I just had a lovely chat with one of my drivers. She is somewhat of a troublesome employee as she always seems to get into trouble, but magically squeaks by any serious repercussions most of the time. She is honest about it and is publicly frank that she suspects it is only a matter of time before she screws up bad enough to be terminated. She is also one of those people you cannot help liking.
I had just finished up passing a trainee on his Final Drive (which means he is now approved by his trainer, the supervisors, the DOT and me to drive one of our buses solo). This is always a good moment because the trainee is very excited after 1.5-2 months of intensive training to get on the road and receive the substantial raise completing training confers on them.
So, this driver Jen makes everyone tea and we chat with the former-trainee about tips and tricks on his own, as well as having a nice honest conversation about her suggestions, compliments and complaints about some of our policies and procedures. It was all in very good humor and a very positive way to end the day.