalty

Bottom line, you want to be treated like an adult... Given the trust to not abuse the privilages you have is a huge moral booster, but if that's taken away, moral is going to drop and people are going to want to leave, IMO.

Are there other managers, who are familiar with the way the current policy works, in which to voice your concerns to?

Being stripped of privlages such as these lends itself to a feeling of lack of trust... no one wants that.

Re: Job Loyalty

If I was on par with the new manager coming in I would speak to him/her directly. If you're not able to do that... you should get a group consensus and take it to your direct superior so they can approach the new mgr. This will almost definitely upset people and cause turn-over. I would be really angry. People take a job because they like the work and environment and ppl. when that changes - the staff changes. Especially when its viewed as a punishment for having done nothnig wrong.

Re: Job Loyalty

i think it all comes down to how the company treats its employees. I used to work for a small company with the mentality of 'be good to your employees and they'll be good to you.' Sure enough, they were right and the turnover was very, very low. I was there for 4 years and in my industry - that's very rare.

That said though, my present company treats its employees really well but despite that, I want out. But that has to do with my pyscho boss, not the company itself.

Re: Job Loyalty

I think it's not right. As you said-people are doing their jobs and are productive. There is LOTS of research out there relating productivity to employee perks. Maybe you can google that and give it to YOUR boss to make him/her realize this is bad business

Re: Job Loyalty

I think it would really hurt my job loyalty.

Our internet is unblocked and in our handbook it even says we're allowed to use phone and internet for personal use to a reasonable extent if it does not interfere. We can't install AIM (because we can't install anything ) but many people use AIM express and no one has ever said anything.

If someone came in and blocked the internet I'd be ****** off.

I often wish we had more perks. I think coffee or a water cooler would be small things that would make a big difference.

Little things are huge. I work in a center with mostly people who work for the center. My co-worker and I are housed there, but we come from a different department. If we need something my boss orders it. And we have nice pens and brightly colored post-its etc. Sounds like such a small thing, right? Well the center can only get cheap pens and canary yellow post its. LAst week I ordered our snazzy post-its, and the center thought they came for free from staples (didn't realize they were mine( and started passing them out, and people were SOOOOOO happy to have colored post its it was almost sad. Moral of the story: little things go a long way!

Re: Job Loyalty

I agree that little things go a long way, and that you need to give your employees whatever perks you can to keep them on board and happy, especially if money is not part of the package to lure them into staying.

My staff have a very stressful job (they are service coordinators working with a high needs population). I let them "work from home and the field' for the most part, as long as they come into the office at least one or two days a week and are caught up on all of their work.

The last couple of places I worked at had this philosophy, and the employees were genuinely happy for the most part.

Of course, there are always going to be employees who can't handle this kind of freedom, and they usually end up hanging themselves anyways. But why punish everyone else?

As for the internet, I think it's good to limit the use. Not saying to block it all together (no where I work really has had it blocked altogether), however I find that I am personally way more productive at work if I am not going to multiple websites like this one during the day.

I can also speak from personal experience, I used to go on a message board made up of women that I know IRL. Checking it while at work was a huge mistake because I'd often get sucked into drama and then I couldn't focus on what I needed to be doing.

Re: Job Loyalty

I think it's balance and like you said giving people rope to ahng themselves with. I like having full internet because I read news articles on my lunch hour. I CHOOSE not to go on LIF because I know it will be too muhc of a distraction, just like I choose not to use AIM like some people do.

I think people who want to goof off will find ways regardless.

Re: Job Loyalty

I think as long as everyone is doing what they need to get done in the time frame given then it shouldnt be taken away. If there is no abuse of these perks then I definitely see people wanting to leave or even having a change in attitude at work bc of it