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The goal of both WOW programs is to encourage youth to complete their education before entering today‘s highly demanding job market, or to make an informed choice about continuing school vs. leaving school to seek employment. â€" "This program is a prevention if anything," says SOLO program supervisor Lori Mcintosh. "It‘s an opportunity; it‘s an alternative. And without alternatives like this, I think youth may be confronted with a period of time where they‘re going to face a lot of barriers. Being out of school for three or four months can often hold you back in terms of credits acquired, and that then is another barrier." Year Round WOW is a variation of the successful summer WOW program which the Canada Employment and Immigration Commisâ€" sion has sponsored for the past five years. "I know now that I need my schooling â€" I need at least my Grade 12 education, if not my Grade 13," Avery says. "It‘s not a good idea to just go out and leave shcool." TheWOWprogramwudeaignedwmakeyoungfi:pleawmof the employment barriers faced by those who leave school prematureâ€" ly. It provides potenial or recent school leavers with a learning experience and enables them to become aware of the demands in the workplace. Jason Avery, 17, left high school v:(fl)evl} attending for ox;]z' a few weeks last September. As part of the program, Avery nt the past few weeks working at Weber Video, and because 6?0 his participation in the WOW program, feels ready to go back to school. In February, he will resume his studies at KCL Employees usually don‘t change their behavior overnight. It‘s just not common sense: why all of a sudden would a person‘s job performance drop off draâ€" matically? It‘s usually because the new boss has a mandate for change that he tries to carry out in the face of stubborn resisâ€" tance from employees. As a result of that, personality conflicts arise. If you‘re an employee caught in such a conflict, what can you do to protect ymmlumtl;::omwm.podnlf- serving memo give you some protection if something happens. A good Piat is one of many business owners in Waterloo Region who are providing young people with job experience, so they are better able to make choices regarding their educations. Through Year Round Work Orientation Workshops (WOW), a pilot project operated by Family and Children‘s Services‘ SOLO program, teenagers who may be considering leaving school to enter the work force have an opportunity to see what it‘s like in the working world. We enjoy the opportunity of having these young people work for us," Piat says. "It gives us an opportunity to have these individuals acquire some experience in our type of business, and hopefully we can take them on on a part time basis while they continue at school. We find that these young people come in with fresh attitudes, and come up with some pretty good ideas." Business Week Chronicle Staff Johu Piat, coowner of Weber Video on Louisa Street, has found a way for his business to contribute to the futures of area youths. tenuous. A lot of people get fired because of personality conflicts. And when that happens, they‘re often very unsure as to what they should do. It often occurs when a new boss comes on the scene. Old Joe is replaced by Dynamic Dan â€" who went to a whole other school of labor relations. Suddenly, poor performance reviews appear. Friction arises . Uncertainty hangs in the air. The position itself looks Program helps youth make better choices PAGE A22 â€" WATERLOO CHRONICLE, WEDNESDAY DECEMBER 13, 1989 Paper protects in wrongful dismissal cases WOW That‘s why it‘s so critical to respond in writing to everything that an employer does. If you can create a guerrilla war paper trail, you‘re bolstering your chances of winning a wrongful diémissal suit in the courts. You have to be able to counter all of the accusations that have been made. If respond to a negative review, a court wou rspred it paper trail with lots of memos will help you with your case. It will allow you to buttress your position in the event that you are fired and have to justify your case in court. The best strategy is to always fight back. It': something employers don‘t (Continued on page A23) t. Case in point: if you don‘t nd to a negative job performance w, a court would assume you About The Law Jason Avery, 17, is working at Weber Video as a participant in the WOW program Make your memo longer than the one your arguments. Courts like to see that later on. Statistics are also fun to use. If the Drive the boss crazy with demands. Ask for mformatl?n â€" often the kil}d he won‘t provide. If you get a complaint about your ability to provide proper supervision, then ask in writing who it is that is displeased. The boss may have given an undertaking of confidentiality â€" and that puts him in a bad spot. has ]gotten an oral retraction of a complaint made against him, he is often just beside himself waiting for a memo to confirm what was said. It usually never comes. So what do you do? Send the memo outlining the conversation yourself, At least you‘ll have a record of what was said. And it‘s good, gutsy, aggressive behaviour. an emp!qyee has talked to the boss and Ask the vital questions in writi J. Frederick is a partner and counsel to tbe&fllrub.m of White, Jenkins, Duncan & Ostner in Waterloo. your job. It should be reserved for situations when the employee is going to be gone or wants to be. Bdllfi:ne thing 3 clear: don‘t sit back an nothing if things aren‘t goi well. You must be able to inatifu .:?.f boss complains about your sales for the quarter, look at the last month. If he says sales dollars are down, show him that unit sales are ux;h:nd benl;(‘lles. making the argument that you have nothing to do with setting prices. If the boss says that you‘ve insulted a major customer, deny it outright if it‘s not true. Give your own version in a memo. The company will be very relucâ€" tant to‘ subpoena a customer and testify at trial. The goal of these memos is not to save * # o# Deborah Crandall photo