South Korea’s new President may prove to be unpopular with his staff if he continues to be this strict with them. Think back to when you’ve had to enforce an unpopular rule from a new boss.
Example No.1: How’d you like to tell workers they have to start the day at 7:30 a.m., every day?
You know you’d hear some grumbling, especially in this age of “flex time.”
Example No. 2: No golf. If you’ve got enough time to play golf, you’re not busy enough at work.
Wait. Did he say NO GOLF!!!
Those two examples are exactly what new South Korean President Lee Myung-bak wants from government workers in the Asian country, according to wire service reports.
Lee is quoted as saying, “Government workers are supposed to be servants. Servants are supposed to get up before the masters, who are in this case the people of this country. When you have servants getting up later than the masters, you’re not doing your job right.”
Just when workers in the new president’s administration thought they had a voice of reason, the voice turned on them.
Lee’s chief of staff pleaded with his boss to push back the official workday start time.
But then the chief of staff all but banned golf for the presidential staff, saying if bureaucrats are playing golf, chances are they are not working hard enough.
While this may be bad news for golf courses and driving ranges in South Korea, it may be a boon for therapists who suddenly find themselves with lots of patients going through “golf withdrawal.”
