My guest Richard Plato is the Director of Human Resources at Christopher Ranch. In this episode Richard talks about the impact of a mass shooting at the Gilroy Garlic Festival in July 2019 and how the company, Christopher Ranch and UnitedAg were both proactive in providing mental health support for the employees. He also shares his views on the importance of human connection in the workplace and the role of Human Resources. He recounts a recent situation where an employee was struggling and instead of just disciplining her, he took the time to understand her circumstances and help her resolve her issues. He emphasizes the importance of seeing employees as more than just numbers, but as people with stories and experiences
My guest Richard Plato is the Director of Human Resources at Christopher Ranch.
In this episode Richard talks about the impact of a mass shooting at the Gilroy Garlic Festival in July 2019 and how the company, Christopher Ranch and UnitedAg were both proactive in providing mental health support for the employees. He also shares his views on the importance of human connection in the workplace and the role of Human Resources. He recounts a recent situation where an employee was struggling and instead of just disciplining her, he took the time to understand her circumstances and help her resolve her issues. He emphasizes the importance of seeing employees as more than just numbers, but as people with stories and experiences.
Richard Plato's Bio - Born and raised in Gilroy, CA. The “Garlic Capital of the World”, Richard is proud and humbled to serve the agriculture community in which he grew up in. He joined the Christopher Ranch family in 2007 and now has over 24 years of HR experience. Richard is responsible for providing strategic guidance and leadership for all aspects of the human resources function and establishing a vision of inclusion and diversity. He holds a MS in Psychology from SJSU and a BS in Theology and BA in Philosophy from Sacred Heart Major Seminary in Detroit, MI.
Christopher Ranch - Founded in 1956 by company patriarch, Don Christopher, Christopher Ranch has been the nation’s leading garlic producer for generations. With nearly 6,000 acres of California heirloom garlic, grown statewide, you can be sure to find our products in all 50 states. Located in the garlic capital of the world- Gilroy, CA.
https://christopherranch.com/
This episode is sponsored by UnitedAg, one of the largest association health plans to offer healthcare to the agriculture industry of California and Arizona.
Kirti Mutatkar, President and CEO of UnitedAg. Reach me kmutatkar@unitedag.org, www.linkedin.com/in/kirtimutatkar
UnitedAg's website - www.unitedag.org
The episode is also sponsored by
Brent Eastman Insurance Services Inc. - https://brenteastman.com/
Blue Shield of California - https://www.blueshieldca.com/
Elite Medical - https://www.elitecorpmed.com/
Gallagher - https://www.ajg.com/
SAIN Medical - https://sainmedical.com/
Richard : [00:00:12] You're [00:00:10] going to get me emotional in July of 2019. We [00:00:20] experience a mass shooting here at the Gilroy Christopher Ranch sorry, the Gilroy Garlic Festival at the Gilroy Garlic Festival. There was a [00:00:30] mass shooting where there were many injured and several lost their lives. I believe it was three that lost their life, and [00:00:40] that happened on Sunday, July 25 of 2019. And I often tell the story [00:00:50] because. In 2019, the number of mass shootings, not only at schools, at churches, at synagogues, at mosques, at movie [00:01:00] theaters, they were on the rise. And we were forward thinking. We were trying to be forward thinking and say, what could we do as [00:01:10] an organization at Christopher Ranch to be able to be prepared as as best as we possibly can? I don't think anyone's truly prepared for for [00:01:20] an event or as such. So that Thursday before the Gilroy Garlic Festival shooting, we worked with the Gilroy Police [00:01:30] Department and the Santa Clara County Sheriff's Department. And in this very room we had a active shooter. We had an active shooter training for [00:01:40] our managers, supervisors, owners. And one of the things that. Haunts me and resonates [00:01:50] within me now. Is. One of the police officers said. It's [00:02:00] not a matter of. If it happens. But when it happens. I thought that was just. [00:02:10] Those words were so impactful and cut deep. Who would have ever thought that three days later. [00:02:20]
Richard : [00:02:21] A gunman would have gotten into the Gilroy Garlic Festival through a fence. And. [00:02:30] It was a blow to our community. We're Gilroy strong. A. But [00:02:40] it was very impactful. There was a lot of employees that were present at the Gilbert Garlic [00:02:50] Festival that day. The owners were present. The Gilroy Garlic Festival has been around for over 45 years. Our [00:03:00] owner and founder, Don Christopher, started the Gilroy Garlic Festival and the proceeds of the festival would go to charitable organizations within town. [00:03:10] So it was a foundation that that that did good for the community and it was well known in the community. And people from all over the country, all over the world would come to this festival. [00:03:20] And there were a lot of people in attendance and a lot of our community were there. It [00:03:30] was. Some dark days followed. The ranch our employees were calling out because they were afraid [00:03:40] of a copycat. Perhaps someone would come onto our property, so we had to be proactive at the time. We [00:03:50] didn't know exactly what to do, but I remember calling, I believe someone at United Agg, if [00:04:00] I can say her name, Maribel. I called Maribel and said, What could we do for mental health? We need counseling. [00:04:10] The we need a we need psychiatrists. We need. We need help. What [00:04:20] can we do for our employees?
