10 Types of Employees You Could Probably Do Without in Your Workplace

There are many different reasons why employees behave less than acceptably in the workplace. Sometimes they're under stress, either at home or at work; sometimes they have marital/family problems; sometimes they're in the wrong job. Most of these difficulties can be worked through in time. But bad attitudes require a different approach.

I'm going to list ten attitude problems that employees can bring to work, and offer some suggestions as to what you can do about them.

1. Those with an antagonistic attitude. This one affects not only employers, but other staff, and even more importantly, the customers. One woman I worked with delighted in biting everyone's head off, answering the phone in an abrupt manner as though she was being interrupted at her "real" work, and playing favourites, so that only those who were really part of her clique got good treatment.
2. The person who'll never take any blame for any mistakes. Everyone makes mistakes in a work situation, but the person who always has an excuse and never offers an apology is bad news.
3. The person who complains whenever they're asked to do anything different. As a whining child gets on his or her parents' nerves, these workers get on the nerves of the responsible workers around them.
4. The one who's never motivated to pick up work when they've finished what they're doing. They either lack initiative, or don't care to use it. I remember one man I worked with who would get to the end of his particular tasks around 1 pm, and then would sit there for the rest of the day literally doing nothing.
5. The person who challenges you, not just to your face, but in front of everyone else. The sort of person who's forever trying to get other people on his or her side, who rolls their eyes at anything the boss says, or who drags other workers in for a gossip session about the boss or the management.
6. Those who are never there when the clock hits 8.30. Or who just don't turn up, and require someone to waste time calling them to see where they are. They're particularly irritating when they're not there on a day when they're specifically required. In the end these ones can never be relied on, and consequently they can duck any responsibilities, such as opening up the shop, or coming in early to get special tasks done.
7. Their opposite number is the person who's there on time, but who always insists on leaving on the dot, both at lunchtime or in the evening. They never have time for any last minute jobs, and can never be persuaded to give a minute or two more of their time.
8. The one who has to be supervised at all times - just in case they do something wrong. You know they probably won't but they're "afraid" that they might, and they need you virtually to hold their hand. These are the sort of people whom you sometimes have to teach a task to over and over.
9. The people who are so looking forward to their retirement that they start acting as though they've already retired - while they're still being paid to work. They'll just slip out to do a personal errand, or they'll sit reading the newspaper, or take extra coffee breaks, or make long phone calls - usually about things related to what they're going to do when they're finished in your employ.
10. The ones who bring all their worries to work. Sometimes personal issues do take over, but when it's basic matters that don't affect the job in any way, or things that need to be kept out of the work scene, then these people can be a real time-waster. I worked with someone who was studying at University part-time. She would come to work in tears, because she wasn't sure whether she'd done well in her latest assignment or test. It would take a half an hour or more to calm her down.

What do you do with any of these kinds of employees?

Once it was possible to sack people on the spot in the hope that you'd get someone better to replace them. This is no longer an option for most employers, and dismissing someone can be a time-consuming and stressful task. Badly handled, it can also be expensive.

So what to do?

• Firstly, keep your eyes and ears open. Some employers overlook warning signs until too late, and by then other good staff are handing in their notice.
• Don't get so involved in your own work that you don't keep an eye on what your staff are up to. I worked for a man last year who was filling in until a new supervisor was hired. He chose to ignore the rudeness of one staff member when she contradicted anything he would say, and even though he was aware of the tensions in the office, he failed to act.
• If staff members are expressing concern about any particular person on a regular basis, be proactive. You have to be deaf and blind to miss bad attitudes; most often the fault becomes that of the boss if nothing changes. In the situation mentioned above, it was only when the new supervisor arrived that anything was done, and because the bad situation had been left so long, it took another six months before changes could be made. In the meantime at least two good staff had left, and the office was an extremely unpleasant place to work in.
• Don't react in negative situations. But do act. Don't let staff bully you, or cajole you, or seduce you into their poor attitudes. You're the boss. Act like it.
• In some situations, constructive feedback is required. Start off with the positives, and then bring in the matter that's causing concern. Even staff with poor attitudes often work well in certain areas. Don't forget these when giving feedback.
• Sometimes counselling is appropriate. Sometimes people with bad attitudes need someone to express themselves to, such as a workplace chaplain. Sometimes their behaviour is a way of saying something they can't otherwise say.
• But don't think that's the only approach. In some cases formal disciplinary measures will need to take place. Always, always do this in the presence of an objective witness. When I was first a manager, I chose to try and discuss an employee's work attitudes in private. She turned on me and accused me of all manner of poor behaviours. A few of these were justified; most were not, but neither of us had a witness to the conversation.
• Sometimes an employee needs coaching in a different way of behaving. As the boss you may be the best person to do this, but not necessarily. It may be appropriate to bring in an outsider to do some attitude coaching, or to send the employee off to a related course. Often a person outside the situation can get the message across more clearly.
• Set measurable performance standards amongst your staff. Do this in discussion with them, but don't let them reduce your requirements to their level. Insist, however gently, on improvements.
• Sometimes the only option is to move an employee sideways. This isn't easy, and will require a good deal of negotiation in order not to make it look as though you're getting rid of them, and dumping them on someone else. But the advantage is that in new surroundings they may find their attitude isn't tolerated, they may enjoy the new job more than what they'd been doing (and will get on with it more readily), and the mere fact of being in new surroundings, where they're no longer required to hold the attitudinal position they formally had, may work wonders.
• The worst case scenario is to look at dismissal. This is too complex a matter to go into here, but unless there is no other option, it's something to avoided. Training new staff is always costly, the dismissal process is time-consuming, and it can often leave bruises and scars that will take considerable time to heal. Try alternatives first.