Genesis, Inc. case: assessing employee satisfaction.

Nixon, Judy ; Helms, Marilyn M.

HISTORY OF GENESIS

The original company began in 1955 and was established as Genesis USA. Thirty years later in 1985, an acquisition of Gemini Industrial Products was made. In 1995, more expansion took place with the acquisition of manufacturing plants in South America, Australia, Europe, and Asia. During 2005, another merger of plants in Melbourne, Australia and Prague, and the Czech Republic was completed. The most recent acquisition occurred in 2006 with a merger of plants in Turkey, China, and Indonesia. Today, the company is a global leader with 10 operations spread over five continents, in nine countries with a workforce of approximately 5,000 employees.

In 2007, the company's net sales reached $925 million.

At the Georgia production facility, Genesis supervisors realized even though employees seemed to appreciate their jobs, productivity, innovation, and employee retention could be improved. Genesis was a top company to work for because of the great benefits offered its employees, but the perception seemed to be eroding. There was a sense that motivation and morale had declined following the latest merger. Out of necessity, changes were being made. Work shifts were reduced from 12 hours to 8 hours and overtime was eliminated. Employees who came from Global International were accustomed to working fourteen days with seven days off and working 12 hour shifts. This was changed to working five eight hour weekdays with weekends off. This seemed to be one of the biggest employee complaints. In addition, fewer benefits were provided to all employees in a cost-saving measure.

Two-thirds of the employees had been with either Genesis or Allied prior to the mergers. These employees had similar jobs and were from the same type of manufacturing background. The remaining employees (approximately one third) were new hires and had little knowledge of the previous culture or benefits except for things they'd been told through the company "grapevine." During the last merger yet a new mix of employees changed the cultures. These employees were immigrant workers from Central America and Mexico.

Generally, employees enjoyed working in the manufacturing environment with other employees but the original employees' discontent with what they perceived to be an erosion of pay and benefits seemed to be affecting the newly acquired and newly hired employees. Turnover reached a company high of 25 percent in 2008. Since the changes were recent, the executive team wanted to quickly address the issues.

Workplace injuries had increased and managers wondered if the increase in injuries was due to lack of training or supervision or due to the new hires and the merger. Reinstatement of the plant's "superior" safety record was an important goal.

Management engaged a human resources consultant for help in identifying the source of problems and for guidance on reshaping the culture. The HR consultant met with the top three directors at Genesis in Dalton, Georgia. The group included the general manager, the quality assurance manager, and the production manager. The general manager began by discussing the current corporate culture.

"We are a blend of three different employee groups. The first group hired worked for Global International, which originally manufactured an automobile tire backing material before we began making carpet backing at this plant. A second core group of employees were hired to work at this plant and had only known yarn and carpet backing production. A third group of employees had been hired following the recent merger with one of our former competitors" the general manager explained. As the discussion continued, it became clear that at least three different cultures were evident and the changes had taken place in less than three years. Not only were there differing cultures but work practices and task completion steps also varied. The groups remained disparate thinking their past ideas and processes were superior to the others.

In the meeting with company leaders, the consultant realized maintaining a highly motivated workforce was the key to Genesis future success. The company requires employees who are productive, innovative, and will work to control costs while striving to be the industry leader. With the declining economy in 2009, it is important for employees to implement cost-saving measures while maintaining a high level of job performance and satisfaction. Managers felt employee satisfaction was directly related to quality and productivity. Because of the crises in the mortgage industry and the declining new home construction and automobile production, there is less demand for carpet. Demand for Genesis's carpet backing, yarn, and other products is soft. Management agrees now is the time to correct internal issues and prepare for an industry rebound in the next 12 to 18 months.

After several meetings, discussions, and a tour of the facility, the HR consultant prepared a questionnaire to gather employee data. The questionnaire was pre-tested by the leadership team and a small group of seven hourly employees before the instrument was administered to all managers, professionals, and hourly workers.

Employees were asked to rate each question on a Likert-type scale ranging from "strongly agree" to "strongly disagree" with "3" a mid-point rating for the neutral response of "neither agree nor disagree." Questionnaire categories included the job itself, key job satisfaction components of skill variety, task significance, task identity, autonomy, communication and feedback plus areas of compensation, benefits, rewards, and recognition. The results are tabulated by percentages in several tables following the original order of the questionnaire. Of the Genesis employees who participated in the satisfaction survey, ninety percent were hourly, five percent were managers and five percent were non-managerial/professional. The survey was administered during two off-site mandatory training sessions. Approximately twenty employees did not complete the survey due to illness/absence.