Kirti : [00:04:27] I am today super excited because [00:04:30] I am here in Gilroy, the garlic capital of the world, Right? That's what it's called, Richard.
Richard : [00:04:34] That is where you're at. Richard Plato. I'm the director of [00:04:40] human resources at Christopher Ranch. Been here for 15 years. Happy and proud to be at a family owned business that's been around for over 65 years. You [00:04:50] are absolutely right, Kitty. Human connection. I often say I don't like to use H.R. director of H.R. because [00:05:00] it cuts out the entire word human. And it's important that we are reminded and that we keep [00:05:10] the humanness and human resources in our organizations. Do we see people more than just a number? Do we see people as [00:05:20] more of just just people sitting at a desk or sorters or lifters or boxers or shipping and receiving people? Do they [00:05:30] have a name? Do they have a story?
Kirti : [00:05:35] Tell me a day when or let's say today or any other day where you hear [00:05:40] a story from one of your employees and then that just makes you so glad that you're the director of human resources, because that's [00:05:50] a very fulfilling role. Right? Any I know you have tons of those stories. Can you share one with us? A couple?
Richard : [00:05:56] Actually, it's funny that you say that because for [00:06:00] everyone out there who's listening, Quixote's always on time and sometimes even early. So she arrived a little early, but it was serendipity. She arrived here [00:06:10] when I was dealing with a human, a very human story, a very human situation and scenario. It just so happens that there was an [00:06:20] employee who was a long term employee, and this literally just happened 5 minutes ago. She had been a long term employee, and due to circumstances [00:06:30] beyond her control, she was not able to. Report to work on a regular basis. There [00:06:40] were some transportation issues. There was some, and she never had any issues before this. And in 2022, last year, she began to. [00:06:50] Her attendance began to slip and it was something out of the ordinary. So it was one of those situations where, like, you have a model employee, you have a perfect employee who just never [00:07:00] misses. Work is always on time. Not problematic is always there. Something was off, something was not right. And [00:07:10] in human resources, it's easy to say sometimes, well, just discipline them, write them up.
Kirti : [00:07:16] Write.
Richard : [00:07:17] An attendance, write up or whatever. Right, Right. But [00:07:20] when you know someone because you had that connection, you've had that human. This is out of the ordinary, right? So you pick up the phone and you call or you invite them [00:07:30] in and you talk to them. And most often than not, they share their story. Everybody has a story and they share their story with you. And this employee, [00:07:40] unfortunately, shared a story and was not able to. After several months was not able to completely fulfill the [00:07:50] obligations of the position, including her hours and her schedule. So she had to leave. And the way she left, unfortunately, there [00:08:00] was a situation in her family where she was not able to call out in a timely fashion. So it was coded as job abandonment. After three, four days, she didn't [00:08:10] report to work, never had given any other opportunity, never had given never, never had this situation with her. So for over [00:08:20] a year, all of 2020, she she wasn't in touch with us. She called earlier today and she said to me, I'm in a much better [00:08:30] situation than I was a year ago in 20 or early 2022. I'm in a much better situation now. I've resolved all my issues. She then shared [00:08:40] with me her story and what had happened in her life. There was a sickness in her family and her daughter had to undergo some chemotherapy and some cancer [00:08:50] and some things which she hadn't disclosed to me prior. She just I just knew that there was a situation with a family member. But [00:09:00] she did share all this with me, and she asked for another opportunity to return to Christopher Ranch, even though she had not been eligible for rehire. But you listen to her [00:09:10] story and and it's one of those situations where I looked in her personnel file and there was nothing there prior to 2022. [00:09:20] So I reached out to her manager, the person who coded her as not eligible for rehire. And I shared her story with [00:09:30] him. She starts working tomorrow.
