Takeover is no longer the number one concern on the management list of hostile business threats. This week, BRS car-parts manager Mike Bacon was taken hostage for two days by 40 of his employees. An English manager working in Devecey, France, Bacon was taken captive by his workers after plans to relocate the factory in Slovakia were leaked to his staff.
Bacon’s captors provided him with a comfy bed, food (sandwiches only, no bacon) and internet access, and sought legal advice on how to avoid slapping an illegal kidnapping label on their act of protest. As it turns out, the corporate captors only needed Bacon’s consent in order to detain him legally, and so the manager gave the OK to stay in this J-O-B jailhouse for the weekend until the cause had been satisfactorily served.
While it may seem that Stockholm syndrome was to blame for Bacon’s consent to be held captive, this manager later revealed his dislike for his jail-esque accommodations and even left France soon after the ordeal. Bacon’s jail cell-office comparison may not be that far off, considering that the average cubicle size is only around 190 square feet, or around twice the size of the average US jail cell.
Along with maximizing media coverage on the consequences of free trade and corporate cost cutting, this band of commercial kidnapers managed to cause the liquidation of the struggling company. Knowing that hostage-taking seems to “captivate” the media, disgruntled employees worldwide may draw up schemes of their own.
What’s a manager to do when unhappy employees get a hankering for hostage-taking? Robert Young Pelton, a previous kidnapee provides tips for would-be captives. While travel hostage prevention is his fav, his tips can help nervous managers and bad news bearing bosses alike.
Avoid Danger Zones
Watch your back when entering the copy room! Storage rooms and your office can be barricaded from outside, locking your in for the long-haul.
Watch out and Speak up
Your captors may be tracking your moves, especially if they think you’re keeping business secrets from them. Keep your employees up to date on business happenings and hopefully they won’t take you hostage when you announce the bad news.
Obey your Captors
Your subordinates can get a little subcrazy when it comes to downsizing, layoffs and demotions. Do what they say and you might make it through the day OK.
and If all else fails...
If you’ve got bad news to deliver to your employees, then preparation is your best bet. Barricading your office space will hold off the kidnappers, but office supply weaponry may be your only hope.
Bacon’s captors provided him with a comfy bed, food (sandwiches only, no bacon) and internet access, and sought legal advice on how to avoid slapping an illegal kidnapping label on their act of protest. As it turns out, the corporate captors only needed Bacon’s consent in order to detain him legally, and so the manager gave the OK to stay in this J-O-B jailhouse for the weekend until the cause had been satisfactorily served.
While it may seem that Stockholm syndrome was to blame for Bacon’s consent to be held captive, this manager later revealed his dislike for his jail-esque accommodations and even left France soon after the ordeal. Bacon’s jail cell-office comparison may not be that far off, considering that the average cubicle size is only around 190 square feet, or around twice the size of the average US jail cell.
Along with maximizing media coverage on the consequences of free trade and corporate cost cutting, this band of commercial kidnapers managed to cause the liquidation of the struggling company. Knowing that hostage-taking seems to “captivate” the media, disgruntled employees worldwide may draw up schemes of their own.
What’s a manager to do when unhappy employees get a hankering for hostage-taking? Robert Young Pelton, a previous kidnapee provides tips for would-be captives. While travel hostage prevention is his fav, his tips can help nervous managers and bad news bearing bosses alike.
Avoid Danger Zones
Watch your back when entering the copy room! Storage rooms and your office can be barricaded from outside, locking your in for the long-haul.
Watch out and Speak up
Your captors may be tracking your moves, especially if they think you’re keeping business secrets from them. Keep your employees up to date on business happenings and hopefully they won’t take you hostage when you announce the bad news.
Obey your Captors
Your subordinates can get a little subcrazy when it comes to downsizing, layoffs and demotions. Do what they say and you might make it through the day OK.
and If all else fails...
If you’ve got bad news to deliver to your employees, then preparation is your best bet. Barricading your office space will hold off the kidnappers, but office supply weaponry may be your only hope.
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