Important note: Please include your name, store name, and store location (city, state) in your response.

Bill Jurgensen couldn’t even imagine working anywhere else. He started at Ray Argill’s downtown store when he was just a 16-year-old high school student. He was the manager by the time Ray moved the store to a suburban office building 10 years later, and continued to assume more and more responsibility as the store’s reputation, volume and market share grew and Ray’s energy waned.

Several years after the move, Bill hired Eileen Wardlaw, who would eventually assume management responsibilities as Bill continued to take over more of the company’s operational responsibilities from Ray.


Eight years ago, after Bill had invested just short of 30 years in the company, Ray offered him the opportunity to buy into Argill’s, as an equal partner with his nephew Thomas, who had been serving for the past 15 years as the store’s diamond buyer and appraiser. They had always worked well together, and had always gotten along, even though everyone agreed that Bill was the easy going, “half-full” type while Thomas was the more skeptical, “half-empty” person.

They divided business responsibilities along clearly defined lines. Thomas handled the merchandising — buying and display — and Bill handled all things operational — including staffing and general management. In reality, the only real point of contention between the two was Eileen. Bill appreciated her laidback style and the ease with which she related to the rest of their six-person sales team and to their customers. He valued her loyalty and was willing to overlook her occasional “family crisis,” inattention to detail and discomfort with conflict.

Thomas always saw Eileen as a bit lazy and often complained about what he saw as her inflexibility, and her inability to maintain a level of discipline with the staff. Eileen simply learned to look at Thomas’ frequent criticism as part of “his way,” and to rely on Bill for support. After nearly 20 years with the company, she felt comfortable with her job. She was paid well, and the store’s easy hours (closed on Sunday and Monday, and open past 6 PM only on Thursday) gave her the time she needed to keep a positive balance between work and home.

The past two years have been tough on everyone at Argill’s. With the economy in their Northeastern city declining steadily, Bill and Thomas could do little but watch and trim expenses as their revenues dipped month after month. Bill tried to keep a positive attitude with his team, but when the continued slowing of business necessitated staff cuts, he and Thomas both felt the sting.

By March of this year, their sales staff was down to three plus Eileen, and with things beginning to look up a bit for the local economy, Bill made it clear that their focus was exclusively on client outreach and on maximizing every opportunity presented to them.


All things considered, Bill was beginning to believe they had weathered the storm as he drove to his doctor’s office that Thursday morning in mid-April for his annual physical. His family was healthy, business was picking up, and Thomas was off enjoying a long overdue vacation.

Overall, he was feeling pretty good for a 54-year-old guy. That is, until his doctor put him through a routine stress test that proved to be anything but routine. Several additional tests confirmed the doctor’s suspicions: Bill had serious obstructions in several major coronary arteries and needed to be admitted to the hospital immediately for further evaluation.

Bill’s first call was to his wife, and his second was to Eileen, who was scheduled to leave at 3p.m since it was Bill’s turn to cover the evening shift. He explained the situation and said that he needed her to stay through closing, since it appeared he’d be in the hospital at least overnight. She told him she had a commitment that evening she wasn’t comfortable breaking, but that she would see about getting the store’s office manager (and only other key holder) to close. The conversation ended there, as Bill was whisked off to face yet another procedure.

Late the next day, Bill called the store from his hospital bed to report that he was doing well, and to see how things were going. He spoke with the office manager, who quickly apologized for her inability to help out with closing the night before. Confused, Bill asked if Eileen was able to rearrange her plans. He was surprised to learn that Eileen simply chose to close the store at 5p.m. — a full 3 hours early — rather than to cancel her plans to attend her son’s college baseball game.

Bill was angry and disappointed. Beside the fact that the decision to close the store early was well beyond Eileen’s scope of authority, he felt betrayed by her apparent lack of concern for — and loyalty to — Argill’s. He found himself thinking that maybe Thomas had been right about Eileen all along — and wondering what other business decisions she’d been making without his knowledge or consent.

Despite his doctor’s firm instruction to avoid stressful situations, he couldn’t help but think about how he would confront her when he returned to the store.
 

