Image source: sodahead.comI called my security officer, who was really the plant maintenance manager with a collateral duty as security officer. We agreed that we would keep an eye on Jim while we decided how to proceed. We found him working alone in his office and did not appear to be agitated any longer. At this point I knew that at the very least we would need to terminate Jim and get him off the premises.
A hastily arranged conference call took place with my boss, Corporate HR, Corporate Counsel, me, my HR Manager, and Security Officer. Everyone was in agreement that Jim’s consulting contract would be terminated immediately for both the threat and having guns on company property, which was against published policy. Here is how we proceeded:
We called the local police and told them what had happened. They were sympathetic to our situation, but told us that they could not react based on a threat only, particularly since it had been directed at someone far away. They did say that they would make a note of the information and would respond immediately if anything more aggressive were to occur. Their advice was that if we were concerned, we should contact a private security company.
I was concerned, and the HR Manager just happened to know someone who worked for a private security company. We called them and they had a large, imposing looking, private security guard in plain clothes on our premises within 45 minutes. He was carrying a licensed concealed weapon. This was not your typical shopping mall security guard. He was a very experienced professional who knew how to handle this type of situation.
The plan was to terminate Jim, but up to now his aggression was directed at my boss, but what about after I terminated him? Would this trigger an angry response? Don’t forget about the guns that we presumed were in the trunk of his car.
I called Jim and asked him to come to my office. This was not unusual, and he wouldn’t suspect what was coming. When he walked into my office he saw there were several people already waiting for him. I had the HR Manager, the Security Guard, and the Security Officer already seated and asked him to sit down next to the security guard. I quickly told him that he had violated company policy by making the threats to Bill and that his contract was being terminated immediately. To my surprise he calmly said he was expecting this since he had left my office earlier. I told him that I had since learned that he did in fact have access to guns that he kept in his car and that was why the security guard was part of the meeting and introduced him. Jim went on to say that he was just mad and blowing off steam and that I was over reacting. I told him that we hoped he was only talking when making the threat, but as a precaution we had brought in the security professional.
I then gave Jim a choice. I told him we were prepared to allow him to go home immediately. I told him that we would buy him a one way ticket home and that the security guard would escort him to his apartment and help him pack up all his belongings and then stay with him until he was safely on board the plane home. We were specific that we would send his guns to him separately using acceptable shipping as long as they were legally owned by him. He asked what would happen if he didn’t go along with this. I told him that if he did not choose this option, we would turn the matter over to the police. He obviously did not know what we knew about how the police had reacted to our earlier call. Faced with the finality of not having a job and being away from home, he accepted this option and left with the security guard. He cooperated fully and left on the plane later that night, with the security guard with him the entire time. They actually hit it off well and had a pleasant evening together.
The story doesn’t end there, but you'll have to come back in three days to get part III. How would you have handled this differently?
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