QUESTIONS

Based on the data provided, prepare a consultant's report. Specifically, address the following questions.

1. What are your recommendations for management to improve the culture of Genesis?

2. What specific recommendations are needed for the job, communication and feedback, compensation and benefits, and recognition?

3. What does Genesis seem to be doing right? Should these practices be continued?

4. Develop a time line and order of implementation for the recommended changes?

5. When should the company expect to see improved morale and why?

6. How can the company perpetuate the "new" culture for the future, particularly if additional mergers and acquisitions are forthcoming? How?

7. If the economic downturn and recession persists, how can the company maintain morale in light of potential layoffs and cut-backs in jobs and work loads?

8. What top changes are necessary to improve the safety/injury record at Genesis to previous levels?

9. Discuss change management and Lewin's unfreeze-change-refreeze theory of organizational change as it relates to Genesis.

10. Given the issues mentioned in the open-ended responses, what should management change or address and why?

Judy Nixon, University of Tennessee at Chattanooga

Marilyn M. Helms, Dalton State College

Table 1: About My Job

                         Strongly   Agree    Neither Agree   Disagree
                           Agree              or Disagree

1. Overall, I feel this     52       119           48           21
is a good place to
work.

2. I clearly understand     76       143           21            7
the expectations of my
job

3. The workload             25       103           55           47
expected of me is
realistic

4. I feel I have            24        84           60           56
adequate resources and
support to do my job

5. The orientation to       26       104           63           31
my job adequately
prepared me

6. I have the               51       102           49           33
decision-making
authority I need to do
my job well

7. I feel my efforts        60       115           44           21
make a positive
difference in the
success of this
organization

8. I have the chance to     57       132           38           19
make daily use of my
abilities and skills

9. I enjoy performing       43        86           71           32
the day-to-day
activities of my job

10. My work schedule        57        71           55           34
allows me sufficient
flexibility to meet my
personal/family needs

11.Employee                 64        97           51           18
relationships are based
on trust

12. The level of            20        87           87           35
cooperation within the
company helps me in
performing my job

13. I received the          40       114           55           24
appropriate training to
perform my job

14. Additional training
would be useful in
(write your answer in
space provided):

* troubleshooting mechanical problems, skills and procedures (28)

* specific skills--packing standards, finishing spinning procedures,
polymers, winders(20)

* all aspects of the jobs in general--on-going, hands-on training is
needed (15)

* maintenance and equipment repair (6)

* cross training between the 1st and 2nd floor (4)

* new hire classes (4)

* communication (3)

* cleaning (2)

* foreign language (Spanish) (2)

* management and supervision (2)

Additional comments: computer; documentation; drives; housekeeping;
forklift driving; I trained myself; keep trainees off the floor until
they are properly trained; listening to and understanding lies; making
sure the trainers watch the employees they are training carefully;
notes; train on our off days monthly possibly 1 day; one on one
training; problem solving; process; project management; still in the
classroom training now.

Total                       595      1357         697           378

                         Strongly   Did Not    Total
                         Disagree    Answer

1. Overall, I feel this      9         4        253
is a good place to
work.

2. I clearly understand      5         1        253
the expectations of my
job

3. The workload             21         2        253
expected of me is
realistic

4. I feel I have            27         2        253
adequate resources and
support to do my job

5. The orientation to       16         13       253
my job adequately
prepared me

6. I have the               11         7        253
decision-making
authority I need to do
my job well

7. I feel my efforts        11         2        253
make a positive
difference in the
success of this
organization

8. I have the chance to      6         1        253
make daily use of my
abilities and skills

9. I enjoy performing       14         7        253
the day-to-day
activities of my job

10. My work schedule        30         6        253
allows me sufficient
flexibility to meet my
personal/family needs

11.Employee                 21         2        253
relationships are based
on trust

12. The level of            21         3        253
cooperation within the
company helps me in
performing my job

13. I received the          12         8        253
appropriate training to
perform my job

14. Additional training
would be useful in
(write your answer in
space provided):

* troubleshooting mechanical problem  157

* specific skills--packing standards, finishing spinning procedures,
polymers, winders (20)

* all aspects of the jobs in general--on-going, hands-on training is
needed (15)

* maintenance and equipment repair (6)

* cross training between the 1st and 2nd floor (4)

* new hire classes (4)

* communication (3)

* cleaning (2)

* foreign language (Spanish) (2)

* management and supervision (2)

Additional comments: computer; documentation; drives; housekeeping;
forklift driving; I trained myself; keep trainees off the floor until
they are properly trained; listening to and understanding lies; making
sure the trainers watch the employees they are training carefully;
notes; train on our off days monthly possibly 1 day; one on one
training; problem solving; process; project management; still in the
classroom training now.