THE QUESTIONS: How much does a business owner really have a right to expect from an employee with regard to flexibility and time? Was Eileen out of line in her decision to close early when both she and the other key holder had family commitments that evening? Should Thomas confront Eileen or just leave it alone?

Comments (49)

The case of broken heart
written by chhaya Kapadia, August 13, 2009

Eileen did not have an authority to close the store early, she crossed her boundry and therefore it shold not be acceptable to Bill.

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CASE OF BROKEN HEART
written by Hiten Mehta, August 13, 2009

Business owner has rights only if they are treating their employee as a family member in terms of payment and if they are always positive to the employees requests of early leave or holidays and if they never cut salary for half days or leaves.

The employee on the other hand should wait and respect boss's request, especially at such times. There are plenty of times for sports or other social gathering.

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Shared responsibilty with my wife
written by Uncle Marty, August 13, 2009

Bill and Thomas and all family members should be taking emulsified Norweigen Cod Liver Oil daily. 2-4 tablespoons each day. For more info write me.
Then all members will not have any blockage in their arteries and this situation would not have developed.
Eileen felt her first responsibility was to her family.
The manager (other key holder too) was wrong in not calling a member of the family to assist in closing at a later time.
The responsibility was the manager to make other arrangements.
Employees who are not paid as managers should not be expected to act as managers. Leave Eileen alone. Talk firmly to your office manager and the decision to close earlier. The office manager should have asked another salesperson to cover.
Managers are paid to make decisions not sales people.
Uncle Marty
Kron Jewelers, Lebanon GA. 30146

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Goodby Eileen
written by Peter Tims, August 13, 2009

Eileen's actions were inappropriate for a manager. She should be demoted or dismissed. She is not the person needed for a management position.

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Family First
written by Steve Gerencser, August 13, 2009

Eileen is a salesperson, not an owner or manager. Her first responsibility is to her family, her second is to her job. The failure of the other 'owner' to attend to the store is not her fault or responsibility.

For the record, I have quit jobs that demanded I put my family second. There are always more jobs but rarely more time for family.

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...
written by a guest, August 13, 2009

it appeared to me that Eileen is at least an assistant manger even though it does not state so, the narritive does state that that was the intention of Bill in hiring and training her, as well as the other owner's concerns with her dealings with the other staff as loose. Not to mention she is a keyholder, so there is undoubtly some management requirment there. Circumstnces as they were she is the key holder on the sales floor and the other office manager has no responcibility for the sales floor, that was placed willingly on Eileen as the Keyholder! She did not show her support for the store or the faith and support that Bill had given her as his protege. There needs to be some serious consiquences for her inaction, and lack of loyalty to both store and Bill! Bill was not asking her to place the store above her family, just to cover him due to his illness for one night, not to place family second forever!!!! :s

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President
written by r.w.hurst, August 13, 2009

Eileen established that her priorities, particularly in a crisis, did not include the business. In brief, she has proven herself unwilling to take ownership of the job and trust she has been empowered with. The following steps should be taken.
First, it is likely that she was made a key-holder on the basis of seniority; but she has now proven that she takes that trust too lightly. Explain your dissatisfaction with her decision to close and strip her of the keys. There should be another staff member who will take the job of key holder's trust/obligation coefficient seriously, particularly after this incident. If she is not stripped of the keys, the remaining staff members will be less inclined to take their employment seriously.

Second, when she is reviewed, she must be reviewed dispassionately. Prior service, alone, does not make her a good employee. If she has documentable failings, she should be asked to remedy them within a reasonable, but short, time span.

Third, if she can not accept the changes in her status and/or does not remedy legitimate failings, she should be terminated. If she is not, it will indicate to the rest of the staff that the owners do not have the will needed to run the store.

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President
written by O. W. Koke, August 13, 2009

:X Eileen's boss, and longtime ombudsman, is in the hospital with a very serious potentially life threatening condition. His request of her was both reasonable and in the best interest of the business. We all make choices in the course of our daily lives. While she may defend this choice by playing the "family" card it was wholly without regard to potential consequences; i.e. the loss of confidence from staff and owners as well as potential grounds for termination.

