22 replies to this topic

[qalearner]

Hi All, 

 

Today we have visitors, and yet again I am having to remind managers who happen to be bald to wear a hairnet in the production area. Why is this still an issue!? This is a small thing, but is always a battle and drives me nuts! Forget about establishing a great food safety culture from the top down here I guess! Thankfully this is not an every day thing, but when we have a visit it is always the same thing. 

 

What little things in your day to day operations are you constantly fighting with? I can't be the only one with a rant!

[brianweber]

Getting employees to quit coming and finding me when they see an issue. I want them to address it and try to remedy the situation before getting me involved. I spend half of my day putting out little fires that they could address.

[esquef]

Two words: beard nets.

[qalearner]

Two words: beard nets.

 

I hear that esquef. 

[ladytygrr]

sign offs - i have to send an email EVERY DAY about missing sign offs.

[Simon]

The usual suspects are:

 

- not following personal hygiene rules

- not carrying out checks as specified

- not filling in records properly

 

Good question...better question, what the heck can we do about it?

[JohnWheat]

Engineering/Maintenance....not closing, starting or even acknowledging outstanding fabrication issues 

[brianweber]

I'm all for public caning of the violators Simon.

[JohnWheat]

I'm all for public caning of the violators Simon.

I'm feeling a 'Monty Python' stoning sketch coming :)

[Simon]

I'm all for public caning of the violators Simon.

 

I've got a good idea.

[brianweber]

Maybe that will work better in the long run, but for the "4. She or he must decide to do it." people that choose to be nonconforming and just not care, I'm sticking with public caning.

 

 In all seriousness what I am finding is due to years of no one directing the folks on the floor other than "get it done" an atmosphere of lackadaisical thinking and action has grown.  It is a failure on managements fault. I would seriously love to fire everyone and start from scratch with training and teaching. While that is not feasible due to customer orders and business being busy as heck, I struggle with not just shaking sense into people sometimes.  Our management team all the way up to the owner has improved quite a bit, and they realize they created this atmosphere and they do support change, so it will happen. It is just aggravating when it is the simple things that seem to shoot us in the foot.

[WayneFiorelli]

Probably the biggest issue I have is use of cell phones on the production lines. I work for a small tea business, and it's mostly friends and family, so after repeating the cell phone rules a few times, it gets awkward telling cousins, aunts, friends that they shouldn't have them out. I wish they would just have enough respect to learn the first time.

[Simon]



 

Maybe that will work better in the long run...

 

Culture change is a long and winding road...





[JohnWheat]

As Simon says it's a long road to drive culture change.

 

It HAS to be driven from the top down, without the support of the SMT and in particular your Factory/Plant manager (or equivalent) it's not going to happen before the next Ice age

[Miss Tammy]

What drives me nuts?  The fact that Supervisors on the floor do not correct GMP issues.  An employee could work all day blowing bubbles with gum and they would not say a word until a Food Safety employee addresses it.  Why do they feel that dress code issues, hair nets, etc. are our responsibility to correct?  I have had it!  I sent an email to them and copied upper management stating they will receive a written warning (from me-Food Safety and Quality Manager) along with the employee for blatant infractions that they allow with out correcting. 

[ctzinck]

What drives me nuts?  The fact that Supervisors on the floor do not correct GMP issues.  An employee could work all day blowing bubbles with gum and they would not say a word until a Food Safety employee addresses it.  Why do they feel that dress code issues, hair nets, etc. are our responsibility to correct?  I have had it!  I sent an email to them and copied upper management stating they will receive a written warning (from me-Food Safety and Quality Manager) along with the employee for blatant infractions that they allow with out correcting. 

 

I love this idea, if in certain situations an employee is to be disciplined for an GMP infraction should his immediate supervisor share in that disciplinary action for allowing the infringement to continue to occur to the point that action had to be taken?  

[ctzinck]

beardnets are always an issue but another problem I see is with our hair nets, we offer 2 different sizes and numerous male employees choose to wear the small even tho they know it wont fit there big heads and hair is left exposed and they refuse to wear the larger size and upper management will not allow us to discontinue the smaller ones.

 

cell phone use is also always near the top of the list.

[JPO]

I keep asking my executive management to let me use Tasers in the facility when I see GMP violations or questionable employee practices, but I keep getting turned down.  

 

"You moved that pallet by hand and then went back to the line without changing gloves and washing hands.  BZZZZZZZZZZZT!!!!"

 

"When you are done twitching, please wash your hands and put on new gloves."

[JohnWheat]

[Simon]

I wonder whether many (non-food safety manager) managers consider breaches of personal hygiene like chewing candy or not wearing a hairnet properly on the same level as for example a breach of health and safety like; running a machine without a guard or making a load of scrap or having the machine stopped for half a shift (BIG QUESTION...ARE THEY?).  Maybe the managers are equally ambivalent about all of those things. More likely in their mind there is a hierarchy of importance, with I guess what their boss asks about and what they are targeted on being at the top of the tree. I very much doubt personal hygiene issues are even on the tree.

 

Regards,

Simon

[ctzinck]

also, how can a non-food safety manager criticize an employee for having for example chewing gum in a production area when they themselves are eating a cough drop in production areas, its hypocritical, management needs to lead by example.

[Simon]

also, how can a non-food safety manager criticize an employee for having for example chewing gum in a production area when they themselves are eating a cough drop in production areas, its hypocritical, management needs to lead by example.

 

They can't...that's my point.  They don't see it as important, it doesn't matter. Output, quality, safety, waste and efficiency matter because the non-food safety manager gets carrot or stick from his senior on this performance.

[Miss Tammy]

The argument I used to get upper management attention?  When this same guy is blowing his bubbles, another one has his hair net tied up in the back, another one picks up product from the floor and does not change gloves, etc. during our BRC audit, THAT will surely effect their "bottom line" as all of our customers require a copy of the complete audit report!  If good habits are not in place 364 days you cannot expect them to be on day 365.  That is how I got away with the threat of disciplining the supervisors.