Total                       204       215

Table 2: Communication and Feedback

                          Strongly   Agree   Neither Agree   Disagree
                            Agree             or Disagree

15. Genesis regularly        20       122          64           35
and effectively
communicates
organizational goals and
objectives

16. New and existing         13        87          73           58
policies are clear,
communicated in a timely
manner and easily
available

17. I am informed about      11        59          72           68
big changes in advance,
instead of being caught
by surprise

18. I receive regular        19        68          78           60
and effective feedback
that helps me improve my
job performance

19. My supervisor is not     11        56          68           79
specific enough when
giving me feedback about
my job performance

20. My supervisor            48        87          67           29
listens to me when I
have issues or ideas
about improving my job

21. My supervisor's          37        86          66           38
actions and behaviors
are consistent with her
words

22. I am satisfied with      19        62          68           65
how complaints and
concerns are dealt with

23. My supervisor is         48       106          53           24
approachable and
available whenever I
have a need

24. The supervisor has a     39        88          58           28
good understanding of
what is happening in
this facility

25. Communication at
Genesis could be
improved by:

Representative Comments:  letting people know well in advance
before anything is done; not communicating at the "last minute";
telling people face-to-face instead or relaying problems or
concerns; quick responses; being more up to date on issues; shift
notes; communicating; actually listening to the employee's
concerns; management has no real idea as to what is happening
within the industrial parts of this company; newsletter to all
employees; having a clear understanding of other team members
jobs and responsibility; English classes are needed; responding
to our question without getting mad; listening to a broader
cross-section of employees instead of a select few; more team
meeting; improving communication with shifts (top to bottom);
eliminating "layers" of communication--go directly to those
involved in needed discussion; handbook; if everybody speaks and
understands English; letting people know what kind of process
changes are being made; having translators; allowing operators to
speak openly without rejecting their ideas as soon as they start
talking; supervisors following standard operating procedures
also; not waiting till the last minute to be informed about big
changes (example: going to eight hour days); if you know about
changes two months before time than you should let your employees
know that; computer lists updated and used; allowing individuals
in area to make the "call" instead of going thru several
individuals before a decision is made.

Total                        265      821         667           484

                          Strongly   Did Not    Total
                          Disagree    Answer

15. Genesis regularly        10         2        253
and effectively
communicates
organizational goals and
objectives

16. New and existing         20         2        253
policies are clear,
communicated in a timely
manner and easily
available

17. I am informed about      39         4        253
big changes in advance,
instead of being caught
by surprise

18. I receive regular        23         5        253
and effective feedback
that helps me improve my
job performance

19. My supervisor is not     32         7        253
specific enough when
giving me feedback about
my job performance

20. My supervisor            18         4        253
listens to me when I
have issues or ideas
about improving my job

21. My supervisor's          21         5        253
actions and behaviors
are consistent with her
words

22. I am satisfied with      38         1        253
how complaints and
concerns are dealt with

23. My supervisor is         18         4        253
approachable and
available whenever I
have a need

24. The supervisor has a     33         7        253
good understanding of
what is happening in
this facility

25. Communication at
Genesis could be
improved by:

Representative Comments:  letting people know well in advance     144
before anything is done; not communicating at the "last minute";
telling people face-to-face instead or relaying problems or
concerns; quick responses; being more up to date on issues; shift
notes; communicating; actually listening to the employee's
concerns; management has no real idea as to what is happening
within the industrial parts of this company; newsletter to all
employees; having a clear understanding of other team members
jobs and responsibility; English classes are needed; responding
to our question without getting mad; listening to a broader
cross-section of employees instead of a select few; more team
meeting; improving communication with shifts (top to bottom);
eliminating "layers" of communication--go directly to those
involved in needed discussion; handbook; if everybody speaks and
understands English; letting people know what kind of process
changes are being made; having translators; allowing operators to
speak openly without rejecting their ideas as soon as they start
talking; supervisors following standard operating procedures
also; not waiting till the last minute to be informed about big
changes (example: going to eight hour days); if you know about
changes two months before time than you should let your employees
know that; computer lists updated and used; allowing individuals
in area to make the "call" instead of going thru several
individuals before a decision is made.

