Leadership Training

The employee/employer relationship can be a tenuous one, especially in the modern workplace.  Now more than ever, both sides have demands and expectations that need to be met in order to maintain a happy and mutually beneficial arrangement.

In the past, we’ve talked about how important it is for employers to be loyal to their employees.  However, sometimes the employee does not reciprocate.  As an employer, the difficult question that sometimes needs to be asked is, “when do I need to let a bad apple go in order to save the rest of the bunch?”  Consider the following behavioral patterns:

- The employee in question is always negative and complaining.  

Employers constantly have various issues and problems that they need to address.  But if one employee always seems to be one of those problems, it’s time to take action.  Especially if the “bad apple” starts to spread their complaining directly to the other employees.

While many employees will complain about certain situations, they will also express their gratitude to employers when issues are resolved.  The tell-tale signs of the “bad apple” are the ones who continue to be negative, even after the problem has been fixed.

- The employee’s productivity has decreased drastically.

It can begin with small signs, such as arriving to work 10-15 minutes late.  But it can expand to meetings missed, poorly done assignments, and even missed deliverables.  It’s always critical to be proactive and take action before an employee’s poor work ethic affects the entire company on a larger scale.

- The employee starts communicating in a mutinous manner.

Too bad Captain Bligh did not know about this warning sign!  Fletcher Christian said everything but “I’m taking this ship!” before finally relieving him of command of the Bounty…

As it was in this story, this behavior is the most dangerous, and the one that demands immediate action.  Employees certainly have the right to voice their displeasure or disagreement with certain company actions, but the way they do it says a great deal about how they feel about their employer.  

For example, let’s say their paycheck arrives late due to a processing error (which the company has corrected).  How do they react?

A.  ”Although I’m disappointed that my check was not processed on time, I understand that an issue came up that needed to be handled.  I thank the company for their communication on the matter, and just hope it doesn’t happen again!”

B.  ”I find the situation unacceptable.  Perhaps the regular pay of the company directors should be suspended as well.”

If the employee responded with B, then there’s a serious problem.  No matter what the situation, the employee still needs to realize that it’s not their company.  It’s YOUR company, and having an employee talking like they’re getting ready to unlock the muskets from the ship’s armory needs to be stopped before the rest of the crew joins them!

So what to do about these bad apples?  I always recommend a 1-on-1 meeting or counselling to occur.  It should be a way to find out what the employer can do to help resolve the situation, but should also put the employee on notice that their behavior is not acceptable and needs to change.

And if that doesn’t work?  Simply put, it’s time to end the relationship, for the best interest of both parties.  In the long run, it will be a GOOD thing for the employee, as they will be able to move on to a different situation that they may not have found if they continued to stay at your organization.

As for you?  You will have saved all those good apples in your basket!

Leadership Training, bad apples, employee employer relationships