My colleague-friend Bill Tomei provided me with great insight and perspective that has helped shape this post. Thanks Bill.
Myth #1—Blue-collar workers are ‘less than’ than their management brethren.
‘Less-sophisticated’…’less-responsible’…’less-committed’ …these are three of many inaccurate perceptions held about blue-collar workers. These perceptions are unfortunate—because they’re typically turn out to be self-fulfilling prophesies. The vast majority of blue-collar workers are intelligent, capable, and responsible.
Myth #2—The core values of blue-collar workers are vastly different than those in management.
People are people. Blue-collar workers want many of the same types of things everyone else wants in their work-life—-competence in a field that they can continue to excel in, work that holds meaning, respect, etc. There are few major differences in values between blue-collar workers and ‘management types’.
Myth #3—Blue-collar workers are either unable or are unwilling to understand (let alone accept) the truth about the business.
This perception is particularly troublesome—largely because it suggests that blue-collar workers are somehow incapable of understanding the (so- called) complexities of the business. That’s disrespectful on any number of levels. Through various applications of self-management ,any number of companies have shown the fallacy of this perception.
Myth #4—Blue-collar workers’ self- interests will always take precedent over the interest of the business.
The implication is that blue-collar workers are just in it for the pay check. This hasn’t been my experience nor the experience of my colleagues. There endless numbers of examples that put a stake in the heart of this myth.
Myth #5—Blue-collar workers will lose respect for management if managers don’t have all the answers.
This is a common misconception. A manager being unaware of something is OK (assuming ‘being unaware’ hasn’t become a pattern) as long as the situation is looked into and communicated back to the troops.
A manager who, when faced with a serious issue ,says to the troops “I don’t have all the answers” will not be disrespected by the troops as long as that same manager also commits to finding a solution to the issue. Blue-collar workers (at least reasonable ones) aren’t expecting their manager to be Superman.
Myth #6—The risks associated with blue-collar workers too-frequently out-weigh the benefits.
In many ways, the United States was built by working people—what we might refer to today as blue-collar employees. It’s a disservice to hold the mind-set that the glass is half-empty when it comes to blue-collar folks.
Myth #7—Blue-collar workers aren’t really professionals.
Sorry, I don’t buy it. Being a professional is an equal opportunity aspiration. This myth is de-bunked in chapter two of The Power of Professionalism. As I mention in the book, “being a professional has little to do with the color of one’s collar”.
There are a lot of misconceptions about blue-collar workers. That’s really unfortunate—especially since companies like Morning Star, the Contra Costa Times, and (at one time) Saturn have demonstrated first-hand (through various self-managed practices) just what a fallacy these myths are.
It’s been said that, “how we see the problem, is the problem.” For those holding any of these myths, that couldn’t be more true.