Total                        252       183

Table 3: Compensation and Benefits

                          Strongly   Agree   Neither Agree   Disagree
                            Agree             or Disagree

26. I feel that my           19        92          65           53
contributions are
appropriately
compensated

27. I believe                26       111          66           32
compensation is
competitive to the local
marketplace

28. I believe                22        85          68           48
compensation is in line
with the workload and
expectations of the
organization

29. I believe I              39       145          54            7
understand the benefits
provided by Genesis,
Inc.

30. I believe benefits       38       111          59           13
are competitive to other
similar companies

31. I would like to see the following benefit(s) added:

Paid sick days/earned sick leave (rather than having to use vacation
days) (43)

Production bonuses/incentives/stock options (18)

Buy unused vacation weeks back (11)

Bought vacation (7)

Better dental insurance (6)

More pay (5)

More vacation (5)

Paid disability (5)

Paid disability (4)

Wellness/fitness facility on-site or paid off-site or discounts (4)

Pension program (3)

Paid time off/personal days/flex days (4)

Health insurance after retirement (2)

Profit sharing (2)

Day care (2)

Supplemental insurance (like AFLAC) (2)

Wellness program or rewards for wellness (2)

Better insurance (1)

Additional comments: recognition, structured pay ranges for
salary grades; clear policy on "comp" time; paid time off; add
auto-insurance; promotion based on skill not who you know; more
money to keep up with economic standards; at least 3 sick days-
year per employee; having a job at Genesis; 44 hrs not enough
when on 12 hr shifts; moving away from rotating shifts; vacation
days--in the past, after working five years, you accumulated
another week of vacation; incentives for ideas submitted;
increase 401k take; education for child; stay on 12 hr. shifts;
annual cost of living raise; my money back; no money loss on
serious health problem (cut to 80% after 3 months); stop taking
money away; give back the money they are taking from my check and
give back weekend off.

32. The benefit(s) I most appreciate is (are) the following:

Medical/health benefits (87)

401k and 5% company match (50)

Vacation (32)

Dental (20)

My pay in general (14)

Vision (9)

CAP(8);

CAP--college/school assistance (7)

Floating hours; flex time and schedule (5)

Life insurance (5)

Short and long-term disability (4)

The entire benefit package (4)

Holidays (3)

sick days (3)

EAP (2)

Insurance for my children (2)

FMLA (2)

Additional comments: time off; working for Genesis; flexible
spending; the fitness club; bonus; double time on the 7 days; the
rate of topped cut pay; 12 hr. shift(3); paid holidays; EAP; 2
working days; my paycheck every two weeks; they took most of them
away in the last 4 years; death in the family (3 days); holiday
pay.

Total                        144      544         312           153

                          Strongly   Did Not   Total
                          Disagree    Answer

26. I feel that my           22         2       253
contributions are
appropriately
compensated

27. I believe                17         1       253
compensation is
competitive to the local
marketplace

28. I believe                24         6       253
compensation is in line
with the workload and
expectations of the
organization

29. I believe I               6         2       253
understand the benefits
provided by Genesis,
Inc.

30. I believe benefits       18         14      253
are competitive to other
similar companies

31. I would like to see the following benefit(s) added:

Paid sick days/earned sick leave (rat  140
days) (43)

Production bonuses/incentives/stock options (18)

Buy unused vacation weeks back (11)

Bought vacation (7)

Better dental insurance (6)

More pay (5)

More vacation (5)

Paid disability (5)

Paid disability (4)

Wellness/fitness facility on-site or paid off-site or discounts (4)

Pension program (3)

Paid time off/personal days/flex days (4)

Health insurance after retirement (2)

Profit sharing (2)

Day care (2)

Supplemental insurance (like AFLAC) (2)

Wellness program or rewards for wellness (2)

Better insurance (1)

Additional comments: recognition, structured pay ranges for
salary grades; clear policy on "comp" time; paid time off; add
auto-insurance; promotion based on skill not who you know; more
money to keep up with economic standards; at least 3 sick days-
year per employee; having a job at Genesis; 44 hrs not enough
when on 12 hr shifts; moving away from rotating shifts; vacation
days--in the past, after working five years, you accumulated
another week of vacation; incentives for ideas submitted;
increase 401k take; education for child; stay on 12 hr. shifts;
annual cost of living raise; my money back; no money loss on
serious health problem (cut to 80% after 3 months); stop taking
money away; give back the money they are taking from my check and
give back weekend off.

