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- This Time, No-match Rule May Stick
- by Rick Jordahl (1/1/2009)
- Brace yourself for more government scrutiny of your workforce in the new year. With October’s release of the Supplemental Final Rule, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security has renewed its commitment to bar illegal immigrants from the workplace.
- In Over Our Heads
- by Don Tyler (1/1/2009)
- Dear Boss question: The last year has been tough for us (employees) financially with the high prices for everything. When I talk to my boss about a raise, he just says, "Join the club." I guess he can’t pay us more simply because we need more, but isn’t there something he can do? All my credit cards are maxed out.
- We Need a Fireman
- by Don Tyler (1/1/2009)
- Dear Boss question: My boss is always telling us that her whole job is about "putting out fires." However, when "fires" erupt that have to do with people, she tends to avoid the issue. How can we help her take these employee issues more seriously?
- The “Kids” are Coming Back
- by Don Tyler (11/1/2008)
- Dear Boss question: I’ve been with this family business for 15 years. The family’s next generation is graduating from college and returning to the business. I remember when these kids were running around and getting in my way, so it’s hard to take them seriously. How can I tell the owners that I’m not interested in training my replacement?
- Our Meetings Stink
- by Don Tyler (11/1/2008)
- Dear Boss question: The staff meetings that we have every week are horrible. They are a waste of time and we would all rather be out in the barns getting something done. How can we help our boss improve meetings?
- This Conflict Never Really Ends
- by Don Tyler (10/1/2008)
- Dear Boss question: My coworkers and I have noticed a pattern. Two employees will get mad at each other, the boss finally hears about it and "fixes" it. Things calm down for a few weeks, but then it resurfaces as bad as ever. Why can’t the two people just get over it?
- Conceited Coworkers
- by Don Tyler (9/1/2008)
- Dear Boss question: There are two employees here who think they know everything. It doesn’t matter what the boss does, they would have done it better. If there is a problem, they say it wouldn’t have happened if they were running this place. They brag to us all the time but never say anything to the boss. We’re tired of it, but what can we do?
- My Boss — the Micromanager
- by Don Tyler (9/1/2008)
- Dear Boss question: My boss is a micromanager and is always moving us from one job to the next before we get a chance to finish the first job. He says he’s just re-prioritizing and keeping us on the most important task, but we haven’t finished a single job in the last two years. It’s really frustrating.
- Creating Communication Channels is Critical
- by Lawrence Firkins, University of Illinois, College of Veterinary Medicine (8/1/2008)
- One challenge that managers face is keeping employees fully engaged and committed to perform at a high level in their jobs.
- They Just Don't Care
- by Don Tyler (8/1/2008)
- Dear Boss question: Most of my coworkers and I really care about our jobs and the pigs we take care of, but a couple of them don’t seem to care about anything. We try to lead by example and tell them how much we care, but it doesn’t seem to matter to them. What else can we do?”
- Praise in Public, Criticize in Private?
- by Don Tyler (8/1/2008)
- Dear Boss question: One of my coworkers has a habit of saying inappropriate things during meetings and at lunch time, but my boss doesn’t say anything. His motto is, "Praise publicly; criticize privately." The problem is we don’t think our boss is actually doing anything about the problem at all because it still happens repeatedly. Is his rule always the best approach?”
- Responsible People Produce Pork Responsibly
- by Rick Jordahl (6/1/2008)
- In these times of increased public scrutiny, the employees that you hire, train and promote play an increasingly important role in your business’ long-term success and sustainability. While some view workers as warm bodies and a cost of raising hogs today, others see employees as valuable assets — human capital, if you will.
- My Cheap Boss
- by Don Tyler (6/1/2008)
- Dear Boss question: My boss is always bragging about how much money he saves on inputs, how he "talked the neighbor down on that tractor," and how he "twisted the buyer’s arm" to get more money for his pigs. I know this is good business, but he also brags to me about how ‘cheap’ he got someone hired. It’s all he talks about. How do we know when he’s gone too far cutting his costs?
- Employees Don’t Stay Long
- by Don Tyler (6/1/2008)
- Dear Boss question: One of my coworkers and I have been here for several years and have noticed an interesting trend — few people stay here longer than one to two years, even if they are good employees. Some even go to jobs that pay the same and continue with the same type of work. What can we do to encourage them to stay longer?
