Basic scenario; I’m in manufacturing, I run a team of 12 industrial mechanics of varying skill levels (1-3). There are two other people that have my same job, covering two other teams of similar size. We also have a MIT program, mechanic in training. Our company has decided to cut the training program for budgetary reasons so the trainees are essentially sent back to their production job and we wipe our hands with them. Well I had two openings on my graveyard shift for months, nobody wanted them and the people that did want them couldn’t pass our assessment. Queue the situation at hand;
Two of the ex-trainees apply for the two openings, they both pass assessments and get scheduled interviews. I’m on vacation for the interviews so my two aforementioned colleagues handle them. One passes the interview, one does not. When I ask about the second, they said that she’s just not ready. I leave it at that for a while. A few weeks pass and that opening on graveyard is causing problems with coverage and response time, I partner with my scheduler who tells me he doesn’t know why she was passed over for the position when she works hard, has a positive attitude, always completes her assigned work. I go speak with said associate and she tells me she doesn’t know, she didn’t get any real feedback other than that she’s young and inexperienced and not ready.
(She’s an early 20s female, my colleagues are both older males. For reference)
My scheduler and I speak about the staffing problem for a few hours and I ask him if he would be willing to take her on with her lack of experience. He says yes, she passed all the assessments and she’s worked in our area for months before the training program was cancelled. She’s familiar with the team and all of our equipment. We decide to make the call to hire her and assume any risk.
I run this by HR about how I would do this since she didn’t pass the interview, I’m told to run it by my boss and get his blessing. I do that as well and he says it’s my team and to hire who I want. I give that information to HR and extend the offer. All is well, I’m fully staffed and the associate is happy she gets an opportunity.
Fast forward to this week, my colleagues find out about the hire and ask me who made that call? I say I did and I believe she will succeed with the right support and environment. They both make a few comments but nothing more. I get an email later that day that they reported me to HR for hiring someone who is unqualified, I get reprimanded for “not respecting the opinions of my peers.”. I send a lengthy reply about all the steps I took and why I made the decision and CC’d my colleagues on it. I got a reply all from one of them that said “I hope no one gets hurt.” With the head of HR on the same email. Wtf?
TLDR; hired a woman against the opinions of my colleagues, went through HR to ensure I was allowed and then was reprimanded by HR for doing so.