32. The benefit(s) I most appreciate is (are) the following:

Medical/health benefits (87)           103

401k and 5% company match (50)

Vacation (32)

Dental (20)

My pay in general (14)

Vision (9)

CAP(8);

CAP--college/school assistance (7)

Floating hours; flex time and schedule (5)

Life insurance (5)

Short and long-term disability (4)

The entire benefit package (4)

Holidays (3)

sick days (3)

EAP (2)

Insurance for my children (2)

FMLA (2)

Additional comments: time off; working for Genesis; flexible
spending; the fitness club; bonus; double time on the 7 days; the
rate of topped cut pay; 12 hr. shift(3); paid holidays; EAP; 2
working days; my paycheck every two weeks; they took most of them
away in the last 4 years; death in the family (3 days); holiday
pay.

Total                        87        268

Table 4: Recognition and Open-Ended Comments

                          Strongly   Agree   Neither Agree   Disagree
                            Agree             or Disagree

33. Genesis, Inc. offers     10        54          82           63
recognition to
individuals in
appropriate ways

34. Recognition or           94        98          47            8
praise is something I
value

35. At Genesis, Inc.         63        68          57           34
recognition or praise
for doing a good job is
rare

36. For me, recognition
or praise could take the
form of (write your
answer in the space
provided).

Say Thanks (appreciation, lunch, conversation, paid dinner,
recognition from supervisor, simple thanks or praise (62)

Bonus (35)

Money/more pay (32)

Gift cards or gift or perk (19)

Vacation (7)

Advancement/raise/incentives (7)

Awards and incentives (5)

Time off (5)

Respect (3)

Additional comments: respect for the individual person; nothing
is done right now; parking spots; add to benefit program Genesis
Chat; parking privilege; comp time; pay for performance; only
Jesus gets the praise; praise given before we complain about not
getting any; sick day; anything at all would be better than what
we have now; not taking money away from me; any; better
employees; better job on their assignments; anything

Total                        167      220         186           105

Written Comments

37. Comments about Genesis, Inc. overall

good company/happy/enjoy my job here (68)

good pay/benefits (13)

okay but needs improvement (12)

bad/don't like it (9)

not like the former merged/acquired company--liked it better (2)

Additional comments: not family valued; needs to lighten up on
the employees a little; too much for 12 hr shifts; not enough
follow through; fair; getting better; expectation on workload--
not realistic for 12 hr shifts; we need to improve instead ofjust
maintain our processes; it's trying to stay in the market and I
hope it can; my job has allowed my wife to stay home with our
children, for this I am thankful; just needs a couple of things
straightened out; I feel supervisors play favorites; continue the
same policy that has began with Genesis and add more if
necessary; bring back smoking; good intentions; opportunities are
out there; a proving global company; just started; stop social
promotions; need to treat employees better; stop adding and
building things within if we're trying to save; don't take care
of their moneymakers; I think they have unrealistic views on what
our workload should be; terrible management; don't like the
changes; poor management; like the pay don't like the pressure;
too many changes--not all for the employees; take, take, take;
need to value workers more; would like to see it grow; quit
taking from us (money); we need to be appreciated; focus on
mental not physical aspect; needs more accountability; keep on
taking your time and money and giving nothing back; as long as
they don't take money away from me their fine

38. Comments about the workload

Representative Comments:

in spinning, our workload has increased; expectations are
realistic, but right now we don't have the right tools to meet
expectations; we have no time to trouble shoot; fair; depends on
the day; insane; good; heavy; would be easier if I were better
trained; would like to see more packers where I can concentrate
on the machines; very, very physical; killing my back; too much
work without a packer and a trained partner; heavy; you get in
situations where you need a little help; very heavy, very
demanding; we are operators, inspectors, packer, housekeeper,
maintenance, buggy pushers--too many tasks; too heavy for one
person to take at a time.

