I have worked for many different companies in my lifetime. From my experience with all these companies, I have come to the conclusion that employers, in America at least, should be forced to treat their employees with more dignity and respect than they do on their own. Most companies don't care at all about the people who run their businesses in an entry-level, basic capacity, such as the cashiers at McDonalds or Burger Kings. These companies view such low-level employees as expendable pee-ons, not worth their weight in dirt.

Time and time again, I have either been witness to, or have been a victim of the indifference of the "higher-ups" of the companies I have devoted the majority of my life to. It would be nice if "employment at will" only applied to the workers, not the owners. It is too easy for a company to simply get rid of an employee for whatever reason they can think of and move on to the next "idiot."

If I were the owner/C.E.O. of a large company, I would treat every single employee as if they were the most important asset I/the company had, until they proved otherwise through their own actions. I would encourage employees at all levels to think and act as if they owned the place, and encourage them to think of and suggest better methods of performing their day-to-day methods. I would hold managers -not employees- accountable when an employee made a mistake (unless it was clear that the employee was just plain incompetent). I would make sure all my employees had access to affordable health insurance, and if I couldn't afford that, I'd start my own health insurance company and offer it to my employees at a discounted rate. I'd give all my employees great benefits like highly discounted stock options (if available), 401K's with high company matches, paid vacations and sick time, and high discounts on whatever product(s) or service(s) my company sold.

If I were the owner/C.E.O. of a large company, I would re-invest the majority of my company's profits right back into the company, so that my employees had up-to-date, comfortable, clean and safe equipment to use while performing their jobs. I would also make sure that the facilities they worked in were up-to-date, comfortable, clean and safe. And I would do everything I could to expand into as many different markets that I could, not only to increase the profitability of my company, but also so that many people from all walks of life could find an employer that truly cares about them as individuals.

And the most important thing that I would do as a responsible business owner who truly cares about their employees would be to pay my employees what they were worth, not the lowest I can get away with paying them.

I know it seems like a dream, but it could happen if people like me ran the world. Give me a million bucks and watch the world become a better place! Not only would the people who work for my company benefit, but the people who worked for other companies would benefit as well. This is because my company would "raise the bar" and make it hard for other companies to find quality employees unless they too started treating their employees with more dignity and respect.

Learn more about this author, Mike Hanson.
Click here to send this author comments or questions.

---

Add your voice

Know something about Should employers be held to higher standards in their treatment of employees?
We want to hear your view. Write now!