Management must respond respectfully yet firmly. At the very least she should be demoted and removed from the responsible position she currently holds.

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...
written by ROXY, August 13, 2009

Wow! I've been in the business over 30 years, missed many a ball game, still have a family, grandchildren, a great husband and a wonderful job. Sometimes work needs to come first unless there is a family crises...don't think baseball is a crises. No matter what her title, she is a key holder and obviously trusted by her employer to do the right thing.

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Vice President
written by Monica Lilak, August 13, 2009

All of the people who think Eileen was wrong and should be disciplined must have some type of telepathy to read her mind. Who are we to judge the importance (personal or otherwise) of her previous commitment and deem it less important than the NEWLY requested charge from the business. Would she have been excused if she had to attend the funeral of her mother or had non-refundable flights to a family vacation? Let's not underestimate this woman's conviction as shown in the love of her family and loyalty to her business for 20 years.

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...
written by a guest, August 13, 2009

Bill needs to lighten up a little. 20 years with company shouldn't just vanish over 3 hours to attend her son's basketball game.

Drop it Bill.. It ain't a big deal..

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owner
written by Daniel Spirer, August 13, 2009

First of all a lot of you need to review your basic reading skills. It VERY clearly states in the second paragraph that Eileen was promoted to manager. As a manager she does have a responsibility to run the store according to the guidelines set up by the owners. Her son's ball game should have come second. It seems to me that someone who has worked for 20 years in a small shop would feel that her workplace is part of her family as well and given the medical crisis her "store family" was in, she should have stepped up to the plate and covered the store. I'm not clear she should have been fired for this, but I would have made sure that either she was demoted back to sales staff, or I would have made sure that her next written review (they are doing these in the company, aren't they?) clearly included the incident, put her on notice that any future similar behavior would result in her being fired, and made sure that she signed the review and clearly understood the ramifications of her actions.

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Owner:G.J.Enterprise - Victoria, Texas
written by Glyn Jolly, August 13, 2009

It would have been good if Bill had ask Eileen if she would be willing to take the responsibility of closing the store for him as he would be unable to do so at that time. If she would have come right out and told Bill of her plans that had been made in advance, he might have understood the situation and let her close early. She could have shown a little compassion when giving the reason for not being able to stay and close. Bill could have also realized that there are times when something comes up that are beyond the persons control to change and given her the benefit of the doubt.

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PRESIDENT
written by ED, August 13, 2009

Disappointment in Eileen; Closing the store 3 hours early is both disrepecful to the owner but also the customers that where unable to be serviced. Eileen should be talked to written up and realize that key holding is a big responsibility and if she is unwilling to take the responsibility then she should be relieved of her duties. As they say s--- happens but by closing the store she affected every person in the store. Family is important but these circumstances seemed to be special. When in comes to the bottom line an employee is just that. Big question is how much does she sell . It always comes down to investment vs an expense.

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Vice President
written by Jo Goralski, August 13, 2009

Let's review. The customers like her; the employees like her; the boss likes her. She has worked loyally for 20 years. She is trusted enough to be a key holder, and yet one decision would have her demoted or fired? It is difficult at best to find a good employee, let alone a great one with company longevity. Bill should have made other arrangements for the tests if keeping the store open was such a priority. He obviously did not develop the blockages overnight, so one day delay to reschedule staff to make sure that his responsibility as the present owner was met, might have had better results. Here in the real world (Wisconsin) not only would our customers completely understand the shortened store hours, they would be asking how they could help.

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President
written by John Turrentine, August 13, 2009

Good morning Eileen can you come into my office. Thank you, now please go clean out your desk.

