I can't win.

[Timberhauler]

Although we turn alot of work,doing dangerous removals and now taking on timber clearing jobs,I do not have a large operation.I currently have four guys working for me,and that does not include my wife on the rare occasion she gets to help me out.Three of my guys are all some of the best ground guys a climber could ask for,and one is currently learning to climb.The other guy is one of the best climbers I have ever had working for me.He has a good attitude,never lays out and does extraordinary good work.It's a little too wet around here today to accomplish too much,so I figured I would give my crew a much deserved day off.Before I could start calling them up this morning,my phone rang at a quarter til' seven...It was this climber I'm talking about,and he was calling me from jail.He would not tell me what he was there for,but said he'd probably be there a while.He said he would call back in a little while and let me know when they set his bail.I guess he was hinting that I come and bond him out....My wife is a police officer,a warrant officer at that,so she makes four or five trips to the jail per day hauling in prisoners,and she is gonna find out for me what the deal is...It seems like every time I finally get someone good,there is a catch.I'm looking for some insight here I guess.What should I do?Should I consider it a mistake and give him another chance,or should I cut my loses and begin the hunt for someone else?...I had to fire the last climber I had because he liked his beer a little too much.This is begining to get frustrating.:bang: :deadhorse:

 

[OTG BOSTON]

heard all of this before.

Truth is the profession attracts alot of wacked out people. If the guy is in jail for something like unpaid tickets or some other non-violent crime, then do the right thing for him. Like you noted there are not a lot of qualified people out there, you've gotta take care of what you have!

 

[Timberchic]

He's in for criminal domestic violence...Paul and I both know that his wife is crazy as hell and there is no telling what she did or said....I've gotta make another trip back to the jail later today,and I'm gonna see if they have set his bail yet...It's not lookin' too good for him,this was his 2nd offense.

 

[treesquirrel]

He's in for criminal domestic violence...Paul and I both know that his wife is crazy as hell and there is no telling what she did or said....I've gotta make another trip back to the jail later today,and I'm gonna see if they have set his bail yet...It's not lookin' too good for him,this was his 2nd offense.

Do you really know both sides of the story? I know a few good ole' boys who had wives that were reputed to be crazy when it just was not true. The good ole' boy was the crazy one who regularly enjoyed abusing his wife.

 

[OTG BOSTON]

thats just dumb

:stupid:

 

[PA Plumber]

With how this thread is going, maybe you have decided to start looking? You could always hire him back on whenever he gets done with his "vacation." Maybe he has trouble at home; if he has a spotless record of safety, treats his coworkers with respect and integrity, good equipment care, good customer P.R., good work ethic, and does a nice job on the trees, I think I would keep him on the books. If his "record" is bleeding into his job, that is another story.

Good luck. I used to run crews for other companies and finally went out on my own. I love working by myself and have no employees. I can appreciate that in the treecare business you have to have extra help.

 

[antigrassguy]

IF he is the victim, huber workers show up everyday sober, with a bag lunch and willing to work.

 

[Timberhauler]

Do you really know both sides of the story? I know a few good ole' boys who had wives that were reputed to be crazy when it just was not true. The good ole' boy was the crazy one who regularly enjoyed abusing his wife.

We've seen enough of her to have a fair idea of what probably went on...She never got a chance to go talk to him today,but in this state all a woman has to do is claim that the man did something to her,and that is all it takes.....I'm not taking either side,but I could clearly see her just getting pissed at him for whatever reason and calling the cops.We're gonna try and peice the story together,my wife is also going to talk to the officers who worked the case to see what her side was...I'd hate to think he really is abusing her.

 

[Jumper]

Been there with subordinates that beat their wives (in the Army). In that case she deserved something, but certainly not to be beaten to the extent she was (I saw the MP pictures), given she was being screwed by the senior Base Supply Chief Warrant Officer (both were military, she was a Cpl, her hubby a MCpl).

If a good worker, seriously examine whether you would be better off with or without him. Are children going to suffer if you fire him. I am not sure you can easily terminate someone for this type of charge in any event. Better have it well documented if you do.

 

[hornett22]

i like your attitude.

see what you can find out.spousal abuse by females is on the rise but doesn't seem to get reported as much.people know how to abuse the system to get what they want or get revenge.it's said but it is turning into a sad state of affairs for society.seems like it is all about "ME" these days.

for what it's worth,my buddy has 4 climbers in jail at the moment.i use one of the guys from time to time when i need a break or want to learn something.guy is a great climber but has chemical weaknesses.it's a shame that great people fall to foolish temptation.

hang in there.if you were in Tennessee i'd climb for you.you have always seemed to be a good straight forward guy to me.sometimes the good guys get some bad luck.i think it's just the good Lord testing our faith.

 

[NorCalCutters#3]

that sounds like a personal problem. If you need to fire him for not being able to show up to work thats one thing but firing a man for some opinion based private life situation just seems like it is crossing the line. around here you used to need three reports on somebody with valid reasons to be able to fire them. i do not know if that still stands & i do not remember private life falling in them. As a business owner you have to be careful . He might need some lawyer money and you firing him well, Lawyers have the darndest ways of finding money .

(I deleted the post he is objecting to in this paragraph I deleted here-jps)

 

[John Paul Sanborn]

that's just dumb :stupid:

Beyond dumb :bang: Why can't people act in a decent manner here? :bang:

I still feel icky after reading it.:bang:

Some peoples children, what would his Mommy say if she heard that?:bang:

Why was it I went away for so long?:bang:

 

[John Paul Sanborn]

He's in for criminal domestic violence...Paul and I both know that his wife is crazy as hell and there is no telling what she did or said....I've gotta make another trip back to the jail later today,and I'm gonna see if they have set his bail yet...It's not lookin' too good for him,this was his 2nd offense.

