The weekly status meeting with Eric had finally been trimmed down to two hours in length. Each group manager was given fifteen minutes to report on the progress of their projects.
For Dexter, his reports were now simple. He just put up a slide with each project plan along with markers on what was complete, in-progress, and pending. Anything that was in trouble was shown with a red flag. Any areas where there might be trouble was shown with a yellow flag. He had very few red flags, but quite a few yellow flags. His presentation usually took five to ten minutes.
This week was promising to be different. Mr. Morris had decided to attend and he was there with an agenda. It was pretty obvious by the way he glared at Dexter what his agenda entailed. Dexter gave him an exaggerated smile and waved at him. He fiddled with his phone and set it on the table next to his papers.
Eric looked around the room before getting ready to kick off the meeting. It had been his intention to tell the other group managers that it was time to reorganize their groups in the same manner that Dexter had done. He glanced at Mr. Morris and knew that his plans for the meeting had just been canceled.
Eric said, "Les, I'll have you start off this week."
Mr. Morris interrupted and said, "I want Dexter to report first."
Eric said, "Dexter's reports are usually short. I save him to the end so that we can wrap up and get out of here."
"Of course they're short. The guy doesn't do anything," Mr. Morris said while jabbing a finger in Dexter's direction.
"That's not true," Eric said knowing that he was likely to be the next recipient of his boss' wrath.
"Don't cover for him," Mr. Morris said with a sneer.
Eric said, "I'm not covering for him. He and his people are very productive."
"I walked through his area last night and no one was there."
With those words, Dexter knew his job had just come to an end. Mr. Morris was there to get rid of him, in a very public fashion. He wasn't going to try to save his job, but he was going to save his dignity. He went on the offensive.
"What time was that?" Dexter asked.
"Five thirty," Mr. Morris answered.
"The workday ends at five. So of course no one was there. They aren't supposed to be there at that time," Dexter said.
"Every other group had people working," Mr. Morris said.
"So?" Dexter asked.
Mr. Morris said, "Clearly your people aren't working."
"That's bullshit," Dexter replied.
"I don't like your attitude," Mr. Morris said.
"I'm not going to allow you to criticize the people who work for me, without defending them," Dexter said. "My people are doing a good job."
"I'm the judge of what constitutes a good job," Mr. Morris said.
"I think an impartial observer would say that you are a pretty lousy judge," Dexter said.
"You had better watch what you say," Mr. Morris said.
"Or what? You'll fire me?" Dexter asked. "Go ahead."
Everyone around the table gasped when he said that. Mr. Morris looked like he was about to have a stroke. Dexter smiled at their reactions.
Picking up a hard copy of his presentation, he said, "Oh, wait, firing me is going to be tough. For the last two months, my group has had the lowest defect rate of any group under you. Our systems have had the least amount of down time, too. We even had a project that was completed early, and under budget. I don't think that has ever happened, since you took over."
"You're cooking your numbers," Mr. Morris said.
Thinking about how the numbers had been fixed in the past, Dexter said, "That's a slanderous statement."
"Your days are numbered," Mr. Morris said shaking a finger at him.
Dexter calmly sat back in his chair. He knew the proper procedures for firing someone with cause. To be fired on the spot, required that he be caught in a criminal or unethical act. Even then, there was a procedure that was supposed to be followed. To otherwise dismiss him, they had to have a documented history of poor performance.
He looked around the room at the other people there. He knew that this was likely to be his last day there. He figured that they deserved to know the truth about their career futures. He also felt that if he had to call upon them to testify, that it would help if they were aware of the lack of opportunities ahead of them, regardless of how much of a 'company person' they were.
He asked, "Does anyone in this room know why Eric was only temporarily given his current position?"
"Shut up," Mr. Morris barked.
When no one answered, Dexter said, "That's because no one in this room is ever going to be promoted above their current levels. Right, Eric?"
"Don't pull me into this," Eric said, frowning.
"When Mr. Morris offered me the position, I turned it down. I didn't want to have the job, without any chance of it becoming permanent. You see, he told me straight out that there was no chance of promotion to the position," Dexter said.
"I told you to shut up ... you motherfucking son of a bitch!" Mr. Morris said, his face turning red.
Dexter said, "You're in here busting your asses in the hope of getting promoted. Well folks, it ain't gonna happen. No one in this room is going to get promoted, while Mr. Morris is here."
His little speech went over like a lead balloon. The last thing anyone wanted to hear was that their career had reached a dead end.