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owner
written by Connie Kasper, August 13, 2009

At the very least, Bill MUST confront Eileen. If she expects to be able to be allowed to deal with her "family crisis" then she must be willing to help out when others need her. A baseball game cannot take priority over your job, especially during these tough times. Eileen needs to reassess her priorities and give a little to get a little. If she is not willing to do her job, someone else will be happy to take her place

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president
written by Kris Frederickson, August 13, 2009

Good golly Miss Molly, let's put things into perspective. Good, tenured management staffer has a prior committment and cannot make a last minute schedule change verses closing the store a few hours early. Close the store. Who has the right to judge whether this person's excuse meets their criteria? She was not scheduled to be there that night. She should not be held deficient for this reason. However, I do think she should have gotten back to him to let him know the store would be closed instead. Communication was lacking but no other fouls were committed.

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...
written by a guest, August 13, 2009

It seems like Eileen has been a lackadaisical employee, with just enough sales talent to skim by for the length of her career. She is also a bone of contention between the owners, which certainly can't be fun for them. Now she has shown that she doesn't respect the owners, which may be because she has been able to play them against each other and slide for so long.

Bill made it clear that he wanted the store to stay open, regardless of which keyholder was there. When it became clear that neither of them were available, she should have called Bill to discuss the situation. Simply deciding to override the decision of the owner was very disrespectful.

However, I don't feel that you can discipline her for not staying unless you also discipline the other keyholder. What was her reasoning for not coming in for a scant three hours?

To all of the people talking about family: The employee/employer relationship is a two-way street. How would Eileen feel if she had a family emergency and Bill insisted that she come in because he had a game to attend?

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VP
written by Anonymous, August 13, 2009

Eileen should be by all means talked to about closeing the store with out premission. But In my feeling there is more to life that work, in the skeem of things is colsing the store 3 hours early going to change anyones way of life, I think NOT. And speeking for my self I have closed the store early to see my kids high school and middle school baseball games, and track.

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...
written by a guest, August 13, 2009

I worked for years in a store with all of the responsibilities (including responding to the owner's home alarm when they were on vacation) of a manager but never the title or authority over the other sales staff.....I asked to attend a funeral; the answer was no; and a lifetime achievement luncheon for my husband...again No....when my son was going to play his one and only game as starting quarterback in college and I asked to leave early to attend.....i was again given the "No".....I have regretteed not attending that game with all my heart.....and I now own my own business....and my customers understand when I close early and apprecaite when I stay late.....I would have a staff meeting to clear the air....in light of Bill's situation, Eileen shouldn't have burdened him with a call about closing....and he should be understanding of family as a priority especially in light of his hear condition......at the end of one's life no one wishes for more time to work!

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...
written by a guest, August 13, 2009

Get her out!

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Owner
written by Laura Pool, August 13, 2009

Policy should have been laid out long ago for this situation. The policy in my store is Family first. A note on the door and on the answering machine will be understood by any customer. Any previously scheduled customer appointments should be rescheduled prior to closing. After 20 years with the store, obviously, Eileen felt comfortable enough in her seudo manager position, to close the store when the Office manager wasn't available. Why aren't we including the office manager in this raking over the coals? Sometimes you just have to close early. Bill, get over it! Thomas, make written store policy if you can't be flexible.

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owner
written by jill de witte, August 13, 2009

As a senior employee and manager Eileen should never have considered closing the store early. While family obligations are important, the store owner had a medical emergency and this should take precedence. Her number one concern should be the store. Bill should talk directly with Eileen, maybe not a firing offense, but absoloutly deserves a sit down conversation. Are the lines of communication open enough ?

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Salesperson
written by bob114, August 13, 2009

As a loyal employee at Diedrich Mathia Jewelers, I find Eileen's actions unthinkable. Clearly, during this crisis, her loyalty to Argill's should come first. They have been very understanding during her "crisis, inattentiveness towards detail and uncomfort toward conflict" and by her actions during this difficult time does not appreciate their prior actions. Unless this was a championship game where her son was to be a "star athlete", sporting events do not come before work.

When things are better for Bill, both he and Thomas should have a sit down meeting with Eileen and discuss responsibility, duty and boundries. They may find out that Eileen is not as loyal as they think she is.

