If you're a regular reader of Friends of Dave, you're aware that my daughter Erica was working at Cold Stone Creamery in Ukiah and was recently made a manager.

Well, Erica quit her job yesterday. That's not enough to make me boycott the store but the way in which it came about is.

I won't provide all the details here, but the short version is that she was ambushed by her store's owner with a list of offenses, the bulk of which were simply misinterpretations of the events, some of which were caught on the in-store video cameras which the employees think are there for their protection. Erica was so upset by the way in which the meeting was handled that she felt her only recourse was to quit.

Having worked in positions where I managed staff only a couple years older than Erica, it has been my experience that you make your expectations clear and when the staff members don't meet them, you discuss the issues with them in a constructive fashion, not an ambush. You then reinforce the expectations and wait to see if they meet them.

That certainly isn't what happened in this case. It would also now appear that the owner is trying to short my daughter for the 50 cent per hour raise that she was supposed to receive as a manager from her last check.

It is evident to me that this store isn't going to be successful in finding and retaining good staff with the business practices that they're currently using. I can only hope in time that either they figure this out or sell the franchise to someone who will do better. In the interim, I'll be going to Windsor if I have a craving for Cold Stone.

Update: The owner called Erica today and apologized. She realized after speaking with Erica, that she had listened to the wrong person and that she should never have handled the situation in that fashion. She asked Erica to consider coming back and promised significant changes around the store. So, I have hope and depending on how things go in the next few days, I'll reconsider my boycott. I think Erica feels better about the situation at this point.