Running head: DB LTL TRUCKING 1
DB LTL Trucking
Student’s Name
Institutional Affiliation
Course Title
Date
DB LTL TRUCKING 2
DB LTL Trucking
Reply 1
Forgiveness is generally defined as a person’s deliberate, conscious decision to release
feelings of vengeance or resentment toward a group or individual who has harmed them,
irrespective of whether they truly deserve forgiveness. Whereas there is a lack of consensus on
whether true forgiveness necessitates positive feelings towards the transgressor, experts concur
that it at least entails the release of deeply held negative feelings. There exist three modes of
forgiveness: begrudgement- where forgiveness is largely an illusion; pragmatism, in (Thompson
and Simkins, 2017) which forgiveness is a necessity (obligation); and transcendence, where
forgiveness is a life choice.
The way forgiveness is exhibited in the LTL Trucking case study does not actually
correspond to how it is reflected in Scripture (the Bible). The case of LTL Trucking shows two
responses to offense, namely begrudging and pragmatic. Sam and John started in the begrudging
mode, choosing not to forgive and keeping hold of negative feelings. In the pragmatic mode,
individuals vigorously work to neutralize the intrapersonal negativity linked to violation of
expectation. John and Sam never really directly forgave one another, but they had to set aside
their differences as they were acting in their roles on either side of the union negotiating table. It
can be argued that Sam and John never would have agreed to work together had their livelihood
or work not been affected. LTL employees largely favored the pursuit of pragmatic and
transcendent forgiveness as many of them expressed empathy, similar to what the Bible teaches
in Ephesians 4:31-32, in which Christians are urged to let go of malice, sander, bitterness, wrath
and anger. Nevertheless, I feel that to a considerable extent in the LTL Trucking case study,
forgiveness is portrayed in view of selfish reasoning. This is against the teachings in Mark 11:25,
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where Christians are urged to forgive those that have trespassed against them. Leaders can foster
the application of the concept of forgiveness in the workplace by exercising transcendent
forgiveness (Okpala and Caldwell, 2019).
Reply 2
Forgiveness is one of the most significant principles of Christians, with the greatest
forgiveness of all being the act of God, who releases sinners from judgment. The importance of
forgiveness is highlighted in Matthew 6:14-15 (NKJV), which urges Christians to forgive those
who wrong them, because God will also forgive them. It is clear that we cannot have forgiveness
without giving it- it flows two ways (Guchait et al., 2019). The conflict between Sam and John at
LTL Trucking is a common issue between management and labor- the friction between
management and personnel is not unique to the trucking industry. When Sam joined LTL
Trucking, his expectations were that drivers ought to be able to work in an environment that was
comfortable, and where drivers were trusted to perform their work. John’s expectations were that
the union contract and company policies had to be followed to the letter.
The two leaders (John and Sam) feuded for three years. Research has shown that
unresolved disputes in the workplace eat into the organization’s bottom line. The loss of
productivity and distraction can result in loss of revenues for the company. Additionally,
unresolved conflict can destroy the organization’s reputation, and make it difficult to attract and
retain motivated and talented employees. Research has also shown that negative experiences
offer a learning opportunity, with disputants attempting to identify how they can make good of
the situation. Forgiveness then becomes a life-choice (Toussaint et al., 2016). After forgiving one
another, John and Sam moved into transcendent mode and now discuss what they learned from
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each other in those years. Sam was allowed to press on with the special event involving local
business owners. Forgiveness resulted in effective communication between line-level workers
and management, leading to job satisfaction and increased productivity.
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References
Guchait, P., Abbott, J.L., Lee, C., Back, K., & Manoharan, A. (2019). The influence of perceived
forgiveness climate on service recovery performance: The mediating effect of
psychological safety and organizational fairness. Journal of Hospitality and Tourism
Management, 40, 94-102. doi:10.1016/j.jhtm.2019.06.007
Okpala, C., & Caldwell, C. (2019). Humility, forgiveness, and love- The Heart of Ethical
Stewardship. The Journal of Values-Based Leadership, 12(2), 1-12.
doi:10.22543/0733.122.1281
Thompson, B., & Simkins, T.J. (2017). Self-oriented forgiveness and other-oriented forgiveness:
Shaping high-quality exchange relationships. Journal of Management & Organization,
23(5), 741-765. doi:10.1017/jmo.2016.18
Toussaint, L., Worthington, E.L., Van Tongeren, D.R., Hook, J., Berry, J.W., Miller, A.J., &
Davis, D.E. (2016). Forgiveness working: Forgiveness, health, and productivity in the
workplace. American Journal of Health Promotion, 32(1), 1-9.
doi:10.1177/0890117116662312
