Discovering a Problem Employee

As a manager or business owner, you may be the last one to know about a problem employee. Other employees are often aware of a problem employee long before it is ever apparent to you. Knowing what to look for in a problem employee may prevent dissension in the workplace and loss of productivity.

A problem employee could very well be someone you do not suspect. Problem employees generally are very good at making it look like they are working hard and being productive. In reality, they are stealing time and one of the major causes of low morale. Occasionally a problem employee will be obvious. More often than not, they have perfected their work evading techniques and are quite undetectable.

Every workplace is full of gossip. It would be advisable to listen to what comes down the grapevine. Sorting fact from fiction can be a daunting task. Hearing the same information about the same person repeatedly is one sign to look for. Rumors and gossip must be taken with a grain of salt. It will take some investigation to weed out truths from untruths.

An employee who continually finds excuses to leave their work area to complete an important task elsewhere in the building or even off the premises may be one to watch. There are, of course, situations where this is necessary. With a little monitoring you can determine if this is a problem. Is there one employee who acts as if they are carrying the load of three people? Do they complain often about their workload, when in reality there work should be no more than their co-workers. This may be a sign of a problem employee. They often fictitiously create more work than is necessary.

Is there one employee that others hate to be paired with. There is probably a reason for this. It is unlikely that they will be forthcoming with reasons as to why they don't like to work with this person. Again, your investigative and management skills are necessary to determine if this is a problem employee.