Disputes Essay, Research Paper

Who Settles the Disputes?

In any form of business, whether it is a fast food franchise or a large insurance firm,

there is a hierarchy of employees. There are basic employees that provide rudimentary skills,

managers that guide and manage employees, and the owner(s) that run or head the business or

organization. A large concern in every business is the relationship that exists between

employees and their managers. In general, employees can often be compared to children in

which they can usually operate efficiently if they work independently, but if combined with

others, they begin spending more time socializing and less time producing a specified good.

Managers are similar to parental figures in that they must watch over their employees just as a

mother must watch over her children. Often employees and manager get into disputes and if a

situation like that arises, then someone should be elected to settle the dispute. The person that

should be used to settle the dispute is a person in a superior position to the position of the

manager, because that person has higher authority than both the manager and the employee.

There is a multitude of employees in every work force that have a complex.

Doctors often refer to this complex as an inferiority complex. An inferiority complex is

defined by Webster?s dictionary as ?a persistent sense of inadequacy or a tendency to

self-diminishment, sometimes resulting in excessive aggressiveness through

overcompensation.? Employees with an inferiority complex have trouble with others retaining a

higher position, as in a job, than they have. Some employees get very apprehensive and upset

when someone tries to tell them what to do, even if that person is their manager. Conflicts arise

often between an employee and a manager if the employee

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has an inferiority complex. Contrary to employees, who lack power in their work place, some

managers often abuse their power by abusing the rights of the employees they

manage. Managers can abuse the rights of employees by taking privileges away from them, for

example depriving employees of their smoking breaks because the manager does not like those

particular employees for any number of reasons. It is possible for a manager to hold more

power than he can use efficiently, or delegate to other individuals. If either the employee has an

inferiority complex, if the manager abuses his power, or if the two colleagues cannot reach an

agreement on a particular subject, then conflict will evolve. In any of the three possible

scenarios, the employee should not argue with his or her manager but go directly to the person

that outranks the manger, for instance the owner. The owner, or anyone in a superior position

to that of the manager, should be able to settle any dispute between the employee and the

manager.

Employees should not argue with their manager, but sometimes situations arise that

cannot be avoided. If an employee disagrees with a manager’s decree, an argument will

surface. A manager should be able to be able to resolve any argument, given that he has more

authority than the employee of which he is arguing with. But no manager or employee is perfect,

so therefore it is often necessary for someone of a higher position to get involved and take

control of the situation. The owner of a business always wants to keep peace between all of

his employees. If there is no arguing amongst the employees then the business is free to operate

more cost efficiently because more work is performed do to the lack of arguing. Profit is the

main reason for anyone to run a business or firm. All owners or profit sharers are interested in

profit and they want to maximize their business’s production output in order to maximize their

net profit at the end of their fiscal period. The best way for owners to ensure that their profit is

maximized is to keep their employees happy, which means that there will be no disputing

amongst them allowed. Owners can easily hire or fire anyone with whom they see fit.

Employees usually regard

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the owner of the establishment they are working for with respect due to the fact that he must

sign their checks before they get paid. Employees will listen to their owner and

regard all that he says if they want to remain employed by that company. A person with higher

authority than a manager is often the best person to resolve a conflict between a manager and

employee because he controls their job.

I used to work at a grocery store while I was attending high school. When I got into an

argument with one of my managers, the owner of the store would resolve the conflict

immediately. The owner, Mr. Jackson, of my grocery store wanted both my manager and

myself to form a compromise as safe and as fast as possible so that we could immediately return

to our work. Returning to work immediately after a compromise was reached caused Mr.

Jackson not to lose any extra money that he would have lost if we had continued to argue for a

long period of time without his intervention.

An argument between an employee and his or her manager may be able to be solved by

either of the two people involved, but it would take more time, and money, than if a person

outranking the manager intervened to help resolve the problem. Businesses are ran to produce

a good or service that in return produces revenue for the business. Revenue pays the bills of the

business. For example, revenue pays the loans the company used to get started, the light,

phone, water, heat and ac. bills, as well as rent on the building the business is housed in, all of

the employees? wages. Any argument between employees and managers disrupt the process of

making revenue because while arguing, a lesser amount of work is performed. With less labor,

there is consequently less production, which production relates directly to output and to gross

revenue for a company. To prevent the loss of any revenue in any form of business, the person

in a position superior to the position of the manager involved in the conflict should be the one to

solve the conflict.