Dealing with Difficult Employees

Learn how to handle difficult employees across issues like drug use, alcohol misconduct, absence, poor performance, insubordination, office romance, and workplace bullying, including responses to electronic monitoring findings.

Identify whether the employee's drug use disrupts their own or others' work. Provide counseling and treatment, apply progressive discipline, and maintain confidentiality.

Assess the necessity of closed circuit cameras, communicate surveillance policies in writing and via a public portal, protect dignity, and address indiscipline through private feedback with a chance to correct.

Handle office romance as a sensitive issue by assessing its impact on productivity, establishing a written policy with dos and don'ts, and ensuring confidentiality while HR counsel may intervene.

Set clear performance standards and communicate them in advance, provide reasonable accommodations, document issues, offer counseling and remedial steps, and maintain confidentiality to help employees succeed.

Learn how to manage telecommuting by selecting telecommuters carefully, setting measurable performance expectations and deadlines, and ensuring reliable technology and regular contact to prevent abuse.

Workplace bullying is persistent harassment by bosses or peers that causes mental distress, physical illness, reduced productivity, and higher quitting rates. It includes insults, false accusations, gossip, belittling, and exclusion.

Document bullying incidents, engage the bully to understand the issue, and focus on a resolution. Implement a clear policy, follow procedures, treat everyone equally, and address behavior privately.

Address workplace bullying with direct actions: inform the relational aggressor that behavior is unacceptable and separate victim and aggressor. Implement supervision, training, and a clear anti-bullying policy and nonjudgmental reporting.

Assess alcohol-related misconduct by distinguishing chronic alcoholism from inebriation and workplace alcohol use, evaluate severity and disruption, and pursue corrective counseling before discharge, while supporting the employee and safeguarding confidentiality.

As an HR manager, let angry employees vent, acknowledge the problem, apologize where appropriate, and act within your jurisdiction to de-escalate and find workable solutions.

Screen candidates' past records and serious accusations, use diverse, multi-round interviews, and apply personality and physical tests to assess fit and reduce future misconduct.

Implement effective orientation and retraining to align employees with organizational values, and train supervisors to coach and counsel for early intervention and clear career progression.

Design jobs to leverage each employee's talents, set clear expectations with job descriptions and work plans, and establish deadlines to reduce undesirable behavior and boost engagement and commitment.

Learn how to set achievable performance criteria, measure employee behaviors alongside outcomes, deliver continuous feedback with timely interventions, and document appraisals to reduce discipline needs.

Ensure fair compensation through pay policies and an accessible appeal mechanism to address pay decisions, fostering commitment and reducing the likelihood of discipline by mitigating perceived injustice.