Reference no: EM133025899

Effective Discipline at Berries Groceries

As Katie Smith travels to one of the Berries Groceries store locations, she is worried about the meeting she is about to have with one of the deli clerks. As the HR Manager for the chain of grocery stores, Katie is working to improve the overall performance and retention of the mostly part-time grocery staff.

The store manager of this location called Katie about the employee, and he asked her to sit in on a disciplinary meeting to give the employee a written warning. Last week, the deli clerk had failed to follow the proper procedures when closing the deli counter at the end of the day, and as a result, some food had spoiled and needed to be thrown out. The manager told Katie that this employee and other employees have failed to follow the proper procedures in the past, but he has never given any disciplinary action before this incident. However, this time there was a significant amount of food product that went to waste, and he felt that he could use this disciplinary action to set an example for all employees, so they know that they need to start following the procedure. He said he tells every employee the closing procedures when they are hired and that he should not have to remind them every time they close the deli.

Katie understands the importance of ensuring that employees follow proper food handling procedures but has an uneasy feeling that this meeting is not going to go well.

What is your insight about this case?