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Telcom Case Study 1. Analyze the Johnson-Marcado incident and forecast any consequences. Telcom is a telecommunications start-up based in Oakville, Ontario. The deregulation of the telecommunication industry in Canada resulted in an increased demand for discounted local telephone services among commercial customers in Ontario. The company was established to respond to the increased demand. Nelly Marcado and Patty Johnson are both employees in the operations department of the company. Both of them play essential roles in their department and are vital to Telcom's success. Patty Johnson is the conversion team leader and has been with Telcom since its inception. The conversion team elicits technical information from customers regarding the configuration of their telephone services. Contact with the customer could last as long as 30 minutes, and team members are required to administer customer contact carefully. Nelly Marcado is the service repair team leader and has also worked for Telcom since its inception. The service repair team is regarded as the most technically competent and service-oriented members of the operations department, but also the most stressful job within the department. The team is responsible for addressing service issues of customers. The conversion team and service repair team must work together to maintain the productivity of the company. Kathy Edmonds, the operations manager, receives a complaint from Nelly Marcado that Patty Johnson was sexually harassing and teasing her about having a "seductive telephone manner." Marcado was offended and embarrassed by Johnson's comments, and she did not find them humorous at all. Marcado spoke to a lawyer friend and was instructed to inform the manager regarding Johnson. The lawyer advised her to file a complaint with the Canadian Human Rights Commission that has not yet been officially submitted. Marcado said that she would be satisfied with an apology from Johnson. However, Johnson seems to be unwilling to give an apology to Marcado because, in her justification, she was only joking and Marcado should know better. Harassment is a form of discrimination that involves any inappropriate verbal or physical behaviour that humiliates a person. The human rights legislation prohibits any of these unwanted behaviours (Steen, Noe, Hollenbeck, Gerhart, & Wright, 2016, pp. 54-55). Nelly Marcado believes that Johnson was sexually harassing her, that she was seducing the customers and service technicians during her telephone call with them. As a result, Johnson has created a hostile

work environment because of her sexual jokes and offensive comments about Marcado (Steen et al., 2016, p. 55). There is a line between being humorous and being insulting with inappropriate jokes, and it can be difficult sometimes to know when a person has crossed the line. The Marcado-Johnson incident negatively impacts Telcom's working environment as it affects the job performance of the employees, especially Marcado. Johnson’s sexual jokes and offensive comments towards Marcado might affect Marcado’s morale resulting in increased usage of sick leave and stress leave to avoid Johnson. Additionally, Marcado might have troubles concentrating and making decisions due to the incident making her unproductive at work. The hostile behaviour of Johnson could also cause critical levels of stress and various illnesses to Marcado. Another potential consequence of this incident is employee turnover. If Marcado could not handle the situation anymore, there is a possibility that she might resign from the company. It would also result in an erosion of employee loyalty and commitment, which is very costly and detrimental for Telcom. Moreover, if the company decides to terminate Johnson, the company needs to replace her which means additional costs to recruit and train the new employee. Lastly, the incident might affect the public image of Telcom, and the company could be held liable for this issue. The Marcado-Johnson incident not only affects the company's working environment but also results in costly and distressing legal concerns.

2. What alternatives are available to Mathany with respect to dealing with Johnson and Marcado on Monday morning? There are a few alternatives available to Mathany with respect to dealing with Johnson and Marcado on Monday morning. The first alternative for Mathany is to change the office layout temporarily, with Marcado and Johnson being in the same department. Changing the office layout of the operations department is one alternative available to Mathany if the two employees cannot work together. This alternative does not address the problem but it will give Mathany time to seek a proper and professional opinion from the Human Resources professionals. Another alternative that Mathany have but will not solve the problem is to do nothing, Mathany have little knowledge regarding the policies for harassment to effectively control and solve the Johnson and Marcado’s problem. Mathany needs to ensure that the problem is being process effectively and not to just make decisions without proper procedures, especially that he is not familiar with the policies.

The second option, Mathany should talk to Marcado and Johnson separately and hear both sides of their stories, then proceed by seeking and interviewing any witnesses that can provide further information. Mathany will write a detailed report with respect to Johnson, Marcado, and potential witnesses’ statements and proceed by acquiring expertise in the Human Resources department that could further analyse the situation and proceed with action to resolve the problem. The third alternative, Mathany should have a meeting with both Johnson and Marcado and investigate how and when the incident occurred. To analyse why Marcado feels harass by Johnson and listen to what Johnson has to say about the incident and if he is willing to comply with Marcado’s request of an apology. This meeting could also help Johnson explain herself and help her realize that what she said might have just been a joke for her but it is hurtful to Mathany and comply with the apology. While Marcado and Johnson are present, Marthany can outline the possible options both parties can proceed to if they will not be able to reach any settlement. Another option for Mathany is to have a human resources specialist come in and have a meeting with Johnson and Marcado along with Mathany who would asses the incident and analyse if any current policies of the company and the Canada Human Right Act have been violated. This would include a further investigation of the complaint to ensure that both parties are being assessed fairly and if proven of the violation will result in consequence. The last alternative, Mathany should persuade Johnson to apologise to Marcado and to ensure that this kind of behaviour will never occur again and if it does, it would result in more severe consequences, such as being terminated. Furthermore, Mathany would ensure that any inappropriate behaviour and comments result in consequences and will not be tolerated. The organization ensure professionalism and mutual respect with all the organization employees to promote a positive and safe environment.

3. What should be included in a human resources policy to capture the spirit and intent of the Canadian Human Rights Act? Having a Human Resources Department is essential for any company, and that includes start-ups. Human Resources policies are critical for managing a business and for giving employees written guidelines and standards so that they would feel confident that they are working for a company that has principles (Mayhew, 2018). Telcom has five departments but

lacks a Human Resources Department. If Telcom does not include a Human Resources Department, running the business will be very difficult, and the company might encounter serious problems all over again. Telcom should institute a Human Resources Department so that the company could implement various Human Resources policies concerning harassment or discriminatory matters. After establishing the Human Resources Department, Telcom must ensure that the new Human Resources policy captures the spirit and intent of the Canadian Human Rights Act. The company should make it clear that all forms of harassment will not be tolerated, and that the policy should set standards and expectations for employee behaviour. The Human Resources policy should define any unwanted behaviour that is considered harassing or discriminatory. Examples would be derogatory comments towards women (or men), inappropriate staring, sexual jokes, unnecessary physical contact, vulgar humour related to gender, and other physical or verbal behaviours that are offensive or humiliating (Steen et al., 2016, p. 55). It should also send a message to every employee of Telcom that they must take these kinds of issues seriously. Every employee of Telcom should have the right to file a complaint of discrimination or harassment. Any employee who has reasonable grounds for believing that a colleague has engaged in a discriminatory practice may file a complaint with the Human Right Commission. The Commission may assign an investigator to ensure proper investigation and examination of any complaint filed. After investigating the complaint filed, the investigator will then write a detailed report to the Human Rights Commission regarding the findings of the investigation. If a person is found guilty, there will be consequences depending on the severity of the offence. The victim should receive compensation for any expenses or lost wages he or she suffered as a result of harassment or discriminatory practice. Furthermore, Telcom’s Human Resources policy should be a formal statement of rules and guidelines that all members of the company must follow and uphold. They must abide by this policy by not engaging from any form of harassment or discrimination and by cooperating if there is an investigation of a complaint. Additionally, managers and supervisors should be responsible for ensuring a safe and friendly work environment, free from any form of discrimination. Thus, having a Human Resources policy would help reduce the number of issues of discrimination related to any of the prohibited grounds and any form of harassment that may arise.

4. What steps would you take to introduce and implement the new HR policy? Prior to introducing and implementing a new Human Resources policy the company has to recognize the need for the new policies (Karrera, 2017). In this case, due to the incident between Marcado and Johnson, it helps the company identify the importance of proper policies and regulations that are in accordance with the Canadian Human Rights Act. It is significant that every organization or company have a Human Resources department this not only reflects the organization's values and ethics but also protects everyone within the organization and also the organization itself. Prior to the process of policy implementation the organization should consult with professional in regards to what the organization need. Consultation also ensure that all employees understand the significance of the organization policies and procedures and why they need to be implemented (Weekes, 2017). The first step, to establish and ensure that the new HR policy would address a real need for the policy and reflects the values of Telcom. These policies reflect the organization ethical values and the importance of protecting and valuing their employees’ safety as well as having a safe and positive workplace environment. After recognizing the need for the policies the company have to ensure that they have the proper tools and resources to facilitate its implementation and proper monitoring. The second step is policy content development, developing new policies that the company agrees they need and are important. With respect to the employees, the organization would also be informed regarding the new policies and seek their opinions regarding what the company needs to regulate and improve on in relation to policies and regulation to protect the employees and avoid unwanted incidents and behaviours. The policy content would address the basic human rights, the Canadian Human Rights Act, as well as what the organization intends to accomplish and the outcome they expect from the implementation. The third step is drafting of the policy, gathering information that is significant to the policies being implemented, to ensure the policy in informative and legally adequate (Karrera, 2017). The draft would include policies and regulations, that outlines the details of each policy and explains the definition of each policy, the actions you can commit them as well as their consequences. The draft would also contain the purpose of these policies and the responsibilities

of all of the organization's employees to emphasize the organization ethical value of what is wrong and right. To proceed, the organization will consult human resources management, stakeholders, and managers to further review and analyse the policies. Once the policy has been approved, the formal written of policies will proceed with proper procedure of an attorney to ensure that everything under the policies has been legitimized and approved (Mayhew, 2019). After the approval, the next step would be the implementation of the policy, the organization will ensure that all of its employees are well informed about the policies and their responsibilities as employees. To advocate that these policies are taken seriously and are not tolerated by the organization, and breaking these policies will result in serious consequences. The policies will also be discussed with the employees on a regular basis, to ensure that they are aware and educated will all of the policies and procedures. In accordance with the implementation, the company enforce the policies, it will continue to monitor the policies to ensure that is it being followed, reviewed regularly and revise the policies throughout if adjustment is needed (Weekes, 2017). Finally, Telcom would ensure that all of the employees would have access to Human Resources information and can ask any questions regarding the policies.

Mayhew R. (2019). How to Implement HR Policies. Retrieved from https://smallbusiness.chron.com/implement-hr-policies-58053.html

Weekes J. (2017). Step-by-step: How to implement effective policies and procedures. Retrieved from https://www.healthandsafetyhandbook.com.au/step-by-step-how-to-implement-effectivepolicies-and-procedures/

Karrera M. (2017). Developing Successful HR Policies. Retrieved form https://www.careeraddict.com/developing-hr-policies...