[edent]

Wow! Once again I'm grateful to live in a country with sane labour laws - and glad to have the backing of a trade union.

So because the managers couldn't do a decent job of managing their employee, he loses his job and all associated benefits?

[Cartwright2]

Found the guy who's difficult to work with...

Seriously though, every company has had to deal with one of these people sooner or later. The cost to team morale always outweighs the talent of the difficult developer. Let them go, let them learn, and hope they fix their act at the next company. It always hurts to throw away talent.

[Riod]

It's also possible that the company is decidedly mediocre but has a strong culture of having people who all think the same way on the team. Smart person sees this and is frustrated but doesn't have managerial authority to make improvements.

Different cultures have different expectations of the relationship between employer, colleagues and the employee. Guessing op is from a place where being right is more important than everyone being on the same page but being wrong.

[Riod]

Agreed. I think it can be traced to cultural factors. From working in the US, I find that needing to fit in is a huge part of their work culture. People notice when you don't share the same interests. The compulsion to flatter your boss is very strong. Very different to my part of Western Europe where work is work and not about finding people with the same interests to hang out with. I suspect the 'smart' employee in this situation was probably frustrated and wanted a higher performance environment. Entrepreneurship would probably be a better path for him.

[oldmanjay]

hey you've just made me happy I live in a sane country that lets my workplace get rid of people who ruin the work experience. I'm also glad I'm not forced to support a union.

Guess there's room for all types of sanity in a world this big.

[edent]

I don't think anyone would be forced to join a union either. Mind you, I don't see it as any different from buying any other form of insurance - it is up to the individual how much risk they want to carry.