Don’t Get Personal With Employees
Vision HR – Do Not Get Personal with Employees
When an employee’s performance is deteriorating, avoid getting personal. But what can a supervisor do about a poor-performing employee while staying in compliance with federal and state laws? Do Not Get Personal with Employees.
Q. During the last three or four months, an employee’s work performance and productivity has steadily deteriorated. In the past, this individual’s performance was good. The employee has lost weight, is frequently late for work and very often will leave work during some part of the workday. I don’t know if the problem is physical, mental, marital, financial or maybe drug or alcohol related. We have an Employee Assistance Program (EAP) in place, but can I recommend this employee use it or otherwise seek help? How should I approach this?
A. When an employee’s quality of work plunges, supervisors and employers want answers — and rightfully so. They want to know why the individual is no longer putting out the quantity or quality of work he or she used to.
If finding the answer to this problem means probing into the employee’s personal and private life, is this a wise avenue to pursue?
As an employer, you have some responsibilities and obligations. You have the responsibility to your business to resolve this problem. You have a responsibility to hire and keep good employees who contribute to your company’s success.
Stressed-out employees may even become a safety threat, to themselves, to co-workers and even a liability to the business.
You have obligations and restrictions under laws which limit your actions. If the employee is older, you must be concerned about age discrimination. If the employee is seriously ill, the Americans with Disabilities Act may protect him or her. Inquiring about an employee’s personal life may infringe on privacy rights.
If you act on the assumption the employee is under the influence of drugs or alcohol, you run the risk of being wrong and facing a defamation lawsuit.
It’s not surprising employers take the view that a “cure” may be more dangerous than enduring the problem.
Consider this approach:
Address the crux of your complaint, which is poor performance. Visit with the employee about the change in his or her performance, and the recurring tardiness and absenteeism. Ask if he or she knows the reason for this change of behavior. Show your concern and encourage the use of your EAP program.
Be kind, but firm. Tell the employee he or she must make changes which will result in satisfactory performance. Set a reasonable length of time to see improvement and expect improvement to continue, or you may need to terminate this person’s employment. This confrontation may cause the employee to open up, in which case you can then offer accommodation or treatment. (Employers may require psychiatric and physical examinations to assess an employee’s fitness to do a job.
Vision HR Clients are able to call in and speak with HR experts about these and other employee issues so that resolution can begin quickly and productivity can be maintained. If you think you could benefit from this type of HR support, give Vision HR a call at 386-255-7070.
Vision HR – Do Not Get Personal with Employees.
