Disciplining employees is never fun. Like most companies during litigious times, we made sure we dotted every “i” and crossed every “t” when we were forced into disciplinary action.

We started with a friendly chat, escalated to a verbal warning, then proceeded to a written warning, and then possibly a suspension without pay (depending on the circumstances), and—as a last resort—termination. If we do our jobs as managers, discipline should never come as a surprise to an employee, especially termination.

Unfortunately, life itself seems to sneak up on some people.

Overall, Zeke was a good truck driver. He was also one of those people for whom every issue was black or white. When Zeke was right, he went on a crusade for truth, justice, and the American Way that didn’t allow the taking of prisoners.

The first incident occurred during a routine delivery, except it wasn’t “routine” because the salesperson neglected to include the fasteners on the order. Not good, but it happens. The customer chewed Zeke out as if it were his fault, which was also not good—nor uncommon.  

All Zeke could think of was that it wasn’t his fault; by the time he got back to the yard, his blood pressure was off the scale. He marched straight to the salesperson and launched into a loud (and, truth be told, quite colorful) tirade.

Screaming was not how we liked to handle problems; among other things, it woke some people up.

Our dispatcher, Mick, summoned Zeke to his office and made it clear that he would not tolerate his temper tantrums. Zeke said he understood, and that was the end of it—for two weeks. The next incident occurred when a load builder loaded Zeke’s truck in such a way that strapping down the load became difficult. Zeke took the offender to task, once again making up in volume and color what he lacked in eloquence. Mick gave him a verbal warning.

A month or so later, Zeke teed off on accounts receivable for holding up a delivery over a credit question. This time, Mick issued a written warning, and Zeke blew up at him.

In my mind, this was a tough situation for a supervisor—an employee who can’t see that the real problem isn’t the problem but rather the way he reacted to it. Mick and I knew we had a mess, if not a lawsuit, on our hands.

About six weeks later, Zeke took some drywall out alone, as the customer promised help from his crew. Due to a lack of communication from the project manager, the crew refused. Instead of getting in his truck and calling dispatch, Zeke lit into them in a big (and, of course, colorful) way.

They tolerated him for a while. Then they approached Zeke as a group to argue their side of the story up close and personal.

Fortunately for Zeke, he talked them out of stuffing him into a wall cavity and drywalling him in. Better yet, when I heard about it and called him on the carpet, I convinced him that there were many health hazards in an industry with so many hot heads running around. He quit on the spot. I guess I got my point across.

Last I heard, he went back to school and became a marriage counselor.

Mike McDole has 40+ years of actual LBM experience, including being SVP of a large regional pro-dealer, and is the principal of Firing Line LBM Advisors. He’s also partners with Greg Brooks of Executive Council on Construction Supply and his LMS. Mike can be reached at 774-372-1367 or Mike@FiringLineLBM.com.