Happenings at work

A few weeks ago I had an employee ask me a disturbing question, one that made me concerned he may do something stupid. I can’t get into the specifics, due to the level of confidentiality he invoked, but I was concerned enough that I asked him if he worked the next night, and he said he did. So here’s what I did: I told him I wasn’t working, and was unable to come to the store to check on him due to prior commitments, but I was going to call the store right after the shift meeting and make sure he was there. I told him if he was not there then I was going to call the police, the fire department, the gas company, the power company, and anyone else I could think of that had flashing lights on their vehicles and send them to his house to check on him and generally embarrass the hell out of him. He asked me how I was going to coordinate that so I told him all I had to do was call from a pay phone and tell them (in order): I heard gunshots; there was a fire; there was a gas leak; there was a live power line down and did he seriously want to push the issue.

He showed up ten minutes late, out of breath and half-dressed wanting to know if I’d called yet, but he showed up. He’s fine now, and I’d have never wasted public resources like that but the speed with which I rattled off my strategy must have really convinced him I was capable of it. He’s doing much better, he’s talking to someone better trained and equipped to handle his situation, and that’s all that matters. And he hasn’t missed a day since……