Book Review: Employment Ethics (OT), Redefining the Employer-Employee Relationship

Employment Ethics, Redefining the Employer-Employee Relationship, by Travis Schachtner (FTS Leaders, 2025, $19.99, 184pp) 

A Gem! 

We have all had a job (or two. . . ) that we just didn't like, but was it the people or the work itself? And how much of a role does salary play, or the manager? Let's redefine the 'employer-employee relationship' in the words of author Travis Schachtner.

Where's the Beef?

It is here. Being a rather small, affordable book enables the reader to carry it with him or her in a purse of pocket, to return to in  spare time. The concerpts are grad school concepts written in everyday language with examples being primarily of blue-collar employment.

Bringing in Maslow's hierarchy of needs and relating it to the real world of work can be challenging but the author does a good job of this (was it his PhD thesis?)

Much (too much?) of the book explains the premise which is: "Employers emphasize financial efficiency seeking to maximize productivity while minimizing labor costs. Employees, however, value their personal time, viewing work as an exchange of giving effort for a certain amount of time for ethical compensation." (p. 44) And much of the time, the author poses questions that outline a poor employer-employee relationship.

 A second theme compares a strong marriage to the employer-employee relationship while a one-night stand (contractors, PT or gig work) or an abusive relationship could be likened to other types of marriages.

And what book would be replete without mention of the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire, the Monogah mining or Hawk's Nest Tunnel Disaster or Willow Island but do you know what improvements in employment law resulted?

Several chapters end with reflections that are questions to summarize the chapter and cause the reader to evaluate his situation. Anyone picking up this book is probably in a difficult work situation and Employment Ethics, besides acting as a therapist, gives a structure to correct the situation.

Suggestions

I'd like to see Employment Ethics in greater use, perhaps by being shorter or condensing the first third or even by adding illustrations. Although I understand the items on the cover, I'd prefer a cover that is more magnetic and grabs the potential  reader to explore inside.