Does Your Organization Have Two Cultures: Frontline vs. Office?

Before we dive into the culture divide between frontline and office workers, let’s define frontline work. Frontline workers are the face of the organization to customers and are often the backbone of keeping operations running. Often frontline workers don’t have access to a computer and don’t sit at a desk. And they endure a lot of stress due to lower wages, lack of pay increases, and not earning enough to make ends meet. Furthermore, frontline workers make up about 70% of the United States workforce.

In a 2024 UKG poll 49% of frontline workers indicated they feel they work in a different culture than their office counterparts do. I have seen this culture divide in play many times over my decades of consulting work and when I was an employee.

Management often sees frontline workers as those less worth investing in compared to their office counterparts, and often don’t ensure that these workers feel seen and heard. Moreover, development of frontline supervisors is often not as robust as it needs to be and is often an afterthought compared to management development for middle managers and senior leaders.

One of the tell-tale signs of the divide between frontline and office workers is the feeling in most companies that if a person is doing work deemed exempt from overtime pay they have much more status than those who must record time worked, take legally required breaks and lunchtime, and are referred to as non-exempt. Read my last blog of May 5 for more detail around exempt vs. non-exempt work. Many games are played by supervisors and managers who try to prove their direct reports should be deemed exempt in order to gain status for those employees, even when the jobs they perform do not clearly meet the legal requirements for exempt status. Following this path can lead to costly legal trouble when people should have been receiving overtime and they didn’t due to misclassification of their jobs. Furthermore, creating fake exempt jobs fuels the fire with respect to supporting the divide between the two groups of workers.

Smart leaders determine ways to support their frontline and other non-exempt workers, and assist them in feeling seen and heard. Surveying frontline workers to determine what they want and need from their employer and manager and acting on the results is imperative. Providing accommodations regarding schedules of frontline workers which acknowledge their responsibilities outside of work is also important. Ensuring safe work environments and training, and that non-exempt workers are paid based upon their contribution to the organization are foundational ways to support this important group of employees.

#frontlineworkers #culturedivide #fakeexemptjobs