What Responsibility Does a Co. Have for the Rogue Employee

A report this week regarding a UPS driver who went on a racist rant and refused to deliver a package to a customer with a Latino surname got considerable attention this week.  The incident, which occurred in Milwaukee on December 17, was caught on video made by a Ring camera.  The customer only learned that a package had not been delivered through a notification from the Ring system.  

As is increasingly common, misconduct incidents come to company and public attention only because of smart phones or front door cameras.  Prompted by a relative who worked for UPS, a company representative called the following day to apologize.  When the customer said he wanted to think about it before talking more, the UPS representative dropped the issue, did not call back and did not expedite the delivery of the package, which was delivered only several days later when the customer followed up again. 

When the customer finally talked again with the company representative, the company reported that the employee had been fired soon after the incident occurred.  That was clearly the right action to take, but only if the company also used the incident to educate its entire work force that racism will not be tolerated on the job.  

I thought about this incident later in the week when it became clear companies needed to decide whether to penalize employees who had participated in the mob invasion of the U.S. Capitol.  In the UPS case, the behavior was on the job and had to result in termination and apology immediately.  But what should a business—or even a police department—do if one of its employees or officers is identified as being one of the Capitol invaders?  In my judgement, the company must terminate the employee, even if he or she is not formally charged with a crime.  The case is harder if the employee was just a vocal advocate of the discredited election fraud stories, or participated in the Washington protest but did not enter the Capitol building.  Such an employee probably cannot be terminated or penalized, but the issue can become an opportunity for the company to state its values—respect for the law, the truth, the right to vote, and the democratic process.