Suzanne owns a small restaurant. Robert, the restaurant’s chef, is an excellent cook but he is very temperamental; he becomes angry and abusive with the other kitchen staff and waiters over the slightest mistake. It has reached the point that many members of staff dread working with him. Suzanne has spoken to Robert about this issue many times over the years but if anything, it is getting worse. Robert simply tells her that he cannot tolerate “incompetence” among the staff and that shouting and yelling at them is just his way of coping with stress. Suzanne has decided that enough is enough—she is going to terminate Robert’s employment. (Robert is 39 years old and has worked for the restaurant for seven and a half years. He earns $1,000 per week, including vacation pay. The restaurant’s annual payroll is $850,000.)

Answer the following questions related to this fact situation.

a. Under Ontario’s employment standards legislation, how many weeks’ notice, or pay in lieu of notice, is owing to someone with Robert’s length of service who is terminated?

b. Is it possible that Suzanne’s restaurant could be liable to Robert for statutory severance pay in these circumstances? Explain your answer.

c. In your opinion, is it likely that a court would find that Suzanne had just cause under the common law to terminate Robert’s employment? Explain your answer.

d. Suzanne wants to avoid a lawsuit, so she decides that she will offer Robert a package. In your opinion, what would be a reasonable offer in these circumstances? Explain your answer by identifying at least three factors that a court takes into consideration in determining the appropriate amount of reasonable notice of termination (or pay in lieu) required under the common law.

e. Suzanne feels very nervous about dismissing Robert (given his temper) and she would like to avoid having to tell him about it face-to-face. She’s thinking of just leaving a message on Robert’s answering machine telling him that his services are no longer required and making the severance offer. Is this a good idea? If not, does she have an alternative to telling him in person? Explain your answer.

Suzanne owns a small restaurant. Robert, the restaurant’s chef, is an excellent cook but he is very temperamental; he becomes angry and abusive with the other kitchen staff and waiters over the slightest mistake. It has reached the point that many members of staff dread working with him. Suzanne has spoken to Robert about this issue many times over the years but if anything, it is getting worse. Robert simply tells her that he cannot tolerate “incompetence” among the staff and that shouting and yelling at them is just his way of coping with stress. Suzanne has decided that enough is enough—she is going to terminate Robert’s employment. (Robert is 39 years old and has worked for the restaurant for seven and a half years. He earns $1,000 per week, including vacation pay. The restaurant’s annual payroll is $850,000.)

Answer the following questions related to this fact situation.

a. Under Ontario’s employment standards legislation, how many weeks’ notice, or pay in lieu of notice, is owing to someone with Robert’s length of service who is terminated?

b. Is it possible that Suzanne’s restaurant could be liable to Robert for statutory severance pay in these circumstances? Explain your answer.

c. In your opinion, is it likely that a court would find that Suzanne had just cause under the common law to terminate Robert’s employment? Explain your answer.

d. Suzanne wants to avoid a lawsuit, so she decides that she will offer Robert a package. In your opinion, what would be a reasonable offer in these circumstances? Explain your answer by identifying at least three factors that a court takes into consideration in determining the appropriate amount of reasonable notice of termination (or pay in lieu) required under the common law.

e. Suzanne feels very nervous about dismissing Robert (given his temper) and she would like to avoid having to tell him about it face-to-face. She’s thinking of just leaving a message on Robert’s answering machine telling him that his services are no longer required and making the severance offer. Is this a good idea? If not, does she have an alternative to telling him in person? Explain your answer.

Choosing a Manager

Do you think a team will be happy with a manager who shares a good rapport with the team members but is unable to help them during crunch situations? Or will a team be better off with a manager who does not mix well with people but is always able to help the team members? Consider a third situation in which the manager shares a good rapport with the team members and is also able to help solve their problems. Obviously, the third situation is a win-win situation.

To achieve a win-win situation, a manager must be able to fuse the business strategy with technology, the organizational structure, and available resources. To do so, the three basic required skill sets for a manager are interpersonal skills, technical skills, and conceptual skills. These three skill sets allow a manager to make spur-of-the-moment decisions, soothe disturbances among team members, and disseminate information, wherever required, to ease the workload.

Scenario:You have to hire a manager to supervise the call center in your organization. There are two candidates vying for the position. One has strong interpersonal skills; the other has strong technical and project management skills.

• Which of these skills is more important and for the selected candidate, what type of management development program would you use to strengthen the area of improvement? Justify your responses.