Every business, large and small, goes through employee turnover. People come and go, be it for new career prospects, a change of pace, or because they were fired. Whatever the case may be, it is important to interact with new employees respectfully.

We have all been there before, the employee with no friends at the new job, an initially shy attitude and a fear that we just won’t fit in with new coworkers. It’s a lot like being the new kid at school, and offering up a helping hand to the new kid can go a long way toward making them feel like they belong.

The alternative, of course, is to perceive new employees as a threat, flaunt seniority over them, assert dominance by flexing some kind of muscle within the company, or giving them the cold shoulder until they have put in enough time to warrant your attention.

Who exactly does this strategy benefit? A company (especially an HVAC company) is a team, and whether you are the captain or a prized rookie, the whole group benefits when working as a single entity.

So break down those walls with new employees. Try taking them under your wing, instilling the tricks of the trade into them, offering to take them out for a drink after work, or just being a resource they can call with questions and concerns. Once they let their respective guard down and become part of the team, productivity increases, the work environment becomes better, and no one has to walk on eggshells around each other.

After all, wouldn’t your first few weeks on the job have been better if someone extended the same olive branch to you?