39. Comments about communication within Genesis, Inc.

Representative Comments: the communication needs a lot of work;
operators are left in the dark; emails and bulletins are
effective; there's no communication some of us forget we are all
here for the same cause; housekeeping audits are done with no
feedback; communication between operators and high level people
is needed; communication is unclear sometimes; need quarterly
financial meeting; needs to be better and faster; needs work;
bad; each shift has different information; too much phone clutter
(noise-sounds) on intercom.

40. Things you believe Genesis, Inc. should continue to do

Representative Comments: have more group involvement; have annual
meeting to let you know how we are doing; reduce injuries, and
reward a great job done; employees feel overworked and
underappreciated; shift get togethers; meetings; keeping everyone
informed of business issues; keep working on the job
improvements; promoting within the company; train; treat people
better; leave the machines running at a good speed and leave it
alone; investing money in better equipment; strive for
excellence; stay on 12 hrs; continue to value their employees;
training.

41. Things you believe Genesis, Inc. should start or stop doing

Representative Comments: work safety; involving more people to do
tasks instead of relying on same people; start communicating with
the little guy; respecting the operators minds; Genesis should
not penalize everyone for something 1 or 2 did wrong; start being
fair to all employees; stop the meetings! too many too often; we
do not get a whole lot out of graphs and pie charts; stop
allowing some people to get away with breaking the rules, while
punishing others. Lots of favoritism; maybe a designated smoking
area; start listening to every race of people; start praising
employees more; have sick days available--we are using vacation
days when we get sick; stop taking and start giving back.

142. Comments about any of the above questions

Representative Comments:  great improvement in organization of
area; spinners can tell what's happening; sorry I couldn't answer
more; make people a priority; no clue; will this survey really
change anything?; fair; leave our 12 hour shifts alone; I get
sick of thinking where this company will be in 5 years; focus on
question #37; I know my partner and quad well; questions are
fine; have a suggestion box--could possibly give improvements to
area

43. Additional Comments

Representative Comments: seems like a great place to work so far
overall, great people in general; with various cultures working
in Genesis, Inc., I think that misunderstandings occur between
American and international employees; some simple training/open
discussion @ culture differences between these two groups could
be beneficial and help us to better understand each other;
changing winders is extremely dangerous due to the ramp. steel
plate needs to be "flush" with concrete; more and more is asked
of us with no additional people or proper supplies; operators are
people too; we deserve respect; better exhaust system; good place
to work; companies actions causes lack of trust from employees;
Genesis should reprimand people not willing to follow company
policies; blessed to have a job; glad to be going to 8 hrs; find
a way to compensate for lost of wages due to hour changes if
would help morale.

                          Strongly   Did Not
                          Disagree    Answer

33. Genesis, Inc. offers     40          4
recognition to
individuals in
appropriate ways

34. Recognition or            3          3
praise is something I
value

35. At Genesis, Inc.         12         19
recognition or praise
for doing a good job is
rare

36. For me, recognition
or praise could take the
form of (write your
answer in the space
provided).

Say Thanks (appreciation, lunch, conversation, paid dinner,
recognition from supervisor, simple thanks or praise (62)          116

Bonus (35)

Money/more pay (32)

Gift cards or gift or perk (19)

Vacation (7)

Advancement/raise/incentives (7)

Awards and incentives (5)

Time off (5)

Respect (3)

Additional comments: respect for the individual person; nothing
is done right now; parking spots; add to benefit program Genesis
Chat; parking privilege; comp time; pay for performance; only
Jesus gets the praise; praise given before we complain about not
getting any; sick day; anything at all would be better than what
we have now; not taking money away from me; any; better
employees; better job on their assignments; anything

Total                        55         142

Written Comments

37. Comments about Genesis, Inc. overall

good company/happy/                     130
enjoy my job here (68)

good pay/benefits (13)

okay but needs improvement (12)

bad/don't like it (9)

not like the former merged/acquired company--liked it better (2)

Additional comments: not family valued; needs to lighten up on
the employees a little; too much for 12 hr shifts; not enough
follow through; fair; getting better; expectation on workload--
not realistic for 12 hr shifts; we need to improve instead ofjust
maintain our processes; it's trying to stay in the market and I
hope it can; my job has allowed my wife to stay home with our
children, for this I am thankful; just needs a couple of things
straightened out; I feel supervisors play favorites; continue the
same policy that has began with Genesis and add more if
necessary; bring back smoking; good intentions; opportunities are
out there; a proving global company; just started; stop social
promotions; need to treat employees better; stop adding and
building things within if we're trying to save; don't take care
of their moneymakers; I think they have unrealistic views on what
our workload should be; terrible management; don't like the
changes; poor management; like the pay don't like the pressure;
too many changes--not all for the employees; take, take, take;
need to value workers more; would like to see it grow; quit
taking from us (money); we need to be appreciated; focus on
mental not physical aspect; needs more accountability; keep on
taking your time and money and giving nothing back; as long as
they don't take money away from me their fine

