Every business has had a "problem employee", here are some actions you can take
Managing issues requires policy, consistency and honesty
By JARED NUSBAUM
Every business has had a "problem employee" – someone who can’t get along with coworkers, violates company policies or ignores directions. Problem employees drain productivity and morale, so it’s important to have a method for managing them. The following steps can help you hold employees accountable for problematic behavior and offer a path to handling termination.
Why a handbook and not just common sense?
Employee handbooks are your best friend. Your employee handbook should specify which workplace behaviors are appropriate and which are not. Most handbooks include policies on topics like sick leave, overtime and harassment. But it’s fine to also specify expectations around attitude, interaction with coworkers/clients/the public or use of electronic devices at work. Just make sure these are standards you’ll actually enforce.
Since you can’t anticipate every possible behavior, consider general language that prohibits behavior that damages the company’s reputation or presents the company in a bad light. Ultimately, you want to be able to point to some part of the handbook when discussing problem behavior.
Handbooks should describe your discipline policy. This way, employees know the risks of bad behavior. It also promotes uniformity in disciplinary actions, which can help protect you if an ex-employee claims that they were disciplined for unlawful reasons.
Make sure that new employees review the handbook before beginning work and have them sign a statement saying they received and understand the handbook. This lays the foundation for the future, if problems arise.