"You're fired," Mr. Morris said, slamming his hand down on the table as if the noise would further support his words.
Les asked, "Is that true, Eric?"
Eric nodded his head and said, "Yes. Mr. Morris told me the same thing when I asked why I wasn't being considered for the position permanently. They don't promote people at our level."
Mr. Morris was subjected to a number of dirty looks. He glared at Eric for supporting Dexter. Deciding that enough was enough, Eric shot him the middle finger.
"Mother fucker!" Les said, glaring at Mr. Morris.
"Don't talk to me like that, asshole. You should be happy that you still have a job," Mr. Morris threatened.
Dexter had wondered how long it would take the Director to drop the 'happy to have a job' bomb. It had actually taken a little longer than he had guessed.
Dexter said, "You guys have been looking at Eric like he's lucky. He's not."
"I told you that you're fired! Get the hell out of here," Mr. Morris shouted.
Dexter ignored him. "I feel sorry for Eric ... the poor bastard. He's trying to hold down two jobs. You see, he's still trying to run his group, since Mr. Morris won't allow him to promote someone into his place ... nor even let someone have the position temporarily. Eric isn't getting paid for acting as the department head. There's no bonus for his extra duties."
"Jesus!" Les said. "I had no fucking idea. I was pissed that I wasn't offered the job."
Les looked like he was ready to quit on the spot. He had been angered about not getting Mark's old position. To discover that his career was at a dead end, only added fuel to the fire.
Dexter said, "Be glad that it wasn't offered to you. He's going to have to hold that position for a year, or more. Then he's back with us, when they hire someone from outside. Talk about getting the shitty end of the stick."
"I'm calling security to escort you out of here," Mr. Morris said fumbling for his cell phone.
"While you're doing that, I'll just continue to explain things to the folks around here," Dexter said calmly.
"What kinds of things?" Eric asked.
He had a feeling that no one in that room would be with the company a year from now, if that long.
Dexter said, "I looked up some things after my conversation with Mr. Morris. Did you know that there hasn't been one promotion under Mr. Morris in the last two years?"
"I didn't realize that," Eric said with a frown.
He noticed that Mr. Morris didn't bother to argue. Of course, Mr. Morris was too busy talking to someone on his cell phone to listen to what Dexter was saying.
Dexter said, "That's right. You see, no one is getting promoted in this organization."
Les said, "He promised me that I would be promoted if I handled the HR benefits project."
"He lied," Eric said.
Dexter asked, "How many people did you submit for promotion, only to have it turned down?"
"I've been trying to get Bill promoted for years," Al said.
"He'll never get promoted. Next time you think about telling him to take on an extra project, keep that in mind. You're promising him things that you can't ever deliver," Dexter said.
"I'm never going to be able to look any of my guys in the eye, after this," Les said slumping down in his chair.
Dexter said, "Here's another one. When was the last time someone working under Mr. Morris got a performance bonus? The last one was six years ago, except for the ones he gives himself, every year.
"He's a big hero for reducing the size of his work force. He calls it normal attrition, but there's nothing 'normal' about it. Despite the horrible economy, he's had more people quit than any other division in the organization. Did you know that we've lost seven people due to death, in the last two years? Five of them died while they were at work. I'll bet you didn't know that. It makes you wonder why they are dropping dead. Overwork? That's what I think.
"That award that Mr. Morris got last year was based on a lie. All of those increases in productivity are bullshit. We've got people working seventy and eighty hours a week, but Mr. Morris has reported it as if they are working forty hours a week. After all, they are salaried workers. Their overtime doesn't count, and they don't get paid extra, so there's no way to keep track.
"They just keep piling more on our plates, and then they wonder why we're producing crap. Tired, overworked people make mistakes. One of these days, they're going to realize it. It won't matter to us, though, because by that time we'll be burned out."
A security guard showed up in the room. Dexter rose from his seat and said, "One last thing before I go. Tell your people to turn in accurate time sheets. If they are on a conference call at nine at night, tell them to include that as reported working hours."
Furious, Mr. Morris shouted, "Escort that man out of here."
Picking his cell phone up off the desk, Dexter said, "We need to swing by my office for me to pick up my personal property."
"Okay," the security guard said.
"Don't let him do that! I want him out of this building! Right now!" Mr. Morris shouted.
"Yes, Sir," the security guard said with a frown.
That wasn't normal procedure, but he wasn't going to argue. For all he knew, the guy could have been doing something criminal.