I would do a full background check on him. As a buisness, not the constable wife doing a check. Full documentation CYA in case you do have to sever the relationship.

If he will be in jail for any length of time, you do not have to hold his job for him. It's not like he is being deployed for the military ( though sometimes it feels that way to the service memeber (USMC x 8.5yrs).

This is his second time for this charge, what else has he been locked up for? If anything. How long in between?

One reason this industry attracts unreliable people, is that they can learn to do good work under risky conditions, and make employers put up with the problems.

I don't know how many times I've heard employers say they would like to pay someone more, promote them, ect..ect.. but they just cannot put the trust in them to justify the added compensation.

One aquaintance had a very good climber that he would not work on mondays or fridays, he had to find someone else to work for on those days. Tue-Thrs the climber was reliable.

The biggest pitfall is that if he has past documentation of past violent behavior, your insurance may go up, or you may be canceld. If an employee with such a background attacks anyone on your clock, there is legal presedance for holding you responcible for endangerment, since you knew or should have known....

 

[Ray Chalenski]

You're not his keeper

I've been in the business for about 25 years. You're always going to have some employees with problems.Whatever he did it's not your problem as long as it doesn't hurt the reputation of your company. Any monetary help you provide will most likely tell him that he can count on you to do it again whenever he has a problem. And there is an equally good chance you'll never see that money again. Give him all the moral support you can but remember you're not his mom or dad or best friend. You're his boss. Good Luck

 

[Bermie]

Innocent 'til proven guilty?

Let the case play out...
If I was this chap I'd be a bit miffed (that's Brit speak for seriously p(&&#d off) to find my personal life being discussed on a public forum before I had a chance to comment.
'Nuf already.. the guy has a right to some privacy, deal with it internally, I'm sure you'll do the right thing for all concerned.

 

[PA Plumber]

Let the case play out...
If I was this chap I'd be a bit miffed (that's Brit speak for seriously p(&&#d off) to find my personal life being discussed on a public forum before I had a chance to comment.
'Nuf already.. the guy has a right to some privacy, deal with it internally, I'm sure you'll do the right thing for all concerned.

Good Post.


+ 1

 

[Timberhauler]

I believe in second chances,and some say that I am too good for my own good...I'm still trying to find out the whole story...My wife is checking on it,she's not prying into his life,just trying to find out what went down on this particular event....As some of you well know,it is extremely hard to find a really good climber,and likely if you find one,they are more interested in growing their own business than helping you...This is not the case with this guy,he seems committed to my business,he helps find work,never calls in,and is always on time.All I can say is that he has filled every obligation he has ever made to me and then some....Back around christmas,I even got him to help me do a couple of big jobs and I split the profit with him right down the middle...Unless she uncovers a whole different situation than he is letting on,I will have his job waiting on him when he comes back

 

[John464]

I believe in second chances,and some say that I am too good for my own good...I'm still trying to find out the whole story...My wife is checking on it,she's not prying into his life,just trying to find out what went down on this particular event....As some of you well know,it is extremely hard to find a really good climber,and likely if you find one,they are more interested in growing their own business than helping you...This is not the case with this guy,he seems committed to my business,he helps find work,never calls in,and is always on time.All I can say is that he has filled every obligation he has ever made to me and then some....Back around christmas,I even got him to help me do a couple of big jobs and I split the profit with him right down the middle...Unless she uncovers a whole different situation than he is letting on,I will have his job waiting on him when he comes back

Sounds like a great employee when they dont have him locked up.
It is hard to find good climbers like you say, especially those without there own business cards that float.

I would also be checking out his situation to cover my ass. It is good to have a sense of what type of behavior to look out for should it show signs of it at work. I would not get rid of him unless his behavior at home effected his performance at work. I personally dont care what someone does at home(unless drug related), that is not my job to supervise outside of the work place. That is for the police to do and I trust that if the law finds him guilty and throws him in jail, then I can't make a decision whether to keep him or not. If he does some time, I would give him a second chance when he comes back. Tell him that you are giving him a second chance and if he goes to jail again you may not be so forgiving the next time. Therefore, he should take the necessary steps now to keep himself out of there. If he is on drugs, drug test him.

People make mistakes and can learn from them.

 

[M.D. Vaden]

Truth is the profession attracts alot of wacked out people. If the guy is in jail for something like unpaid tickets or some other non-violent crime, then do the right thing for him. Like you noted there are not a lot of qualified people out there, you've gotta take care of what you have!

Which would be not bailing him out, of course, so the guy takes responsibility - if its something of a ticket nature.

I'd still fire someone over even that: shows lack of responsibility, and we are in a profession that needs enormous responsibility.

 

[John Paul Sanborn]

Which would be not bailing him out, of course, so the guy takes responsibility - if its something of a ticket nature.

I'd still fire someone over even that: shows lack of responsibility, and we are in a profession that needs enormous responsibility.

Let's not forget that if an employee is driving as an agent of the company in this state, you could be leaving yourself wide open.

It does not have to be your truck either, if an employee vehicle is being drive from shop to jobsite or between jobsites, then he is driving as an agent.

I've heard of cases where the crew was off the clock for lunch, the forman deligated the man with the car to take others to lunch with him, and the company was held liable for and accident.