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Sales Floor Manager
written by Deborah Vattelana, August 13, 2009

Give me a break. You have a store employee who has worked for you for 20 years, who was not scheduled to stay to close and had made other plans and you want to reprimand her because she didn't change her plans because Bill will have to be off (unexpectedly) for tests. A note on the door that there was a illness that required closing the store early should suffice for ANY customer who might be coming along. If there were appointments already made for the evening they should have been called and rescheduled. I would not recommend that Bill hold off on his tests, one day could make the difference between life and death for him, and it shows, to me, that Eileen showed initive to make a management level decision (she had been given lots of management responsibilities over the years) and not bother her boss while he was in the hospital. Life is too short and people are too precious to just blow them off for business. If Eileen's son had been killed in a car accident on the way home from his ball game I doubt the fact that she put the store first would have given her any comfort.

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people first
written by Kristy Goodrich, August 13, 2009

It's just bad luck that Thomas was off on vacation on the same day that Bill had a medical emergency and his managers had prior commitments. If I suddenly needed a change of schedule from my keyholder and she couldn't accomodate it I would understand. I'd ask her to please put a note on the door explaining that due to a medical emergency we regrettably have to close early and will reopen on schedule the following morning and we apologize for any inconvenience. C'mon, we're jewelers... we sell love and romance and family's special moments. We're in the relationship business. Any customer would read that note on the door and understand, even be concerned... if not then we aren't building very good relationships are we?

Kristy Goodrich
JK Jewelers
St. George, UT

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Co-Owner
written by Susan L. Villarreal, August 13, 2009

I think Thomas should have come in for the 3 hours since it is his business and Eileen had a prior engagement. Life is too short to make such a big deal out of this. You people that want to rake her over the coals are not the kind of people I would want to work with.Get over it!

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...
written by grahamjewelry, August 13, 2009

I posted this before, but it posted as Anonymous even though I was logged in. Hmm...

It seems like Eileen has been a lackadaisical employee, with just enough sales talent to skim by for the length of her career. She is also a bone of contention between the owners, which certainly can't be fun for them. Now she has shown that she doesn't respect the owners, which may be because she has been able to play them against each other and slide for so long.

Bill made it clear that he wanted the store to stay open, regardless of which keyholder was there. When it became clear that neither of them were available, she should have called Bill to discuss the situation. Simply deciding to override the decision of the owner was very disrespectful.

However, I don't feel that you can discipline her for not staying unless you also discipline the other keyholder. What was her reasoning
for not coming in for a scant three hours?

To all of the people talking about family: The employee/employer relationship is a two-way street. How would Eileen feel if she had a family emergency and Bill insisted that she come in because he had a game to attend?

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Sales Mgr. with a Chill pill.
written by a guest, August 13, 2009

I feel that same way as Kristy, and Deborah. I simple note on the door explaining that "Due to a medical emergency we regrettably have to close early and will reopen at 10am" would have worked. It was only 3 hours, and I bet quite a few customers would have came to visit for the next week to make sure things were OK. At our company family always comes first, you only have a short time here on this planet.

Mario Macias
Atlantic Diamond Company
Chicago, IL

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buyer
written by Stephanie Johnson, August 13, 2009

Wow, the store closed early, first of all most of you really need to eat more fiber for breakfast to unplug you closed mind and your closed heart. secondly, and why are there not more clear communications, policies, lines of authority, the management kind of stuff? not enough specific information for me to hang, draw and quarter her, or fire her, probably need to talk to her to imporve the overall communication skills

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...
written by a guest, August 13, 2009

Eileen, we're on your side.. you go girl..

The only people who aren't flexible are dead people..

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Sales and Support
written by Jennifer Aydelotte, August 13, 2009

Communication is the key to any well managed business. Eileen should have explained to Bill that her plans were unbreakable, but that she ask the office manager to cover the unexpected hours that evening. After Eileen was unsuccessful with the office manager Eileen should have called Bill to tell him that there was no one available to cover the store hours on the short notice. As stated, Bill was an easy going type of guy. I’m sure he would have said to put a note on the door and call any appointments for the evening. Communication in the beginning leaves no problem to solve. :whistle:

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owner
written by Tony Mohr, August 13, 2009

Jeez people, lighten up. God forbid you miss out on three hours of business! Sometimes life happens to us and a note on the door explaining the early closure would certainly suffice. Most of our customers who read it would be calling to check up on us ( no such thing as bad publicity). After 20 years I would allow any employee to make a judgment call. Family is always more important than one more dollar.

