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Written by Helen Jamieson
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Tuesday, 27 September 2011 16:16 |
 King grants Saudi women the right to vote in local elections from 2015. Is this the beginning of some giant steps forward?
I read just a few days ago of women in Saudi being granted the right to vote from 2015. Might feel a long way off, but this is a great step forward. But of course along with rights come responsibilities. I have no doubt that the majority of women in Saudi having waited so long for the right to vote will understand the responsibilities that come with that right, but its not always the case is it?
We often hear talk in the UK of 'its my right'. If you've attended or organised assertiveness skills courses, then you will already know that there are whole sections in assertiveness training that focus on 'its my right'.
The good courses of course also talk about 'and I know I have responsibilities when asserting my rights...' The problem of course is that the responsibilities part of the message can tend to get forgotten by some!
In employment terms I have over the years seen numerous examples of where one person asserts their rights without any consideration for the responsibilities they also have:
Its my right to change my mind just a few weeks before I am due to return from maternity leave... Yes, it is your right, but what of your responsibilities to your colleagues who have been covering your work and who are now left in the lurch?
Its my right to sue my employer in tribunal... Yes, it is your right but it is also your responsibility in doing so not to expect family and friends to shoulder your stress whilst you do so and not to undermine your colleagues whilst you strive to make your points and win your case.
Its my right to take extended time off for religious reasons... Yes. It is your right, but its also your responsibility on your return to work to share the load when someone else needs or wants extended time off - that's called team work!
Its my right to phone in sick when I feel ill... Yes, but its also your responsibility to not take for granted that others will always cover your work, or be tolerant of the fact that for some reason you need five times more time off sick than anyone else!
The plethora of individual rights that have come into our employment law over the years have all encouraged individuals to assert their rights with no penalty imposed if they disregard the rights of others in doing so. Its not rocket science therefore to work out that over the years a team culture in a business can very easily be eroded and replaced with an individual culture, with everyone seeking to work in their own interests.
So if our employment law does not encourage the consideration of people's responsibilities - both to their employer and to their colleagues and friends - then it is of course up to the employer to either recruit individuals who already have a strong sense of team commitment, or otherwise to essentially educate or re-educate staff about the importance and value of team working.
I have recently come across quite a few organisations whose recruitment processes include an assessment of personal values. Perhaps this is an easier way forward than trying to train 'responsibility' in? But whilst organisations are thinking about values, I seldom come across organisations that include team development and/or developing work ethic within their core competencies for managers. We see 'strategic thinking', 'personal communication skills', 'leadership skills' etc, but seldom anything to do with 'creating a team ethos 'or 'instilling personal responsibility' in staff. But with ongoing tough times for many organisations where the team is often smaller than it used to be, meaning that individuals are more relied on than ever before, this issue just gets more important every year...
So what are your thoughts on the personal responsibility you see in your organisations?
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