Hi. Welcome to the blog for my IB English B class at Jur Hronec High School in Bratislava, Slovakia. Below you will find links to other websites and discussion questions. My students are required to comment on one of these postings every month and also respond to each other's comments. Feel free to add your two bits, but be aware that all comments are monitored before being posted.
Here’s one from down under for a change.Is planking dangerous, or is it a healthy way to combat the boredom of monotonous jobs?Is it creative or conformist?Should employers have the right to fire you for this sort of thing?
I completely agree with the stance of Woolworths Company. Although some people might say that it was unfair to sack them because they were just lying down and not doing anything wrong, that is precisely why they should be fired. First of all, employers pay their employees to work, therefore when they are lying down and taking photos during job hours, they are basically robbing their employer of money. Second, these are potentially dangerous stunts. As can be read from the article, employees were sacked for planking on meat grinders, high walls, and 2m high store shelves. There can be quite a few fatal accidents that can happen if the person were to fall down from these places. In addition, they also broke the safety rules and regulations of the company, as some of them were lying down on places where food is stored for sale (on milk cartons or the meat grinder). These people definitely deserved to be fired if only for the fact that they are exceptionally dumb.
In my opinion this is, simply put, a stupid fad. I don’t get the fun in lying down on some place and trying to beat my friends to see who can plank on a stupider place. Also, it’s not exactly clean if I were to lie down on the ground where people walk. As can be seen from the example of Acton Beale and the sacked workers, planking is a potentially dangerous stunt that will certainly get you fired (if you are dumb enough to either get caught or post it on Facebook).
An article that responds to this new activity of young people – planking. When I have heard about this ‘extreme sport’ for the first time I could not understand what is the fun in doing that. And I still don’t. It seems to me as very childish to post photos of one lying on strange places on Facebook.
And yet I don’t see a reason why people should be prohibited to do so, if they want to. I understand Woolworths directors that breaking the safety rules and putting the lives of employees in danger by planking should be punished. On the other hand, I don’t think they are concerned about safety rules, as much as they don’t want their employees to do whatever they want to and to publish photos on social networks, where these people violate the company’s rules with no punishment. I partially understand them, although firing a person seems to me as an overreacted act of punishment. Warning seems to be the appropriate punishment. What I do not understand is why the photographer lost his job. By taking a photo, he did not break any rule and certainly didn’t put his or any other employee’s life in danger. I think it is just the fact that he participated in this act what makes the company’s directors furious. It would be interesting to find out whether the employees did this activity during their working hours. If so, this would definitely burke the lawyers or people who think the company overreacted with firing the employees.
The article also mentions that Australian students were suspended from school because they were planking. Official’s argued that this will not be tolerated. When I look at this from both points of view, I come to the same conclusion as before. To me, it seems inappropriate to suspend students for doing something that the official’s think is violating the school rules. Students should have been warned to not do so before they were punished for it. On the other hand I understand that school is responsible for students and such a strict punishment will discourage other students from planking.
I think McDonald’s does a good job to prevent from planking in the workplace. By warning their employees before they could start planking, they ensure that potential planking will be reconsidered. I think other companies should follow this example.
I do not agree with those companies, because the fired people have not done anything wrong. They have not done anything dangerous for other people. If something bad has happened, they would only hurt themselves. It is their own problem, not the problem of the company. Also they would have to pay for any material damage. But I think that it is inappropriate to fire someone who has only been planking. Especially when nothing bad had happened. For example, the student that has been suspended from school just for climbing a 1,8 meters high wall. I could not even imagine being suspended for such a stupidity. I understand that it does not go completely with the school rules but being suspended for it is really too much. I agree the student should be punished but not suspended.
Another interesting fact I found in the article is that the companies have access to their employee’s Facebook pages. Does it mean that a decent man could not afford any privacy? What would happen to the world when your boss knows every crazy little thing you have done? I, as a student, do not have this sort of problems. As long as teachers do not have access to my Facebook or another internet profile. It would be terrible. I do not think that I should be ashamed for my Facebook profile, I just want some privacy. Therefore, I was really shocked when I read that the companies have access to their employee’s private information on the internet. I hope I would be able to keep my privacy when I finish school.
I think that you should look at this problem also from the side of the employers. Particularly, your statement that the employees did nothing bad seems inappropriate. For one, they violated the company health and safety policy. This is a reason for punishment by itself. Also I think that the company could get a serious fine because of these violations. Secondly, they slept during their working hours. This is maybe a more important reason to slack them. I have to agree with Ondrej that they are basically stealing money from their company as they are paid for work and not for sleeping.
I also don’t agree with you that it is inappropriate to fire someone who has only been planking because nothing bad happened. The article states that one planker actually died. This is a serious reason to be concerned and act against this new trend. Also I would not be that concerned about your employer looking at your Facebook profile. You should realize that there is no privacy on Facebook and nearly anyone can read you profile. And there are much more dangerous individuals over there than your colleague or boss. You should also realize that in this case the boss did not monitor his employees on Facebook, but one of the employees told the boss about the pictures. And even you will probably agree with me that when you are that stupid to take a photo of yourself violating your company policy and upload it on a site where anyone can see it than you deserve to be punished.
