Posting for an older gentleman who doesn't know what Reddit is but wants the thoughts of the community.
The employer (a landscaping service inside of a large enterprise organization) has some concerns with the performance of an employee, we'll call them Jessica. The older gentleman on whose behalf I am posting is Jessica's Dad. Instead of discussing these concerns with Jessica and relevant potential changes in work responsibilities they contacted Jessica's parents. They explained their concerns and the potential to change which team Jessica worked on (which would mean lower pay, no 401K, moving from a manager they love, etc.) with Jessica's Dad. Dad works for the company that runs this landscaping service. He has a desk job within the main functions of the organization that has nothing to do with landscaping.
Jessica's Dad is now very confused about what exactly to do with all this. Dad has asked Jessica how work has been going and it is clear to him that Jessica's experience and the employer's experience are not aligned at all and that Jessica will be blindsided by this. He doesn't even know why they reached out to him instead of Jessica or what they expect him to do.
Dad is now wondering if what they did is illegal at all (Dad lives in Utah if that matters) and any thoughts on how to tackle this. Should Dad talk to Jessica? He has already encouraged the employer to have a direct conversation with Jessica about the issues they raised.
He is worried that there is just one person on the crew who doesn't get along with Jessica that might be influencing things. Overall Dad is just very confused and heartbroken and is looking for advice or thoughts.
Thank you for your input!