Why do we ignore toxic employees?

Virtually everywhere I’ve worked, there’s been at least one toxic employee.  If you don’t work with one, you’ve certainly heard of them.   These are the individuals who are miserable and want others to share.  Nothing is ever good at work and, to them, managers and/or the organization have gone out of their way just to make their lives miserable.

Often these individuals have a valued skill set or knowledge that keeps them employed.  It’s easy to reason that the need is more valuable than the price.  However, that is rarely the case.  These toxic employees create more issues than many people realize or acknowledge, costing us in terms of staff, productivity and morale.

Who wants to work with someone who’s always negative?  Why would anyone want to constantly be bombarded with all things bad.  In addition, I think we do a disservice to the individual who’s clearly miserable.  Either we determine how to make their life better within the organization or we help them leave to find something more fulfilling elsewhere.

We all have bad days (sometimes weeks) where we have a hard time finding a positive mindset.  That’s different as long as it is temporary.  When days turn to weeks turn to months, there comes a time when we must have a change.  If the issue is personal, and not work related, maybe a mental health checkup or leave of absence is the answer.  If it is work related, we need to change the situation.  Life is too short to be miserable.

So if you have a toxic employee, work with them to find out what type of change is needed.  Don’t let it continue, for their sake, your other employees or you.

#positivity #managementsolutions #hrconsultant #toxicemployee

Toxic container on a beach.