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owner
written by Eve J. Alfille, August 14, 2009

Eileen should have been more creative, if she wanted to go early: Call a member of the family, or isn't there a former employee now retired, or another trusted person to call and ask to stay till closing? But if not, then tough luck- sorry, son, can't do it! Then she stays ans discharges her responsibility. Not worth getting all huffy about, but it does need to be mentioned formally in a discussion so Eileen knows NOT TO DO IT AGAIN!

Eve Alille
Eve J. Alfillle Gallery & Studio
Evanston, Il.

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owner
written by Tim Staton, August 14, 2009

I must have missed something
where was Thomas and why didn't he call him to come in and close the store? he is the partner.
and Bill would have been the first choice to be responsible for the store inthomas' absence.
as for Ilene well you know family does come first even after 20 years. 3 hours is not a deal breaker. if she is on a percentage and she new that during those 3 hours the store does say 10 grand that might be a problem for me and of course it might have made a difference to her as to whether she might want to stay and collect the commission she normally didn't get anyway.
A simple note on the door explaining due to a schedule conflict the store will be closed early tonight but we will be open regular business hours tomorrow and if there were any customers expected to come in for a repair that she call them all and let them know it would be closing early at 5 pm.
unless your looking for a reason to retrain a new manager and teach them 20 yrs worth of experience with your customers and the store and employees then tell Bill to take a chill pill and save his heart.

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the only one here
written by Tim Staton, August 14, 2009

ok I reread it and I see Thomas on a well deserved vacation.
so what it doesn't change anything for me but I will admit that a suggestion was made that she be talked to about the incident. I would probably register my displeasure about it but then again Bill should have told her to call him and let him know if the store would have to close as well.
or she should have just called him anyway to let him know that this was important and the all the customers were called.
either way it isn't that big a deal.
hey who is third to call from the Alarm company if both owners are indisposed I wonder who would have the responsability to respond to the alarm.

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owner
written by stuart tamres Talles Jewelers, August 15, 2009

most of you don't seem to be able to read. the partner was on vacation (most people go away) other sales staff were let go because of tough times,eileen was kept. eileen NEVER spoke to the office manager.eileen has herself taken off for family things (i'm sure the oweners don't)trust and loyalty go hand in hand with an employe and owner. eileen doesn't seem to get it,i would tell her of my disapointement in her and promote a more loyal employee over her and when anouther employee needs to go it would be her.the business might not be her life, as it is ours, but the money we pay her helps her quality of life

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store owner 30 years plus
written by Anonymous, August 15, 2009

Get over it, store closed for 3 hours is not going to hurt your business. If it does you should close it!!!

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...
written by GallantJewelers, August 15, 2009

While Eileen may not have had the obligation to stay late, she did have the obligation to communicate that the other keyholder was unable to close, and that the only option was to close early. Whether or not it was "just" her son's baseball game is no one's business. But she was irresponsible not to let one of the owners know. And the previous commenter was right, as long as anyone with an appointment was called to reschedule, 3hrs early is NBD.

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President
written by Bill Elliott, August 15, 2009

Although closing three hours early isn't going to mean the end of Argill Jewelers, Eileen's decision has to be disappointing to Bill. It's painful when owners discover the limits of employee loyalty. Bill should sit down with her, express his disappoinment, and explain how her decision to close early runs contrary to "maximizing every opportunity". He should also make sure that she understands that there will be consequences if she shows similar judgement in the future.

Bill Elliott
Ross Elliott Jewelers
Terre Haute, IN

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Co-owner/Sales
written by Norma Stall - Stall Jewelers A, August 15, 2009

With employees like these, no wonder business is off. Time for new rules that apply to situations where both owners are not available.

