Hey y'all, for some background I am the lead heat treat operator with one of the leading bearing manufacturers, globally. Currently I oversee the heat treat department on second shift (230pm-11pm) and I've just returned to the company after about 8 years.
The operator on first shift, we'll call him Tom, has been there for about three years now. Tom is a very nice guy, and eager to please. By which I mean that Tom wants to do a good job, and he genuinely applies effort anywhere he can. He's not afraid to request more training, which is saying a lot in comparison to many of our workers. Most just don't care as long as they're not getting fired.
Here's the kicker: they want to fire Tom, and give me his job, which I do not want. They have basically told Tom this because he keeps making minor mistakes that snowball into real issues down the line. Most of these mistakes Tom makes are really not his fault, as he is currently trying to run a two man department by himself. Now I, a younger and more experienced man, am capable of doing so. Tom, however, is not, because he is in his 60s and has a bad back due to an injury sustained while serving our country.
Well, today I saw Tom leaving the plant as I was coming in (I arrive an hour early to get the feel of the department and to assist Tom as needed) so I asked him if everything was okay. It turns out today they told Tom that one more quality issue will result in his termination. This is their way of saying “that's it Tom, you're done, just as soon as we decide you are”
The man was near tears, I mean consider that he is a 60+ year old man who is now about to be unemployed as our economy is in shambles. To make matters worse, we live in a small farm town, and there aren't many job opportunities whatsoever.
This whole situation has me so disgusted that I believe I will be furnishing my two weeks notice as soon as I've lined up an alternative.
TL;DR manufacturing company is crushing the will of a man who just wants to work, because they want a younger and more efficient operator to take his place even though he has done nothing to deserve termination.