Dear Place Of Employment

 Dear Place Of Employment, 

This morning, you told us -- "us" being the sub brazing department -- that you want us to braze 2100 headers per day.  That's a pretty tall order, but it is completely doable.  The caveat is, in order for us to accomplish this, you must also hold up your end of the bargain. 

Do I need to define caveat for you?  

You're probably wondering about this time, just exactly what is your end of the bargain?  Being the management team of a major manufacturing facility, you should already know this, but since you don't seem to, I'll be happy to tell you.  Your end of the bargain is as follows.

1.  You need to be sure there is work available for us at all times.  We can't braze if there is nothing for us to braze.  It's as simple as that.

2.  You need to fill those empty brazing stands.  It's neither fair nor realistic of you to make such demands of us knowing all the while we are short handed.  And if someone else is out for any reason, that really puts us in a bind.  Yes, I know that one person is coming back next month, but in the interim, you can put someone on her stand temporarily.  

Do I need to define interim for you?

The other stand, however, has been empty for what is it.  Seven, eight months now?  That brazer got a different job within the company.  He is not coming back.  It's time to replace him.  No, it's past time to replace him.  We can braze so much more with a fully staffed department.  

3.  Stop letting other supervisors move us out of the department.  You know that one assembly line supervisor who thinks the sub brazing department is her personal convenience store?  Yeah, tell her no every once in a while.  If we're on the line, we aren't brazing headers.  And if you do lend her someone, stop sending your best people.   Let her have the lazy folks for a change.  And yes, I know you need people on the line, but nothing goes down that line without a header on it.  Stop treating us like our job is irrelevant.   

4.  In addition to making sure we have work available, you need to make sure our orders are complete and our parts are correct.  When we're over in tubing ordering parts because they were wrong, we're not brazing.  When we're off trying to scrounge up enough parts to finish the order, because there weren't enough in the bin, we're not brazing.  When we're having to replace an adapter tube because it got smashed in the bender, and the operator did replace it like she was supposed to, we're not brazing. When we're having to open the holes in the header because they didn't do it in tubing like they were supposed to, we're not brazing.  When we're having to re-round the ends of the adapter tubes, or knock the burrs from the headers, or manually bend the parts so they'll fit into the jig....you guessed it.  When we have to take time to confirm headers or adapter tubes in the computer so we can confirm what we brazed, we're not brazing.  The more time we have to spend doing tubing's job, the less time we have to do our own.  

5. Replace or repair the missing and broken brazing fixtures, and give us adequate rack space to store the ones we do have.  The more time we spend hunting for jigs, or trying to jury rig broken ones, the less time we have to braze. 

6.  And finally, take us off water restrictions.  Because you seem to have slept through 7th grade life science, let me inform you of something.  The human body needs fuel, just like any other machine does.  You've got people coming in at 5:00 AM who are being forced to starve for 6 hours because of your hubris. 

Do I need to define hubris for you?

If you want us working as hard as you seem to, you need to let us fuel our bodies.  Your car isn't going to get very far without gas, and neither are your employees.  

Oh, and I almost forgot...one more thing...

7.  Treat your employees with respect.  You know you can look up how many headers we braze in that computer.  We know you know you can look up how many headers we braze in that computer.  So, why do you want us to write down how many we braze and turn it in to you?  Telling me it's so you can compare what I'm telling you with what the computer says is essentially telling me you think I'm lying to you.  I don't want to work for someone who as good as calls me a liar to my face.  

There you have it.  That's your end of the bargain.  You hold it up, and you'll be amazed at how much work we can put out for you.  

Seriously.  Give it a try sometime.

Thank you.

That is all.