While customers of FedEx Corporation, the world's largest transportation company, are guaranteed that their packages will arrive safely and on-time to their intended destinations, employees of this thirty-two year old organization know they are guaranteed a fair hearing in all matters of justice within the workplace.
At the heart of the FedEx culture lies a strong commitment and dedication to its people who are
the driving force behind the success of this 26 billion dollar company. The company's people-centric culture fosters an environment where people feel appreciated and respected for the work they do, and where fairness and justice pervade in the workplace.
Two unique programs in particular, from two different FedEx divisions, evolved from this people-centric culture and bring fairness to life in the workplace - FedEx Express's Guaranteed Fair Treatment (GFT) Procedure and FedEx Ground's RESPECT (Resolving Employee Situations and Problems Encourages Company-wide Trust) program.
GFT Procedure
"Employees have rights, as citizens of this company," says Catherine Banks, Manager of HR Compliance at FedEx Express. The Guaranteed Fair Treatment (GFT) Procedure provides a formal procedure for handling employee complaints, problems, concerns, and allegations of employment discrimination, and further, guarantees an employee's right to participate within the guidelines of the process.
The GFT Procedure has been in place for over 20 years and is a three-step appeal process available to all FedEx Express employees. Within five days of receiving a disciplinary letter, an employee has the option to begin the process by filing a complaint via an online form or hard copy bubble report.
Seventeen to twenty cases are prepared weekly for submission to the Appeals Board. In preparation, the Appeals Board Team gets in touch with employees and their managers to collect the facts associated with each case. All pending cases are delivered to the Board members each Friday, and "they often take them home over the weekend to review," says Banks. This in and of itself is a strong declaration of the senior leaders' commitment and dedication to guaranteeing a high level of fairness within the FedEx Express workplace.
RESPECT Program
While the focus of FedEx Express' GFT Procedure is complaint resolution, FedEx Ground's RESPECT Program spotlights conflict resolution. RESPECT was launched in 2000 by FedEx Ground's Diversity office. The formal program evolved from the zero tolerance hotline for discrimination complaints and is intended to promote and preserve positive working relationships at all levels of the organization and provide a formal process for employee/manager conflict resolution.
The program resolves problems in five main areas: termination decisions, non-selection for an internal position, discipline situations, policy violations, and unfair treatment.
"RESPECT is a way to approach conflict in a positive way," says Carolyn Lyle, Senior Manager of Diversity. By encouraging employees and managers alike to have a positive view of conflict, the program provides a safe environment to discuss differences without the fear of reprisal. "They view this as an opportunity to better their relationships in the workplace, and feel valued for their contribution to these efforts," Lyle adds.
FedEx Ground is a place where conflict is viewed positively, and, as Lyle divulges, "we believe it's good news when employees complain. In this business, time is not something that is taken for granted, so when employees take the time to complain, it means they really care." |