Kirti : [00:09:34] So what do you say to people when they say. That's all well [00:09:40] and good. But what about the compliance part of human like a human resources, right? So if you're doing this for everybody, are people abusing the system? [00:09:50] Would people take advantage of that? Well, how would what do you say to that organizational justice?
Richard : [00:09:55] And unfortunately, human resources is often put in that find that situation, [00:10:00] that find situation where you're in the middle, right. To comply with policy, to comply with laws, to comply with organizational compliance [00:10:10] policies. And then you're also the human human aspect of it as well. There are certain things that are [00:10:20] definitive that are fine line zero tolerance to anything that has to do with an outrageous situation [00:10:30] that caused this person to maybe lose their job and history. So it does take some digging. It does it takes some some [00:10:40] take takes time out of your day. To make that happen. And sometimes you do look in that personnel file and you realize, no, this person [00:10:50] has a history of that. And many opportunities have already been granted to them throughout their tenure at the ranch or perhaps have already been [00:11:00] awarded or afforded to them. Right. And you bring others into it, too. Like I didn't make the decision on my own. I brought in that person's manager.
Kirti : [00:11:08] Right. Right.
Richard : [00:11:09] And I and I explained [00:11:10] the situation and allowed them to make the final decision. Right. They're the ones going to be working with that person. Right.
Kirti : [00:11:16] Because you are the interesting part is when you're talking about this, there's a [00:11:20] lot of the perception with agriculture and how employees get treated and all that. And then you hear stories like yours and it's just amazing, right, [00:11:30] what happens in agriculture and how it's so different than sometimes what the perception out there is.
Richard : [00:11:35] Absolutely. I'm very proud to have been working to been working [00:11:40] for 15 plus 15 plus years now at Christopher Ranch, a family owned and operated business. When I first got here, we were always ahead of the game, and even [00:11:50] Christopher Ranch got some slack from some other growers in the area, from other folks in agriculture, because we were always ahead of the game. We [00:12:00] always worked hard to provide some kind of medical insurance, some kind of insurance and some coverage to employees. It was before it was required in 2012 by the [00:12:10] Affordable Care Act. Don Christopher, our owner and founder many years ago, many, many years ago, came up with a solution [00:12:20] because many of our employees, female populated, female dominated industry were sorting and line labor and conveyor [00:12:30] lines and belts, and he wanted to make sure that he provided some coverage for the employees, especially if they were out on maternity leave. [00:12:40] He was ahead of the game. He was a forward thinker, so he we we were able to formalize an in house plan and worked even closely with United [00:12:50] Egg at that point in time, way before the Affordable Care Act.
Kirti : [00:13:06] Just [00:13:00] to pivot a little bit, Richard, uh, I've heard you talk about the shooting [00:13:10] here that happened a couple of years ago and the impact from mental health and what the way you as an employer kind of address that and the way [00:13:20] you had the support from your health plan or others in the industry. Can you talk a little bit about that?
Richard : [00:13:25] I worked with United Egg and we had a network [00:13:30] of providers and we also had a Teladoc situation to where employees would be able to schedule an appointment with [00:13:40] a therapist from the comfort of their own homes because a lot of people just didn't want to leave their homes, didn't want to leave, didn't want to go out to the public, didn't want to [00:13:50] leave their families. And to be honest, I actually started seeking mental health myself. [00:14:00] And it was through our network of providers that I found a local therapist explained the situation to this local therapist. I met with [00:14:10] her in person. It was in 2019, so the pandemic hadn't hit yet. So in 2019, I met with her in person and she shared with me that she has been seeing [00:14:20] tons of people that were present at the festival and it and she wanted to help and she was part of our network. So she I [00:14:30] worked with her to be able to come out to our lunchroom, our Christopher Ranch employee lunchroom, and to offer [00:14:40] her services and the services of all her colleagues that were part of our network of providers. And she was able to see a lot of our employees who needed to just someone to talk [00:14:50] to and some family members to. So that that was very I'm forever grateful that for United [00:15:00] and for what you all did for us and for our employees during that very, very dark and difficult time during the shooting.