I completely agree with the stance of Woolworths Company. Although some people might say that it was unfair to sack them because they were just lying down and not doing anything wrong, that is precisely why they should be fired. First of all, employers pay their employees to work, therefore when they are lying down and taking photos during job hours, they are basically robbing their employer of money. Second, these are potentially dangerous stunts. As can be read from the article, employees were sacked for planking on meat grinders, high walls, and 2m high store shelves. There can be quite a few fatal accidents that can happen if the person were to fall down from these places. In addition, they also broke the safety rules and regulations of the company, as some of them were lying down on places where food is stored for sale (on milk cartons or the meat grinder). These people definitely deserved to be fired if only for the fact that they are exceptionally dumb.
ReplyDeleteIn my opinion this is, simply put, a stupid fad. I don’t get the fun in lying down on some place and trying to beat my friends to see who can plank on a stupider place. Also, it’s not exactly clean if I were to lie down on the ground where people walk. As can be seen from the example of Acton Beale and the sacked workers, planking is a potentially dangerous stunt that will certainly get you fired (if you are dumb enough to either get caught or post it on Facebook).
An article that responds to this new activity of young people – planking. When I have heard about this ‘extreme sport’ for the first time I could not understand what is the fun in doing that. And I still don’t. It seems to me as very childish to post photos of one lying on strange places on Facebook.
ReplyDeleteAnd yet I don’t see a reason why people should be prohibited to do so, if they want to. I understand Woolworths directors that breaking the safety rules and putting the lives of employees in danger by planking should be punished. On the other hand, I don’t think they are concerned about safety rules, as much as they don’t want their employees to do whatever they want to and to publish photos on social networks, where these people violate the company’s rules with no punishment. I partially understand them, although firing a person seems to me as an overreacted act of punishment. Warning seems to be the appropriate punishment. What I do not understand is why the photographer lost his job. By taking a photo, he did not break any rule and certainly didn’t put his or any other employee’s life in danger. I think it is just the fact that he participated in this act what makes the company’s directors furious. It would be interesting to find out whether the employees did this activity during their working hours. If so, this would definitely burke the lawyers or people who think the company overreacted with firing the employees.
The article also mentions that Australian students were suspended from school because they were planking. Official’s argued that this will not be tolerated. When I look at this from both points of view, I come to the same conclusion as before. To me, it seems inappropriate to suspend students for doing something that the official’s think is violating the school rules. Students should have been warned to not do so before they were punished for it. On the other hand I understand that school is responsible for students and such a strict punishment will discourage other students from planking.
I think McDonald’s does a good job to prevent from planking in the workplace. By warning their employees before they could start planking, they ensure that potential planking will be reconsidered. I think other companies should follow this example.
I do not agree with those companies, because the fired people have not done anything wrong. They have not done anything dangerous for other people. If something bad has happened, they would only hurt themselves. It is their own problem, not the problem of the company. Also they would have to pay for any material damage. But I think that it is inappropriate to fire someone who has only been planking. Especially when nothing bad had happened. For example, the student that has been suspended from school just for climbing a 1,8 meters high wall. I could not even imagine being suspended for such a stupidity. I understand that it does not go completely with the school rules but being suspended for it is really too much. I agree the student should be punished but not suspended.
ReplyDeleteAnother interesting fact I found in the article is that the companies have access to their employee’s Facebook pages. Does it mean that a decent man could not afford any privacy? What would happen to the world when your boss knows every crazy little thing you have done? I, as a student, do not have this sort of problems. As long as teachers do not have access to my Facebook or another internet profile. It would be terrible. I do not think that I should be ashamed for my Facebook profile, I just want some privacy. Therefore, I was really shocked when I read that the companies have access to their employee’s private information on the internet. I hope I would be able to keep my privacy when I finish school.
Tomas Langer
@Tomas
ReplyDeleteI think that you should look at this problem also from the side of the employers. Particularly, your statement that the employees did nothing bad seems inappropriate. For one, they violated the company health and safety policy. This is a reason for punishment by itself. Also I think that the company could get a serious fine because of these violations. Secondly, they slept during their working hours. This is maybe a more important reason to slack them. I have to agree with Ondrej that they are basically stealing money from their company as they are paid for work and not for sleeping.
I also don’t agree with you that it is inappropriate to fire someone who has only been planking because nothing bad happened. The article states that one planker actually died. This is a serious reason to be concerned and act against this new trend. Also I would not be that concerned about your employer looking at your Facebook profile. You should realize that there is no privacy on Facebook and nearly anyone can read you profile. And there are much more dangerous individuals over there than your colleague or boss. You should also realize that in this case the boss did not monitor his employees on Facebook, but one of the employees told the boss about the pictures. And even you will probably agree with me that when you are that stupid to take a photo of yourself violating your company policy and upload it on a site where anyone can see it than you deserve to be punished.