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Dealing with lazy employees

Guest post by: John Heap

Article Overview: If you think you have lazy employees, stop and think ... whether you have just got bored, untrained or unconfident employees. They require a different approach. This article explains how to go about handling those whose performance is less than you expect ... and ways in which you can end up with a fully-functioning employee once again.

Dealing with lazy employees

Do you have lazy employees? Yes? Are you sure?

The reason I have to ask is that many employees might appear lazy but are actually just disinterested, bored or unsure of what to do/how to do it.

Think for a moment about your kids or your grandchidren. They can appear lazy or highly focused, motivated and energetic depending on what you ask them to do ... and their ability to do it.

So, ask them to do something for which they (think they) don't have the skills .. and they will shy away ... and act lazily.

Ask them to something which they know they can do - and do well - and their enthusiasm returns.



Ask yourself if this is true of your staff. Are you undermining them by not providing proper training or by not encouraging them.

Perhaps you have been getting lazy?

Or, of course, you could be right. You do have some lazy staff.

In this case (or if you or not sure which of the above scenarios applies), you have to talk to the staff. You might do this gently … by saying that they are giving the appearance of being lazy … or tackle it head-on and be more direct. This will depend on the staff and your relationship with them.

(It might help if you have some documented evidence which shows they are getting through less work that others … or than they used to … or they are taking longer breaks … or ….)

Try to move positively forward. Try to encourage them to see your point of view. Get them to commit to some forward targets – behavioural or, preferably, outcome and output related. Remembering what we said earlier, make sure that they have the tools and equipment to do the job … and that they feel competent to do it. If not, they might need some refresher training.

Try to make the changes they have to make relatively small … and the time period for review relatively close. … and during this period, offer words of encouragement (assuming they are deserved).

Then, at the scheduled time, hold a formal, review meeting. Point out their successes and any failures and talk through both. Establish another set of targets and another review point … perhaps more stretching targets and a longer time period to show they are regaining your trust.

Throughout all this process, maintain records of each meeting, and of each agreement.

If this process fails, you will almost certainly have to go through a formal, disciplinary process … make sure you check what this is … you don’t want them ‘escaping’ on a technicality.

Whatever it takes, you have to end up with a fully-functioning employee … or one less employee. Anything else is too damaging to the morale of the other employees … and to your business.

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Article Tags: changing behavior, lazy employees



Related Forum Posts
Re: Not a preferred choice - [quote="tony_blayer":xfxt4hx5]Well work for home is good for a short period of time. Cause there is no creditability in the job. Also no fun... makes one lazy... [/quote:xfxt4hx5] That's one opinion - thankfully my clients don't feel that I lack credibility and the majority of the people I know personally who work from home are certainly not lazy. There are some unmotivated, lazy people in any business and people who lack credibility is any business or location. Credibility should be more about the quality of the work that's done instead of an address. Shri
Women care about employees - I think women entrepreneurs care more about their employees than men so it makes sense that they would consider how the new owner would impact the employees.
Keeping Employees Happy - Here are three interesting ways from career coach Marty Nemko on how to keep employees happy: 1. Instead of hiring consultants to train employees, cater lunch once a month and rotate employees teaching co-workers what they know best. 2. Do the employees hate tough customers? Shunt them all to one volunteer employee who gets special recognition or combat pay. Matt Weinstein, CEO of PlayFair, tells of a bank manager who awards a magnum of wine to the teller who, that week, served the most difficult customer. As a result, instead of trying to avoid difficult customers, most tellers actually look forward to them. 3. Give employees a frequent chance to earn small rewards combined with public recognition: sports tickets, free meals, or on-the-spot cash. But Lynn Halpin, CEO of Detroit Edison, warns that this better be part of a comprehensive plan. "If you work for Attila the Hun, someone handing you $50 is like rubbing salt in a wound."
And Commitment From Above... - In my experience in larger organizations, there is often a conflict between the training the sharp-end employees receive and that of the more senior managers. That sometimes means the employees feel 'done to', and don't have the belief that their bosses will be on board too. That means they feel pretty disgruntled about the organization too and higher leaving/absence rates can be the more obvious symptoms, with deeper resistance, even sabotage being quite possible too. For example, sending a bunch of employees on a gung-ho selling skills programme (with a fancy lunch included), is incongruous with not getting their pay check right or management not building good relationships with their people. The key here is understanding what training will help employees deliver the needs of the business as well as ensurinjg it is of value and in context for the individuals too. If it's not a win-win (in the bigger picture of their workplace experience too), it's just not going to fly. Sending someone on a training courtse is not a 'fix-it' for all that ails an organization.
A regular employee or a contracted employee? - Thank you Louis, Also in Japan, an employee is an employee. In my opinion, contracted employees don’t receive enough training. And they are often engaged in routine chores. Which factors should we choose about hiring regular or contracted employees? I choose contracted employees if I hire someone engaged in routine chores. On the other hand, I choose regular employees if I hire someone engaged in important duties. One of the most important factors especially for an entrepreneur is wages, too. What do you think?


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