INCIDENT - What a Change!

"Just leave me alone and let me do my lob; said Manuel Gomez. Dumbfounded, Bill Brown, Manuel's supervisor, decided to count to 10 and did not respond to Manuel's comment. As he walked back to his office, Bill thought about how Manuel had changed over the Past few months. He had been a hard worker and extremity cooperative when he started working for Bill two years earlier. The company had sent Manuel to two training schools and had received glowing reports about his performance in each of them.
Until about a year ago, Manuel had a perfect attendance record and was an ideal employee. At about that time, however he began to have personal problems, which resulted in a divorce sac months later. Manuel had Several times requested a day off to take care of personal business. Bill attempted to help in every way he could without getting directly involved in Manuel' personal affairs. But Bill was aware of the Strain Manuel must have experienced as his marriage broke up, and he and his wife engaged in the inevitable disputes over child custody, alimony payments, and property.

During the same time period, top management initiated a push for improving productivity. Bill found it necessary to put additional pressure on all his workers, including Manuel. He tried to be considerate, but he had to become much more performance-oriented, insisting on increased output from every worker. As time went on, Manuel began to show up late for work, and actually missed two days without caning Bill in advance. Bin attributed Manuel's behavior to extreme stress. Because Manuel had been such a good worker for so long, Bill excused the tardiness and absences, only gently suggesting that Manuel should try to do better.

Sitting at his desk, Bill thought about what might have caused Manuel's outburst a few minutes earlier. Bill had suggested to Manuel that he Shut down the machine he was operating and clean up the surrounding area. This was a normal part of Manuel's job and something he had been careful to do in the past. Bill felt the disorder around Manuel's machine might account for the Increasing number of defects in the parts he was making. 'This is a tough one. I think I'll talk to the boss about it,' thought Bill.

Questions-

1. What do you think is likely to be Manuel's problem? Discuss.

2. Might a substance free workplace be appropriate for Bill Brown's company? If so, what would be the steps in establishing such a workplace?

3. How might use of an employee assistance program help in this situation?