A few minutes later, Dexter was walking across the parking lot towards his car. He was watching the video on his cell phone. It had caught all of the expressions on Mr. Morris' face. Some of them were pretty funny. The sound was good enough to hear what everyone said. Dexter was impressed. He thought that others might enjoy watching the video as well.
He wondered what he was going to do next. He wasn't ready to tell his wife that he had been fired. She was going to be surprised by that news. He doubted that she would react well to it. They hadn't really discussed his job situation, other than a few comments about the changes he had made to his group.
He considered calling a lawyer. Mr. Morris had failed to follow proper procedures for firing someone, and Dexter knew it. He had all of the appropriate corporate policies for termination, on his laptop, at home.
He also had copies of all of his performance reviews for the past ten years. The picture painted there was of a good hard worker. Even Mr. Morris had to admit that since he had offered the temporary position to him before offering it to Eric.
He figured that he could drop by the lawyer's office tomorrow. For now, he was thinking about stopping off at a steakhouse, and getting a good sized porterhouse with a baked sweet potato.
His cell phone rang when he reached his car. He noted the caller id and answered.
"Hello, Eric. I'm sorry about that."
"When you fart in an elevator, you really let loose," Eric said.
"Mr. Morris gave me a bad case of gas," Dexter said. "Why aren't you still in your meeting?"
"After Mr. Morris left, I canceled it. Everyone was muttering about updating their resumé," Eric said.
Dexter imagined that it would have been tough ending the meeting with a comment to work hard for the company. He remembered how he had felt after Mr. Morris had told him that there was no chance of promotion. His company loyalty had taken a real hit that day. In fact, it had never recovered.
Dexter asked, "What about you?"
"I have a job offer, and I'm going to take it. I was actually thinking of turning it down, based on what you had done with your group. I felt like things could have really turned around," Eric said.
"Are you getting a promotion out of it?" Dexter asked.
Eric said, "It's a lateral move, and I saw the same kind of bullshit things there as here. I just can't take it here, anymore. I figure that I'll try to do what you did to improve things. I really liked that idea of an 'office engineer.'"
"That was one of my more creative ideas," Dexter said.
"It was a good one," Eric said.
Dexter said, "I feel sorry for the folks left behind. Things are really going to get nasty, there."
"I doubt anyone will be left by the end of the year," Eric said.
He was silent while thinking about what had gone on in the meeting.
He then said, "I couldn't believe how hard you pushed Mr. Morris.
Dexter said. "I knew the minute I walked into the meeting and saw him there, that today was probably going to be my last day."
"Well, you were right. I think everyone in the room knew that your days were numbered," Eric said. "What are you going to do now?"
"I'm thinking that I might open a computer repair shop," Dexter answered.
"Sounds nice ... I might join you," Eric said.
Dexter said, "I'll keep you in mind."
"Thanks," Eric said. "Are you going to sue?"
"I was thinking about it," Dexter answered.
"I'll testify on your behalf. As your direct supervisor, my word about your work should carry a little weight," Eric said.
"Thanks. It's too bad that we can't file a class action suit for a hostile workplace," Dexter said. "I'm still pissed about learning that no matter how hard I worked, there was no chance for a promotion, even though they kept dangling it out there."
"I know what you mean. I didn't know, until you told me, that you had been offered the position first. I should have turned it down, just like you did. Taking on that job was the biggest mistake of my life," Eric said.
Dexter said, "I always thought that Mark was a pretty shitty boss. It makes me wonder how much of his bullshit was just passing along what Mr. Morris was telling him to do."
"I believe it was mostly Mr. Morris. You wouldn't believe the kinds of things that come out of his mouth," Eric said. "God ... that man is an asshole."
"He is that," Dexter said. He pressed the button on the key fob to unlock his car.
Eric said, "I better go and call a man about a job. It'll take me the rest of the day to compose a suitable resignation letter."
"What constitutes suitable?" Dexter asked.
Eric said, "Something that insinuates enough of the truth to piss him off, but won't come back to bite me in the ass."
"Have fun," Dexter said with a grin.
He wondered how Mr. Morris was going to react to Eric's resignation. He didn't think that any of the group leads would want to take over the position, particularly after the stuff they had heard today.
He grinned and got into his car.
His cell phone beeped indicating that he had a text message. From the caller id, he figured that his wife had some errand for him to run.
He opened his phone.
For a full minute he sat there, behind the steering wheel. He did nothing except stare at the message. It was short.
'I WANT A DIVORCE.'
"Shit! That came out of nowhere," Dexter swore.
Edited By TeNderLoin