One Bad Apple

Dealing with the problem employee

Email Print

(©istockphoto.com)

Tina M. Scott, PhD, RT(R)

Problem employees appear in your organizations in many forms. You can identify them because they are the boss hater, the psychosomatic, the rule breaker, the troublemaker, the one who lacks self-confidence, the one that is always absent, and believe it or not, they can also be the employee who obsesses about work.

You can categorize this employee as one whose performance and/or behavior is unsatisfactory. This employee is capable of doing so much for the organization, but falls way below their potential. Their performance is a problem for the organization, their supervisor, and also to themselves.

Unfortunately, the troubled employee is the one who is always in human resources filing a grievance or complaint due to disciplinary actions that have been enforced by their supervisor. The problem employee cannot adjust. The cause and effect of the problem employee’s not being able to adjust is that their behavior becomes explosive.

When you reflect back to your work environment, you probably can identify many problem and troubled employees. Problem employees are very expensive to have on the payroll. They are difficult to supervise and challenge the policies and procedures in place. The problem employee has a negative impact on employee morale.

It is important that problem employees are not allowed to be a growing cancer in your organization. They must be stopped so their infectious behavior will not plague the organization. The supervisor of this type of employee must address their behavior so they will have a very minute negative impact on the overall performance of the organization. It is important to have a good hiring and interviewing process to minimize this type of employee from entering your organization. If you see that the hiring and interviewing process in your organization needs a tune up, consult with your human resource department for guidance.

You can hire an employee who was every organization’s dream and one day turns into your problem employee. Some warning signs that your superstar is turning into a problem employee:

• There is a sudden change of behavior. Kimberly used to smile on the job, but she suddenly stops.
• When speaking to your employee, he or she is preoccupied. When you speak to Lauren, she is off in a daze when she is normally fully engaged in your discussion. Jon is no longer arriving to work on time or at all. Your dependable Jon turned to Mr. Wasn’t-in-again.
• Another sign is increased irritability. Joanna’s mood has made everyone stay clear of her because she appeared to wake up on the wrong side of the bed.
• The last sign that will be discussed is too much drinking. Nick comes to work with the jitters, and his breath can knock you over.

You can help your problem employee. First, you must establish trust and reassurance. Let your employee know that you want to help them and you are not trying to terminate them from the organization. There are various types of leadership styles, and being a transactional leader in this type of situation will not produce the same impact as a transformational leadership. Using a transformational leadership style will allow the employee to see that your intentions are good and pure. In order to help this employee, you must allow them to help themselves. You can help the problem employee through counseling.

When counseling your employees, I am not suggesting you become a full-blown therapist. There are five basic requirements that are needed when counseling a problem employee or any employee:

• First, you must be a good listener. Do not be preoccupied with all the other things you could be doing, or try to have a debate by thinking about what you need to say next.
• Second, you must use the skill of refraining from criticism and advice.
• Third, never, ever argue with your employee. Remember, this type of discussion will not provide you with the positive results you desire.
• Finally, look beyond the words that your employee is sharing with you and observe body language to determine if there is more the employee is trying to tell you.

Counseling the problem employee can be very productive. Make sure you counsel the employee in a quiet place where no interruption will take place. It is important that the employee has a level of comfort during this time. Do not put your employee on trial by conducting a cross-examination. Be a listener and a supporter. Remember, counseling is aimed to help employees unburden themselves. Investing in your problem employee can be beneficial and possibly rewarding.

– Tina M. Scott, PhD, RT(R), is an administrative director of radiology and professional life coach. Direct questions and comments to editorial@rt-image.com.