Does Disciplinary Action Reduce Operator Errors?

Jim Wynne

Staff member
Admin
#21
Is disciplinary action (i.e. progressive discipline warnings) an effective corrective action to reduce operator documantation errors and process deviations on a shop floor?
If you're referring to people willfully not following instructions--not filling out forms or deviating from the design intent of a process--then discipline can be effective so long as you're certain that the willful intent is the result of one person's contrariness and not a result of a poorly-designed system.
If we assume a system or process that's been conscientiously validated and one person continually opts to do things his own way, you have to remove that person from the system (after the requisite warnings and "coaching").
 
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P

Polly Pure Bread

#22
If you're referring to people willfully not following instructions--not filling out forms or deviating from the design intent of a process--then discipline can be effective so long as you're certain that the willful intent is the result of one person's contrariness and not a result of poorly-designed system.
If we assume a system or process that's been conscientiously validated and one person continually opts to do things his own way, you have to remove that person from the system (after the requisite warnings and "coaching").
Can disciplinary action makes operator cautious?
 

Jim Wynne

Staff member
Admin
#26
Can disciplinary action makes operator cautious?
No, only fearful.

Stijloor.
sometimes. but it depends on the mindset of the operator and someone who is giving disciplinary action. oftentimes it's the pain that makes us learn.
The answer to the first question is "yes," but it will make the operator cautious about the pain and not necessarily about doing the job correctly. The impetus will be towards avoiding punishment, which could still be accomplished while diverging from the design intent of the process.
 

bobdoering

Stop X-bar/R Madness!!
Trusted Information Resource
#27
Interesting psychological question: can you have caution without fear? Of course, fear is a continuum from irritation to shock...caution would be a continuum, too.

Also, how do service quality people view the problem, since their area tends to have people impacting their quality to a higher degree?
 

smryan

Perspective.
#28
...This "immunity" takes place as long as the employee(s) involved in an issue become stakeholders in fixing the problem. ... Do you think this amnesty approach is useful and have you or your company used this?
I feel like my company does a pretty good job using this ideology. When something happens everyone who may have been a contributing factor becomes part of the investigation and potentially part of the solution. If its the machines or procedures, they get fixed. If it was human error that gets addressed... I suppose "too many of those on your record and you'll be fired" (the stick method) might be incentive for some.
Mostly - and I feel very fortunate about this - here it seems to be more a matter of pride. We make high quality stuff and the operators take pride in their work. There has been a carrot tied to that pride - quarterly raises based on the % yield, OTD and low scrap. This year we had to put the carrot on hold - but hope to have it back in place next year.
 
J

Jan T

#29
I am hearing a lot of talk (all good) about whether the underlying problem or root cause was systematic or process related and that may not be under the operators control. I go back to the 5 WHYS that will then perhaps bring the actual culprit to the fore front. If operators are empowered and not afraid to voice commments then perhaps they (being the front line users of a system or process) can bring the problem to the proper people. They can then suggest possibilities to correct the discrepancies. This would be better than saying "oh well that is all I can do" and producing inferior product.

Jan
 

Jim Wynne

Staff member
Admin
#30
Interesting psychological question: can you have caution without fear? Of course, fear is a continuum from irritation to shock...caution would be a continuum, too.
"Fear" is a word with many implications, but I think we're talking here about something that's debilitating--something that distracts from the issue at hand. It's possible to be cautious without being fearful in this sense. The key is what you're being cautious about--making a mistake, or doing the right thing because it's the right thing to do.
 
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