Kirti : [00:15:10] You [00:15:10] know, when I've heard you tell me the story before, and I know it's emotional, it's I can actually picture it when you're telling me the story. I was picturing [00:15:20] the garlic festival and this happening. And when you first told me the story, I did not actually realize the impact of United Agg. And [00:15:30] when you told me that, I actually was so excited and it just felt so fulfilling that I mean, as a health plan to come and need your help [00:15:40] you when in need, which is very not when in traditional sense not really a health plan thing to solve for. But the fact that we did. Right. And that's that's [00:15:50] what we're trying to build here. You as an employer in agriculture, we as providing health care and agriculture, building that community for each other. So [00:16:00] we are are each other's resource, right. That that's what we're trying to do.
Richard : [00:16:04] Absolutely. It's funny that you say that because we talk about building relationship and [00:16:10] building that and keeping that humanness. If I hadn't had that rapport and that relationship with United Egg, and if I didn't have the phone number, [00:16:20] the direct line to that person at United Egg that I called, who would I have? Would I have called just an 800 number? Would I have called? But I had a connection [00:16:30] with these people or T Mirabelle. Anybody yet? I have relationships. And because I've built [00:16:40] that human rapport with United Egg for what, over 20 years now? Not 25, 30 years now. So, yes, humanness is in everything we do. [00:16:50] There's been a lot of mental health issues and behavioral health issues since since the garlic festival shooting in 2019, most [00:17:00] health care providers were doing Zoom meetings and special mental health, especially mental health. They were doing Zoom meetings. And unfortunately in our communities, [00:17:10] perhaps agriculture community, the Hispanic community, they were not accustomed to speaking to anyone about mental health issues or anxiety or [00:17:20] stress or depression, let alone over a computer or over the phone. But we found it extremely beneficial to our workers, [00:17:30] our community, because there was a lot of unknowns at the time, too. There was such a demand for for the the COVID vaccine at first.
Richard : [00:17:39] And it was [00:17:40] it was fantastic to see the lines and we made the news. It was fantastic. It was it was very proud of that event. However, they did say there might [00:17:50] be a percentage of folks that might not feel like they might be able to return to work or might even miss a day or two because of headaches or perhaps some [00:18:00] light fever, etc.. There was a situation in which an employee she received her vaccine and at the moment that that vaccine [00:18:10] went into her arm, the shot went into her arm, She began to hysterically cry and she began to have an emotional reaction, [00:18:20] not a physical reaction per se, due to the vaccine, but it was a trigger. The poking was a trigger to something that was [00:18:30] unknown to anyone around her, including her managers, the doctors and the nurse staff that were present. They [00:18:40] didn't know how to console her, how to talk to her. She wanted nothing to do with any of them. I then approached her [00:18:50] and asked if I could sit next to her, which I think might have been a No-No at the time too, because we were supposed to keep six feet of distance with everyone.
Richard : [00:18:59] But, [00:19:00] you know, I'm so used to that human interaction again. So I approached her and I sat next to her. I asked if I could sit with her, and she then began to explain to she apologized for reacting [00:19:10] that way or having that that response. She shared with me that during COVID, she had discovered that [00:19:20] her husband of many years had had an affair and had left her family. She then shared that she has she's a mother of six. And [00:19:30] that she she went into a deep depression. A very, very deep depression. And. She [00:19:40] felt hopeless and helpless. And she had attempted to take her life. And [00:19:50] thank God she was not successful at it. And. She then had another battle to fight. After that, she she. [00:20:00] She was hospitalized for a few days. The ex husband had attempted to take her children from her. [00:20:10] And so she then had to go through the court systems and she was very depressed and she was she didn't know how to or where to go, where to turn [00:20:20] to, or who to turn to. There were some resources that were given to her at the hospital and the police. And but it was at that very moment when she had [00:20:30] that shot.
