American Workplace

Phrases I Heard At Work — That Still Make Me Smile

Posted on August 13, 2014 by CharlieClaywell

Work environments are as varied as the people in them, and over the years I have heard some great lines — most are R rated, but here are some PG ones that still make me smile.

So How Do You Think You’re Gonna Like It Here?

I was working hard manual labor (is there any other kind?) at a factory when an older man (50s, but it seemed so old when I was 25), asked me after a particularly hard shift, “so, how do you think you’re gonna like it here?”

“Not real sure,” I replied hesitantly, uncertain what his point was.

“How about you,” I countered.

Oh, I’m really gonna like it here, he said smiling.

The phrase became a catchphrase there — whenever someone was reprimanded by a boss or simply had a bad day — someone would always ask the rhetorical question — and the reply was always the same: Oh, I’m really gonna like it here.

A Little Apathy Goes A Long Ways

This pithy saying appeared on a whiteboard one day at work. The board was strategically placed by management days earlier and was supposed to be filled with inspirational quotes or examples of good work (you know people being ‘caught’ doing something good). The phrase had its desired impact — the whiteboard went away.

That’s Not What I had In Mind

A co-worker was charged with the task of creating a metal workstation which consisted of framing out some metal, welding and then painting the creation. When my co-worker presented the finished project to the boss, who was an engineer, the boss said, “well, that’s not what I had in mind.” Despite being an engineer, the boss had never even taken a moment to sketch out a basic idea of what he was looking for. Needless to say, the co-worker never volunteered for a project like that again.

The Job has Evolved Since It Was Posted

I actually heard this one during an internal job interview. Although I can be quick witted, I had no comeback, just a realization that some rules (including Federal laws) can be overwritten during crunch time when someone else has already been promised the position.

Speaking of job interviews, one of the most uncomfortable and oddest interviews I ever experienced occurred when the topic at hand drifted to church (which seems like an area best to avoid in an interview). The interview went into full blown TMI when the man interviewing me, said, “Yeah, my first wife left me for the choir director at church.”

I mean, really, what can you do with a line like that — you just have to nod and smile.

Categories: American Workplace

Life in Ohio’s 8th: National Discount Stores Becoming The Norm

Posted on June 19, 2014 by CharlieClaywell

The county of 42,000 is home to at least six Dollar General stores.

Although, dollar stores are starting to feel the pressures of overgrowth and an improving economy — in places like Preble County where the average wage is less than $40,000 a year — there is still a need for discount stores.

In fact, according to Huffington Post, they are serving the secondary need of creating jobs.

“Retail salesperson” has become the most common occupation in America, with 4.3 million people working the country’s sales floors and registers. In down-and-out areas, particularly where manufacturing or energy jobs have vanished, dollar stores now hold some of the only work that’s available.

In Preble County, the discount stores are particularly interesting due to the ‘mom and pop’ stores replaced when national chains moved in.

In the county seat of Eaton, there are two Dollar General stores, a Family Dollar, a Wal-Mart and a Kmart in addition to CVS and Walgreens. When Wal-Mart came to Eaton some on city counsel opposed the store due to the existence of Kmart and a dying downtown area, but Wal-Mart in typical fashion showed up with attorneys and demands — and built on the north end of town.

Walgreens was built on the location of a family restaurant owned and CVS displaced an old tractor implement store. The family-owned Gary’s Pharmacy in Eaton ceased business once the national drug chains opened as did Landis Pharmacy in West Alexandria.

Dollar General tried its hand at a north location near Wal-Mart, but now that storefront inside the strip mall stands empty — adding to the inventory of empty buildings in the city — while a new Dollar General opened on the south end of town and another one opened near the center of town. Family Dollar is located in the former family-owned Miller’s grocery store and Lewisburg’s Dollar General is located in the former family-owned Brennan’s grocery store.

Families in Preble County, like many of the counties in Ohio’s 8th Congressional District, earn significantly less than the national average weekly wage. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, Preble County has an average wage of $650-$749 — more than $200 below the national average.

For comparison, our representative Speaker of the House John Boehner receives a weekly base salary of $4,288 while our State Senators, Sherrod Brown and Robert Portman, receive a weekly base salary of $3,346.

A Few of The Discount Stores in 8th Congressional District

Darke County (use zip code 45331): Dollar General, 3; Family Dollar, 2;
Miami County (use zip code 45373): Dollar General, 10; Family Dollar, 3;
Butler County (use zip code 45018): Dollar General, 15; Family Dollar, 7;
Clark County (use zip code 45501): Dollar General, 12; Family Dollar, 8.

Source — Store Locators: Dollar General and Family Dollar.

Growing up in Preble County

I don’t want to give the impression that discount stores are new to the county, but national chains are. In my youth, Eaton had a family-owned five and dime store while West Alexandria and Lewisburg had family-owned variety stores, just to name a few.

Categories: 8th congressional district, American Workplace

The Company Men Examines Cost of Corporate Committment

Posted on June 3, 2014 by CharlieClaywell

The Company Men (2010) starring Ben Affleck, Chris Cooper, Kevin Costner, Craig T. Nelson and Tommy Lee Jones follows the lives of three men who become victims of downsizing during the economic crisis which mirrors the recent Great Recession. All three men are forced to redefine themselves and come to terms with what it means to be successful in a society where the only measuring stick is money and power.

One of the characters, Gene McClary, (Tommy Lee Jones) helped start the company — with his college buddy, James Salinger (Craig T. Nelson) — that eventually dismisses him.

But, before he is handed his pink slip McClary tries hard to be the voice of reason inside a company that is struggling to stay afloat. McClary, who questions the ethics of the layoffs, personally takes on the fight to keep 60-year-old Phil Woodward (Chris Cooper) employed — and temporarily succeeds as Woodward takes on the work of several employees to remain with the company.

But it only postpones the inevitible.

Each of the three men — McClary, Bobby Walker (Ben Affleck) and Woodward — undergo their own unique set of obstacles and redefining moments as they try to find their way back inside the world of work. The movie centers mostly on Walker who is forced to come to terms with his new life. Walker learns to redefine himself and the definition of success, slowly and steadily as he first loses his Porche, then his house and eventually his self identity.

The movie dips into the well of corporate responsibility and the inequity of wages mostly through the eyes of Walker’s brother-in-law Jack Dolan (Kevin Costner). Dolan is a salt of the earth type construction worker who despises the idea of CEOs earning 700 times more than their employees. True to his type, Dolan is also the one that offers Walker a job despite the economic hardship it causes him. The job serves as the catalyst for Walker’s rebirth.

Some viewers will be put off by the commonly-used white male, greed-infested CEO, but at its core the movie does hit upon a uniquely American phenomenon. The paradox of how a Christian-based society (with its economy guided by the All-Knowing) easily and quickly disposes of its employees during hard times — feeling no ethical responsibility toward the individuals who made them successful during good times.

If you have worked in a less-than-perfect corporation that used layoffs to improve profitability — the movie’s accuracy in depicting the downsizing process will feel uncanny.

Rated 4 out of 5.