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Sales Mgr. with a Chill pill.
written by Supermario, August 17, 2009

***re-post first one was Anonymous for some reason, silly computers***

I feel that same way as Kristy, and Deborah. I simple note on the door explaining that "Due to a medical emergency we regrettably have to close early and will reopen at 10am" would have worked. It was only 3 hours, and I bet quite a few customers would have came to visit for the next week to make sure things were OK. At our company family always comes first, you only have a short time here on this planet.

Mario Macias
Atlantic Diamond Company
Chicago, IL

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OWNER
written by ERIK MAUTER, August 23, 2009

My teenage part time help is more loyal than Eileen. Baseball game or not, she needs to be let go. What else is she doing that you don't know about?

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Owner
written by bob, August 29, 2009

I think Bill and Tom should relax a litte and spend more time worrying about the important things that really matter in the business and life... enjoying their family and customers...

If it's a matter of money, be happy the girl had enough sense to lock the door. raise your price the next day to cover the loss or whatever you do to "make up" and it's a done deal..

If it's a matter of being disapointed because the poor girl didn't cancel her plans for the sake of your family business than this is a good lesson. No, your employees will not die for you just because you expect it. and eileen will not cancel her plans if she feels her plans take precident over the stores operational hours.

But what really interests me is, heres bill, probably a stress a holic and who knows what else, the doctor just tells him he is minutes of a heart attack because he obviousely has put profit over health for many years, and now he has a second chance at life and taking care of himself and he is stressing over his 20 year loyal employee closing the shop 3 hours early? Didn't he pay attention to the DOC when he told him to take it easy? Is this an example of Bill following doctors orders?? If it is, he must have been a maniac before!

Eileen should call the other family members and initiate a intervention for bills addiction to stress and worry and pettyness and hire a therapist for the poor guy and have his head examined.

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20 years employment vs. 3 hours closed
written by Dennis VP HR, August 31, 2009

This is an easy wrongful termination win for Eileen or any employee who is terminated for closing the store early once, after 20 years good service.

I am shocked to see all of these posters preaching loyalty, yet considering termination or demontion over a 3 hour gap. Loyalty is a two way street.

Was it christmas eve? Was there a special sale event? How much in sales do you think the store lost, most customers would come back if they saw a note on the door.

Good long term honest flexible employees are worth their weight in cash. Obviously more money than could have been made in this 3 hour gap.

What happens when Bill needs to take two weeks off for surgery and the other partner is still on vacation, how will a demoted or threatened to be terminated sales person act?

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owner
written by bob, August 31, 2009

Dennis, You hit the nail on the head. Eileen can come to work for me any day.

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Owner
written by steve satow, September 20, 2009

Both Bill and Ellen were wrong. Bill should have laid out a plan if Ellen couldn't find someone to cover for her family plans. She should not have made the decision to close. It sounds like she had been given many times off for family events or problems and could have returned the favor. A person having to have emergency treatment is not really voluntary. If I was Ellen I would have explained the problem to my son and reminded him how many times they had allowed me to take personal time off and how they covered for me. I wouldn't fire Ellen but she wouldn't get any more time off unless it was a real family emergency.

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...
written by Kevin Pope, December 08, 2009

I'm shocked that no one has thought that dear old Bill should not be thinking of his store at this point. If he is in serious condition, fretting over things that may or may not be as big as he is making them may be why he's in the hospital in the first place. Maybe his wife should smack him upside the head! Have none of you been in the hospital? Anytime they give you meds, they tell you not to make important decissions. There is good reason for this. You aint thinking with all the gray matter.
Now, a baseball game. One her son is playing in. Either this has come up before and Bill knows Eileen is going, as she has set this precident before, or it's an important game to go to. She's an employee, not an owner. If she looses her job, and has not paid attention to her family, what has she got? Anyone thinking different, I'd want to know about, before working for them. If Eileen is a manager, has been there for 20 years and has no authority to close the store, then all I can say is she has never been trusted. The other explanation would be Bill is not as nice as he is made out to be. Either way, maybe it is Eileen who should be thinking she needs to move to another place.

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