Nobody likes being criticized or talked down to, but you kind of have to get used to it if you want to get along in life, because it’s bound to happen once in a while. Sometimes you might deserve it and sometimes you might not. Even if you don’t deserve it, however, you may have to put up with it, depending on the circumstances.
If you’re new on the job, for instance, you might or might not like the person training you, and that person might or might not like you. You might think the trainer is being condescending or find his manner offensive, but, if you want to keep the job, you may have to put up with it. The training won’t last forever and, eventually, you won’t have to interact with that person anymore.
This is a lesson apparently lost on Joseph Miller, a one time stockroom employee at a Houston store owned by Ross Dress for Less, a subsidiary of Ross Stores.
Miller had worked there for only a month when he had his first run-in with Rashaud Davenport, a more senior employee whose job description included training and coaching new employees.
Doing what he was paid to do, Davenport attempted to offer guidance on how to unload merchandise and Miller took offense, cursing at the would-be trainer and acting in a menacing manner.
A supervisor intervened and defused the situation, but a week later, when Davenport asked Miller to move some boxes, Miller erupted again. Blows were exchanged and both men were fired.
If either man had a grievance against the store, it would seem to have been Davenport. Nevertheless, it was Miller who filed suit, winning a $90,000 judgment against Ross Stores for his mental anguish and medical expenses.
The14th Court of Appeals overturned the verdict, however, citing insufficient evidence that Ross Stores exerted control over the safety of employees at its subsidiary.
We don’t want to criticize or talk down to Miller, but we think he should man up and move on.