Loyalty Plan

There are effective ways to deal with workers who aren’t getting with the programme

Sarah has her hands full with Jessie*. She’s a good worker, popular with the team (the ‘class clown’), but with Sarah is non-communicative and slow to respond to requests. Jessie has an attitude. Sarah wants to let her go.

Angela is good at her work, but it turns out has posted derogatory comments about the company on Facebook. ‘This place is lame’ is one comment. Then she was away sick last week and her Facebook comment was ‘worst hangover EVA’.

With the rise of social media sites like Facebook, employers are more frequently finding out the truth about their employees’ attitudes and absenteeism. But when does behaviour outside the workplace become something you can respond to? And how do you deal with employees like Jessie, who have an ‘attitude’?

The answer lies in management, performance management, and/or disciplinary action. Employers are entitled to insist on reasonable standards of behaviour, and can respond to behaviour outside of the workplace where it impacts on the reputation of the business or seriously affects the employer’s trust and confidence in the employee. All situations need to be dealt with on their individual merits, but there are some general principles to follow:
Face it
Don’t shy away from dealing with the problem. It is not going to get better without intervention.
Reflect
Difficult as it is, self-examination is a must. Are you a good boss? What is your management style? Has it contributed to the deterioration of the relationship/behaviour?
Be clear
Make sure that you have clearly established your expectations of your employees. You can’t change their attitudes but you can seek to change their behaviour.
Boost behaviour
Performance management and/or disciplinary action should aim at lifting an employee’s behaviour and performance to the required level, not as a tool to their departure. Most employees want to do a good job – help them to do just that. Taking this approach helps you avoid making costly mistakes.
Take action
If performance doesn’t improve following performance management, commence a disciplinary process. In cases of misconduct, you may be able to proceed straight to disciplinary action. It pays to take advice to avoid potential pitfalls and ensure processes and decisions are robust.
Stand up
If a decision to take disciplinary action or dismiss an employee is challenged then you will need to be able to show that your actions were that of a fair and reasonable employer. What this means will depend on the particular situation, but, in a nutshell ,at least requires that a thorough and fair investigation is carried out, and except in cases of serious misconduct warranting summary (instant) dismissal, that warning has been given. The employee is entitled to be represented throughout the process, given advance notice of the allegations, and is entitled to be heard and have their explanations considered. If poor performance or misconduct is established, they are entitled to have input into the decision as to penalty for their actions.

So what is Sarah to do? Jessie’s actions aren’t misconduct, but cannot be left unchecked. Her unwanted behaviour needs to be specifically identified and addressed in a performance management process. Failure to improve to the company’s expectations will lead to disciplinary action and potentially dismissal.

A real life Angela who commented that her company was ‘lame’ was fired, following a fair process, and her employer, a well-known organisation, successfully defended a personal grievance claim. Depending on all of the circumstances, this may be an option for Sarah to take.

^{_{*Cases are based on real-life scenarios.}}

Shelley Eden
www.shieffangland.co.nz