Kirti : [00:20:32] That all came flooding back.
Richard : [00:20:34] Something triggered in her. And she shared this story with me. She shared that with me. [00:20:40] And I asked if I could speak with her in my office and I had our HR manager with me too. And we were. [00:20:50] Then able to give her resources. She had United agg insurance, so I was able to put her in touch with not only the providers, [00:21:00] the network of providers in the area, but also with Teladoc, because again, it was during COVID, right? So she had an emotional response. She [00:21:10] was going through some mental health issues that none of us were aware of, in which she said to me, too, I remember. It was I was numb. I [00:21:20] was completely numb as to what she was talking to me in Spanish and said I was numb. I couldn't feel anything. But when that shot came, went [00:21:30] into my arm. I was able to feel something for the first time, and I became emotional. She was so numb. She was so desensitized with what was happening in her life, and [00:21:40] she hadn't spoken to anyone about it. Over the course of the next several days and several weeks, I followed up with her to make sure she was getting the help that she was [00:21:50] talking to somebody. And I was very I'm very, very happy to report that she is still seeing someone. And she has been back at work. She has [00:22:00] her six children with her. She is happy. She is thriving. She looks like a completely different person now.
Kirti : [00:22:20] So [00:22:20] one of the things, Richard, as I'm listening to you and I'm trying to see what do I take away from [00:22:30] a united act standpoint or what do I take away for our listeners? What can they take away from what Richard has to offer, what what Christopher [00:22:40] Ranch has to offer, what Agg has to offer? What what do you think? What would be that one or two one thing like, oh, I'm going to change the way I now approach [00:22:50] this because of what I just heard?
Richard : [00:22:53] Well, in addition to what Christopher Ranch has to offer, garlic and more garlic.
Kirti : [00:22:59] That's actually good for your [00:23:00] heart.
Richard : [00:23:00] Very true. Yes. And it's a natural mosquito repellent as well.
Kirti : [00:23:05] That's true.
Richard : [00:23:07] So one of the things I think that the [00:23:10] that the message that I would want to leave all the listeners with is make yourself available. Be human. If it's nothing [00:23:20] more than just looking. Looking at someone in the eyes. A smile. Be human. And sometimes it's so difficult [00:23:30] because we're way down with our busy schedules. If you can just make it a point to reach out to maybe just one employee a day. It [00:23:40] might just be a text message or it might be a phone call, or it might just be a visit to their office or a visit to the lunchroom and just smile at [00:23:50] someone, say, Hey, how are you doing today? Yeah, I've been thinking about you. We just don't know what impact that's going to make today, as a matter of fact. There [00:24:00] was I was told of an employee in our Chicago warehouse that hadn't reported to work in a while, and they had assumed that he had [00:24:10] resigned because he was he hadn't been reported to work in a few days. So I reached out to this person. He called me back after everyone in his facility. [00:24:20] Tried to reach out to him via text and email and phone and he wouldn't respond to them, but I just simply sent them a text message saying. [00:24:30] This is Richard Plato, director of human resources at Christopher Ranch. Just call her to check in on you. I [00:24:40] understand that there might be something going on. I would love to talk to you if you have a chance. Give me a call. Here's my number. That's all I did. Within [00:24:50] an hour later, he called me back and he said. I can't believe that I'm. I'm a warehouse worker. And that someone. To [00:25:00] use his word a big way. Called me from the corporate headquarters, from the corporate office to check in on me. That means a lot. Anybody [00:25:10] else probably would have just coded him as a job. Abandonment quit, but it took me less than a minute to draft up a text message. And [00:25:20] it made a huge difference in that person's life.
Kirti : [00:25:23] That's amazing. That's amazing because as you were saying, you think everybody should know this, but [00:25:30] we need we need to act on it. That was that was a great message.
Richard : [00:25:35] We need reminders to we.
Kirti : [00:25:36] Need reminders.
Richard : [00:25:36] Reminders maybe even just the reminder of don't abbreviate [00:25:40] human resources, HR. Yeah, it's easier to say and write down, but we need that reminder of the humanness, the human in human resources. [00:25:50]