"In my last position, it was the foreman's job to discipline crew members. If I were in charge of a crew and if one of them were late, I would take them aside and have a private conversation, asking them why they were late to work. If they had a valid reason, such as they encountered an accident on the way to work or they had a flat tire, I would ask them to give me a call in the future to notify me that they would be late. When I am in charge of a crew, I make sure from the start that they understand the importance of being to work on time, and I give them my contact information as well to advise me if they are running late."

While you must discipline employees if that is part of your job description, interviewers want to hear that you are calm and rational and have problem-solving skills. Avoid saying that you would yell at the employee, ask them to leave the job site, or fire them on the spot. You want to find out why they were late and caution them to be on time in the future.