38. Comments about the workload

Representative Comments:                                           121

in spinning, our workload has increased; expectations are
realistic, but right now we don't have the right tools to meet
expectations; we have no time to trouble shoot; fair; depends on
the day; insane; good; heavy; would be easier if I were better
trained; would like to see more packers where I can concentrate
on the machines; very, very physical; killing my back; too much
work without a packer and a trained partner; heavy; you get in
situations where you need a little help; very heavy, very
demanding; we are operators, inspectors, packer, housekeeper,
maintenance, buggy pushers--too many tasks; too heavy for one
person to take at a time.

39. Comments about communication within Genesis, Inc.

Representative Comments: the communication needs a lot of work;    134
operators are left in the dark; emails and bulletins are
effective; there's no communication some of us forget we are all
here for the same cause; housekeeping audits are done with no
feedback; communication between operators and high level people
is needed; communication is unclear sometimes; need quarterly
financial meeting; needs to be better and faster; needs work;
bad; each shift has different information; too much phone clutter
(noise-sounds) on intercom.

40. Things you believe Genesis, Inc. should continue to do

Representative Comments: have more group involvement; have annual  153
meeting to let you know how we are doing; reduce injuries, and
reward a great job done; employees feel overworked and
underappreciated; shift get togethers; meetings; keeping everyone
informed of business issues; keep working on the job
improvements; promoting within the company; train; treat people
better; leave the machines running at a good speed and leave it
alone; investing money in better equipment; strive for
excellence; stay on 12 hrs; continue to value their employees;
training.

41. Things you believe Genesis, Inc. should start or stop doing

Representative Comments: work safety; involving more people to do  151
tasks instead of relying on same people; start communicating with
the little guy; respecting the operators minds; Genesis should
not penalize everyone for something 1 or 2 did wrong; start being
fair to all employees; stop the meetings! too many too often; we
do not get a whole lot out of graphs and pie charts; stop
allowing some people to get away with breaking the rules, while
punishing others. Lots of favoritism; maybe a designated smoking
area; start listening to every race of people; start praising
employees more; have sick days available--we are using vacation
days when we get sick; stop taking and start giving back.

142. Comments about any of the above questions

Representative Comments:  great improvement in organization of     240
area; spinners can tell what's happening; sorry I couldn't answer
more; make people a priority; no clue; will this survey really
change anything?; fair; leave our 12 hour shifts alone; I get
sick of thinking where this company will be in 5 years; focus on
question #37; I know my partner and quad well; questions are
fine; have a suggestion box--could possibly give improvements to
area

43. Additional Comments

Representative Comments: seems like a great place to work so far   226
overall, great people in general; with various cultures working
in Genesis, Inc., I think that misunderstandings occur between
American and international employees; some simple training/open
discussion @ culture differences between these two groups could
be beneficial and help us to better understand each other;
changing winders is extremely dangerous due to the ramp. steel
plate needs to be "flush" with concrete; more and more is asked
of us with no additional people or proper supplies; operators are
people too; we deserve respect; better exhaust system; good place
to work; companies actions causes lack of trust from employees;
Genesis should reprimand people not willing to follow company
policies; blessed to have a job; glad to be going to 8 hrs; find
a way to compensate for lost of wages due to hour changes if
would help morale.

                                                                   1155

Table 5: Demographics

44. Total number of       21    less than   179   more than
years with Genesis              one year          one year

45. Previously worked     103   Yes         100   No
for merged company

If no, skip question 46

46. Total number of       61    1-5 years   21    6-10 years   18
years with Genesis

47. My job                162   hourly      10    non-         19
classification is:                                managerial

Total Surveyed:           253

44. Total number of                    53
years with Genesis

45. Previously worked                  50
for merged company

If no, skip question 46

46. Total number of       more than    151
years with Genesis        10 years

47. My job                management   67
classification is:

Total Surveyed: