Use of Mediation: Hostess

Mediation has been used as a tool to negotiate contracts between the union and Hostess. The various forms of sweets, twinkies, etc that we have all grown up with will not be shut down- well not yet! Mediation will be used to assist with conflict resolution and contract negotiation between the company and its labor union. The full details are not available, but we are positive that mediation will be used as a tool to find a middle ground for both parties.

Please see the story below as presented by CNN.

Hostess shutdown on hold

By Chris Isidore and James O'Toole @CNNMoney November 19, 2012: 4:38 PM ET

Striking members of the Bakery Workers union at Hostess. The company and the union have agreed to mediated talks that have postponed plans for liquidation.

WHITE PLAINS, N.Y. (CNNMoney) -- Hostess Brands and a key union agreed Monday to try to mediate their dispute -- an unexpected development that could spare the company from permanently shutting down.
The Bakery Workers union, which represents 5,000 of the 18,500 employees at the maker of Twinkies and Wonder Bread, went on strike on Nov. 9. The company had imposed paycuts and other concessions opposed by the union's membership.

On Friday, management announced a shutdown of Hostess and appeared before U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Robert Drain on Monday afternoon seeking approval to liquidate.
But Drain said he wanted the parties to try one last time to reach agreement. Drain will serve as the mediator at a session scheduled for Tuesday afternoon. Only one day of talks is set for now.
Hostess CEO Greg Rayburn said the company needs a final decision on Tuesday. Monday's hearing on the liquidation motion was rescheduled for Wednesday at 11 a.m.
Tom Becker, spokesman for Hostess, said operations at its plants and distribution centers nationwide remain shutdown at this time. They were closed Friday morning when the company announced plans to liquidate.
A spokesman for the Bakery Workers union could not be immediately reached for comment. A spokesman for the Teamsters union, which represents 6,700 workers at Hostess, said he could not comment on the mediation.

Rayburn had said on Friday that it was too late to save the company, even if the Bakers returned to work at that time. That belief was echoed by company attorneys in bankruptcy court Monday.
"It would be very hard for us to recover from this damage, even if there were an agreement," said Heather Lennox, one of the lawyers for Hostess.
But Drain was clear that he wanted every effort made to avoid liquidation before he would sign of off the the company's motion. He cited the 18,000 jobs at stake.
"I believe that mediation only works if the parties are willing to do it, but I'm also strongly suggesting that they should be willing to do it," he said.
Bakery Workers' union lawyer Jeff Freund wouldn't speculate about the chance for a deal following the hearing. He had told the court that the union had already spelled out what needed to be done in order to produce a viable company.
"The court very respectfully asked that we participate in mediation and we'll honor the court's request," Freund said.
Rayburn refused to handicap the chances for a deal.
"I guess there's always a chance," he told reporters. "We'll take all the help we can get. [But] it doesn't change our financial situation."
But he insisted that management would be pleased if it could avoid liquidation.
"Everybody would agree that 18,500 people out of work would be about as bad a result as you can get," he said.
Exclusive: Hostess bidder wants to keep employees, bakeries
Hostess has announced its intention to sell its brands and recipes for various products and other assets as a way to generate cash for its creditors. Even if the products are purchased by other companies and once again sold to consumers, most potential buyers are unlikely to rehire Hostess employees to produce or deliver those products.
One hope for the unions and the employees was raised earlier in the day Monday when private equity firm Sun Capital Partners disclosed it wants to buy Hostess as a going concern, including reopening the shuttered factories and continuing union representation of Hostess workers.
Before Sun Capital's interest was first reported by Fortune Monday, the unions' statements and filings seemed resigned to the fact that Hostess will be closed down and the hourly workers will be out of work.
The Bakery Workers union issued a statement Saturday citing mismanagement over a number of years for the company's troubles.
Related: Hostess jobs: 'Great' to 'Not worth saving'
"Hostess failed because its six management teams over the last eight years were unable to make it a profitable, successful business enterprise," said the union.
But it said its members understood when they went on strike that a shutdown of the company would likely occur.
"They were well aware of the potential consequences of their actions but stood strong for dignity, justice and respect," the union's said.

Case Study: Hostility at the Workplace Follow Up

Recently I posted my blog about workplace hostility about a coworker who feeds off hostility. Today, an employee whom this instigator tried to get into trouble was confronted by his victim. I watched the whole scene play out. The employee, who is a young, bright intelligent lady quietly approached this instigator and asked "Why did you send that email to HR?" and the instigator simply replied "compliance-I am being compliant". So the young lady said "bullshit, it's not compliance, you did it to get me in trouble. I would have never done this to you because I think twice about getting people into trouble with the possibility of losing their jobs. I could have lost my  job! I will never do this to anyone knowing that they have to put food on the table to feed their kids. Why are you so compliant knowing that you did this to stir trouble. You don't even know who I am or what my problems are, so why did you really do it?"

And the instigator answers "I don't want this company to lose good employees like you". Now this instigator is really very new into the organization. He has been around for about 6 months. The instigator continues with the excuses but while he speaks, he is sweating profusely, and stuttering quite a bit. Obviously the body language is enough to determine that the instigator is a complete liar.

Anyhow, long story short, the individual was able to sweetly, and quietly state her message to the instigator in the manner of "don't mess with me". As a neutral third party, I asked each party to state what they have learned from this dispute, and how to better avoid it the next time around.

Does this happen to you? Are you an instigator or a victim employee? share your thoughts with us. 

Posted on behalf of Group WhyNot. For more information regarding our services, please visit www.groupwhynot.com

Case Study: Hostility at the Workplace

Recently I facilitated a case in an organization where one employee had the habit of instigating unnecessary conflict with other employees. The goal of this employee was to secure his seat in the company. The employee was fairly new to the company and worked as a Director of a specific market within this organization. However, he had created a negative perception about this work ethic and lack of integrity in his previous employment. At his current organization, this employee began to create trouble for some of the older employees. He had a bad habit of lying, making up lies regarding his sales, and reporting false bids, and profits within the internal platform of the company that tracked sales accounts and profits. The organization had a no tolerance rule for unethical behavior. However, with little gossip that he would hear, or would ease drop in conversations, he made it blow up someone's problem into a larger issue, causing further embarrassment for his colleagues. He had already created the perception of a "cheap salesman" at his new employment due to the fluff he was used to talking. He was a talker but not an executor. On the contrary, it was his goal to ensure that if he snitched on his colleagues, he would seem like a favored employee in the company.


Then one day, he really created havoc for an employee who could have easily had him fired due to the lies she had known about this employee's habits. This female employee had welcomed this new director and helped him understand the clients, their needs, etc. Instead of creating an alliance with this employee, this salesman went to HR and her boss to report a lie he had conjured about his colleague. The lie was that the employee was seeking new employment. Although he had no evidence, the female employee was called into the HR office. She had to explain her case was a complete lie. Now the female employee was determined to get the Director in trouble for his lies.


Do you think this is wise? No. Group WhyNot provided communication services to the HR and management teams in this organization to ensure managers would be able to understand the behavior and behavior patterns of an "instigator". At every workplace and organization, there is always an employee who is deemed to be the "instigator". This employee does not deserve the time of the day. HR and management should pay more attention to where the Director's time is wasted vs. focusing on validating his lies. In fact, someone like the Director should be reprimanded for his behavior. The punishment should include 100 hours of training hours in communication, and ethics at the workplace. 

Group Whynot provides conflict resolution services. Visit us at www.groupwhynot.com for more information.

Posted on behalf of Group WhyNot.