OGL 481 Pro-Seminar I:

PCA-Symbolic Frame Worksheet

Worksheet Objectives:

1. Describe the symbolic frame

2. Apply the symbolic frame to your personal case situation

Complete the following making sure to support your ideas and cite from the textbook and other
course materials per APA guidelines. After the peer review, you have a chance to update this and
format for your Electronic Portfolio due in Module 6.

1) Briefly restate your situation from Module 1 and your role.

As a person who was required to follow the recommendations of OSHA and the
Emergency Temporary Standard during the pandemic while at work, I was and still am
directly affected by the decisions that they made on behalf of the public. The company I
work for is Vanguard Veterinary Associates and we partner with a few business by
setting up in their parking lots to give pet vaccinations. Like many of you, I was required
to follow the mandates that were put in place, which included wearing masks and
becoming vaccinated or face regular testing. Since our clinics are set up outside, wearing
the masks in the Texas heat for hours at a time got to be quite uncomfortable and it was
not always easy to breath. As soon as they let us know that we could stop wearing masks
if we got vaccinated, many of us did go get our vaccines. My personal role was to stay
educated on the changing rules and to hold our clients and fellow employee's to the
standards as they were updated by OSHA to ensure a safe work environment. OSHA's
role in helping prevent the spread of Covid-19 in the workplace is the situation I will be
studying further this class. They are tasked with mandating and implementing health
standards in the workplace, which is a crucial role. However, the role they have in
preventing the spread of the virus in the workplace has been debated. They issued an
emergency temporary standard for employers that had over 100 employees that was
eventually withdrawn, due to the court finding that they did not have the authority to
make such mandates. Many businesses challenged OSHA's authority to mandate mask
wearing and vaccinations due to employees protesting being forced to do so.

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 2) Describe how the symbols of the organization influenced the situation.

“Symbols take many forms in organizations. Myth, vision, and values imbue an
organization with deep purpose and resolve.” (Bolman/Deal, 2017, p. 243). The vision of
the organization is to ensure the safety of the workers that they are in charge of
protecting. The employees that work for OSHA have strong values that keep them driven
to enforce the mandates that the government creates. However, the myths that were
circulated by the public at large undermined the helpful actions that OSHA was
attempting to take.

There were many unsung heroes who fought for and against the worker's desire to
make their own decision regarding mask wearing and vaccinations. They lobbied local
and national politicians and expressed how their personal experiences affected them.
“Stories are deeply rooted in the human experience.” (Bolman/Deal, 2017, p. 248). By
sharing their personal experiences of how the mandates affected them with those making
the decisions, the lawmakers were better educated as to how the mandates were affecting
those all over the US.

3) Recommend how you would use organizational symbols for an alternative course of
action regarding your case.

Learning how the values and vision impact the decisions that are made was
something I could have done more of, which would have encouraged me to be more
supportive of the mandates that were put in place. “Values are intangible and define a
unique character that helps people find meaning and feel special about what they do.”
(Bolman/Deal, 2017, p. 244). Keeping the workers as protected from Covid-19 as
possible was one of the highest values of OSHA during the pandemic.

“Vision turns an organization's core ideology or sense of purpose, into an image

of the future” and “is deemed vital in contemporary organizations” (Bolman/Deal, 2017,
p. 244). The vision of OSHA was that one day, masks and vaccinations would no longer
be mandated when it had enough data to show that people would still be safe. I could
have better understood that their vision was guiding their decisions, instead of being so
against being forced to wear them at work.

4) Reflect on what you would do or not do differently given what you have learned
about this frame.

I could have been more understanding of how the vision and values of an
organization are kept front and center when making decisions, which could have
encouraged me to be more supportive of the mandates that were made. Instead of being
so against wearing a mask, I could have tried to be more cooperative and spread the
message in a more positive light. While I was not one who protested or lobbied, I was

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 among the co-workers who complained about the different mandates that were trying to
be put in place.

The stories and the myths that were circulated during the pandemic did not help to
support the vision and values OSHA was trying to implement. Some people who were
against wearing masks spread false information that others took as facts, while others
exaggerated vaccine symptoms to spread fear about getting the shot. Another thing I
would have done differently is not to take everyone's “truth” as literal truth. I have found
after the fact that a few stories my own co-workers have shared were fabricated.

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 Reference

Bolman, L. G., & Deal, T. E. (2017). Reframing organizations: Artistry, choice, and leadership
(6thed.).San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass