🔒Being the good guy & bad guy to employees

We hear it constantly: This younger generation does not know how to work. They are entitled. Their parents are too involved. They don’t take any responsibility for their actions. I am guilty of saying this in regards to some of my employees, and I often wonder if the same was said about my generation when we were younger.

When I was in high school, I was a hard worker, but I did not fully grasp what it was like working for a small business. Back then, there was not as much of a push to support and shop local. I was lucky enough to work at Scales Seafood and Ice Cream in Millbury for Randy Mogren, the father of my good friend Paige. I would take Fridays off because I felt like it but still go in to get my paycheck. I would take free food on occasion (Sorry, Randy!), and I remember working a double one Sunday and literally did not do anything. I will never forget how upset he was with my coworker and me, as he should have been. Knowing what I know now, it made total sense. He was raising a family and was paying us to do something, but we treated it as a social event instead. When I became an employer myself, I wrote him a letter thanking him for what he had taught me. I really learned a lot from him and my job, and even though I wasn’t the employee I could have been, he was always patient with me.

I keep these instances in the back of my head when employing people now, but it is hard to be understanding all the time. While trying to teach them about responsibility, I keep in mind my employees are younger, living at home and still go on family vacations. Letting them know it is unacceptable to be late for work, and if they are late, they should show up ready to clock in. Alerting them to the fact they have requested more than 80 hours off, and while we try to be accommodating, it’s very difficult to employ someone who needs every weekend off. Maybe they charged someone for the wrong item. None of these instances are life threatening, but little things turn into big things.

Being fair and stern is a balancing act, something I continue to learn. The reason why The Queen’s Cups exists is because I sacrificed my free time at a young age to get it off the ground. I worked when I didn’t want to work. I worked when I was sick and tired. I missed family events and birthdays of close friends. I was not always motivated, but I always showed up. Most of the time, no one cares about that side of the story. I understand that. The sacrifices we make are not always supposed to be screamed at the top of our lungs. It’s a choice I made, not them. But I want to preserve that story so there is a sense of pride in working at The Queen’s Cups.

When an employee is disciplined, they take it very personally. It’s an unfortunate part of the job to let someone know we need more from them, or that we would handle a situation differently the next time around. It certainly does not mean we think an employee is terrible at their job and should never show up again. I am not sure how other places of employment handle these situations, but I urge employees to speak directly with the manager on duty if they feel uncomfortable with their write up, rather than just leaving the job altogether.

Most issues in life can be taken care of with communication rather than assumption.

So maybe my generation was the same as this current generation, and we all must learn responsibility and discipline in our own time. Develop stronger policies right off the bat when hiring new people instead of being lax, so that when the time comes, it’s not such a shock when they are disciplined. Being in this position will continue to be a learning experience for me. Employees will come and go, but it is important to teach them life lessons, even if it makes you the bad guy sometimes.

Randy taught me a lot I have learned to cherish as I have gotten older, and I hope to do the same for those who work for me.

Renee Diaz is the owner of The Queen’s Cups bakery, which generated more than $1 million in revenue last year.