- Long-term Employees
- by Don Tyler (5/1/2008)
- Dear Boss question: It seems like this company plays favorites and gives special treatment to people who have been working here for several years.They get the best jobs, they get more time off, they get first pick of vacation days and they get to go on business trips. If they did all that for those of us who’ve been here for only a few months, I’d be sure to stay for several years, too. Why can’t they treat everyone as equals?
- Troublemaking Coworker
- by Don Tyler (5/1/2008)
- Dear Boss question: One of my coworkers is always trying to cause trouble. One day he wants the rest of us to lie for him so he can get out of work early. The next day he wants us to all go in together on a scheme to get the manager fired. It makes us all uncomfortable. How do we get him to stop all of this and do his job?
- Doing Those “Tough” Evaluations
- by Don Tyler (5/1/2008)
- A few years back, I received a call from a cattle feedlot manager located in the western Plains who wanted some help doing performance evaluations. There had been no evaluations conducted for several years, and the reason soon became obvious.
- Employees Are Key to Success
- by Pork news staff (4/15/2008)
- Some call it people power, but whatever the term, human capital continues to be a significant challenge facing all of agriculture and the pork industry is no exception. A pork-industry panel led by moderator Don Tyler, Tyler & Associates, discussed the importance of securing a knowledgeable workforce today and in the future as a part of the movement toward responsible pork production.
- Reaching Across Cultures
- by Rick Jordahl (3/1/2008)
- Many pork production managers and owners are seeing new faces on their production teams as more Hispanic workers join the roster. According to USDA, Hispanics make up at least 60 percent of the U.S.farm labor force — but that includes all agricultural sectors. Casual estimates for the pork industry are that Hispanics comprise 30 percent of today’s workforce. That percentage could be higher if your operation is located in the southwestern or southeastern portion of the United States.
- Roadmap to a Stable Workforce
- by Rick Jordahl (1/1/2008)
- A stable workforce strengthens your business. Creating that stability means you have to do many things well, such as addressing turnover, opening communication, being fair, and hiring, training and retaining the right employees.
- Know Your OSHA Requirements
- by Rick Jordahl (1/1/2008)
- Preventing worker injury and health risks are responsible things to do, and they make good economic sense. No one wants to get a visit from the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, but there’s much you can do to protect yourself and your workers.
- Growing Responsibilities: Are you up to the call?
- by Marlys Miller, Editor, Pork magazine (1/1/2008)
- You’ve long ago shed your hog farmer label. Ask people raising pigs today and they’ll tell you without hesitation that they are pork producers. Actually, increasingly more of you will respond that you’re food producers.
- Fighting the good fight
- by Rick Jordahl (1/1/2008)
- From his Washington, D.C., office, Steve Kopperud tracks issues that affect animal agriculture. He shares his insights on animal rights issues and what they mean to the pork industry.
- Misguided on MRSA
- by Jill Appell (1/1/2008)
- European and Canadian studies that found methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus — MRSA — on pigs are igniting anti-antibiotic efforts in the United States.
- Administration To Revise Immigration Rule
- by Pork news staff - source: Meatingplace.com (11/27/2007)
- A judge who stopped a new immigration reform rule last month has agreed to put the case on hold until March, 2008 so the administration can rewrite the rule, according to media reports.
- A next generation Pork Executive
- by Marlys Miller (11/1/2007)
- Jamey Tosh is a rare breed — a young owner/operator of a pork production business. At 28 years old, he’s responsible for the 20,000 sows and the 8,500 acres of row crops that make up Tosh Farms.
- Who’s Responsible?
- by Marlys Miller (10/1/2007)
- Personal responsibility is hard to come by these days. Whether it’s an individual, a group, a business or a politician, the tendency is to look for someone else to charge with the task or even to blame.
- Sometimes Disease Management Depends on Employee Management
- by Lawrence Firkins (8/01/2007)
- Recently a veterinarian was telling me about his challenges in dealing with porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome. He soon began discussing his frustrations with managing employees at production facilities.
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