A problem employee can damage your business in many
ways. He or she can slow down production, cause other
employees to become disgruntled, be a safety hazard,
or even cause legal troubles. Therefore, it is important
for you to either get a problem employee in shape or
to terminate him or her before it leads to more problems.
Having Production Slowed by a Problem Employee
You may not realize it, but a problem employee can significantly
slow down production. For example, if the problem employee
is routinely late arriving to work, production may cease
altogether as the other workers wait for the employee
to arrive. Or, even if production continues, it may slow
down as a less skilled worker tries to take over. The
same is true for an employee who purposely works slowly,
who abuses break privileges, or who simply doesn’t
pay attention to his or her job and makes too many mistakes.
Causing Other Employees to Become Disgruntled Because
of a Problem Employee
If you do not take action against the problem employee,
this person can quickly and easily cause your other employees
to become disgruntled. First, your other employees may
believe you are discriminating against them when you
come down on them and do not come down on the problem
employee. And, by allowing the problem employee to get
away with his or her behavior, you are setting a precedent
that tells your other employees it is OK to behave in
a problematic way. Before you know it, you will have
an entire crew of problem employees rather than just
one!
Experiencing Safety Hazards Because of a Problem Employee
A problem employee can easily be a safety hazard for
your other employees as well as for him or herself. If
the problem employee is negligent, for example, he or
she may not properly follow safety procedures. Even a
chronically late problem employee can cause safety problems
as other employees try to pick up the slack or to speed
up and catch up on production when the employee finally
makes it in.
Experiencing Legal Problems Because of a Problem Employee
A problem employee puts you at an increased risk of
experiencing legal problems. Other employees may file
suit against you for failure to act on the problems you
are having with the employee. If the employee is harassing
other employees, for example, a court can find you guilty
of failing to discipline the employee for his or her
actions. In addition, if the problem employee is violating
safety procedures and hurts someone, a court will find
you liable.
So, while it may be difficult to fire an employee, particularly
if you have formed a relationship with that person, you
must consider your business and your other employees.
Do what is right and remove the problem employee from
your workforce before you are sorry you didn’t.
Employee
Termination Made Easy
|
