In companies as in other jobs there are different types of employees and this time we will talk about one of them toxic employees, how to know how to differentiate them from others and what to do if you have one in our company or in the workplace, Toxic employees are often people who exhibit behaviors that are harmful to the organization and are not easy to detect, who appear to be model and productive employees, but in practice work against the organization, affecting the work environment and productivity.
The toxic employee can hinder the effective work of the company and can drag the team to a precipice of demoralization and unproductiveness.
In any company or work team we can find good and bad workers. The problem is when the bad guys, in addition to not meeting the goals set by the company, put other employees against the company and we will call these toxic employees.
Toxic employees in the company
In companies as in other jobs there are different types of employees and this time we will talk about one of them toxic employees how to differentiate them from others and what to do if you have one in our company or in the workplace, Toxic employees are often people who exhibit behaviors that are harmful to the organization and are not easy to spot, appear to be model and productive employees, but in practice work against the organization, affecting the work environment and productivity.
The toxic employee can hinder the effective work of the company and can drag the team to a precipice of demoralization and unproductiveness.
In any company or work team we can find good and bad workers. The problem is when the bad guys, in addition to not meeting the goals set by the company, put other employees against the company and we will call these employees toxic.
Traits of the toxic employee
" Toxic employees are those who act in bad faith, although it is true that it is difficult to choose which of all employees is more harmful, since all of them, to a greater or lesser extent, contaminate the correct running of a work team" (entrepreneaur, 2014, p. 3).
There are certain personality and behavioral characteristics that can help predict this type of toxic employee.
They are often charismatic, curious, self-centered, and overconfident .
They are employees who say they work strictly in accordance with the rules, but end up respecting the ones that suit them or interpreting them at their convenience.
How to identify the toxic employee
There are some attitudes or behaviors that may be indicators of a potential toxic employee:
- Negativity and blaming others for your own problems Public manifestations of your discontent with your role Move responsibilities to others or consider unnecessary the execution of instructions with which you disagree Deviate the course of meetings Shout or lose nerves with clients or colleagues Create the illusion of pretending to work Creativity to find ways to divert work situations to areas of personal convenience and not the company.
How to avoid the toxic employee
An additional dimension must be considered in the evaluation and interview of personnel recruitment, if it is poor, it will result in poor recruitment. Organizational productivity will be higher if the candidate is somewhat less productive individually, but has better corporate citizenship. Therefore, it is advisable to contract carefully, taking the necessary time, but quickly get out of the wrong person.
Managing toxic employee
When an employee is not performing or acting as expected, they should be given an opportunity to correct, and if they do not, they should leave the organization.
Here are some recommendations:
- Determine the cause of the toxicity, when it started to show or if it always was, confront the employee regarding his behavior, take care of the prejudices that the leader himself may have and apply, seek the help of others to identify and deal with a toxic employee Assign specific tasks to the toxic employee, for which they must be fully responsible. Incremental improvements need to be detected and all of this effort documented.
Where are the toxic workers?
You will soon realize that if your next-door partner infects you with his negativity when he spends the day complaining about everything. Especially, he will complain that his work is not well valued by the management and, therefore, he does not receive an adequate salary either. Surely he will also complain about the time, the dream he has, the length of his days.
“ Toxic employees regularly hide behind is not my fault. These types of employees love to "throw balls." He never assumes his responsibilities and always blames others for his mistakes or weaknesses.
Those who use the "we" and the "is that". When a toxic employee messes up or feels insecure in certain procedures, instead of acknowledging his lack of knowledge, he uses the "we" to put his other colleagues at his level.
For example, "it is that we lack training", "it is that they had not told us any of this", "it is that this way you cannot work". Wouldn't it be better to tell the truth? "I lack training", "I don't know all this", "I don't know how to work like this". If you are honest about your shortcomings, your superiors will surely propose to help you and train you better ”(el nuevo herald, 2016, p. 5).
Other toxic employees are those who are never in place but are elsewhere. If you go to the bathroom, you will find it when you leave. If you're going to have coffee, he's already finishing it. When there is a problem or discussion, he will always have found out about everything and if you ask him, he will answer you very quickly, but if you ask him later how the project is going he will say "see you later".
They live their Smartphone. You may have noticed that every 2 seconds that employee looks at the mobile to check if they have a new WhatsApp, if they have received any likes on their latest Instagram photo or if their latest Facebook post has been relevant. Every time they get up to go to the bathroom, they carry their mobile behind. They work one minute and lose five.
Toxic employees you must fire
From a conscientious recruitment process to an intensive training program; Perhaps you have done everything in your power to find and prepare the best employees for your company. But there is no completely foolproof system, and sometimes a 'bad apple' can sneak into your computer.
"You can have someone who is very good, but who makes other people in the office cry home."
"If you have people who are interfering with the performance of others, then you should consider firing them."
Toxic employees, five profiles to identify them
"Between 5 and 15% of employees in a medium or large company have a negative profile
These negative profiles that harm the work environment also affect the company's objectives, so in a short time you can have an area with unmotivated employees and no illusions about working ”(entrepreneur, 2016, p. 7).
Profiles of toxic employees within a company.
1. Unfair
They question the decisions of bosses and senior managers. They complain behind their backs but when they are in front of them they appear to support them.
2. Contreras
They complain about everything, nothing seems to them. They consider some behaviors or behaviors of the company exaggerated and are out of step with the organizational culture.
3. Selfish / proud
They never admit that they are wrong and seek guilty parties to correct their mistakes.
4. Lazy
They remain in their comfort zone without giving added value to the company. They only meet their schedule, do the bare minimum and are not interested in achieving the company's goals.
5. Shackles
They tell indiscretions to people that nothing can solve them. That is, they only pollute the environment.
conclusion
As we could already see, toxic employees are the ones who complain the most, and those who never find out about anything, the same people who leave everything for later, are the ones who work the least. It does not matter if they have a lot or a little to do, they are always the ones who are “saturated”, so they never turn in work on time and complain that they need a hand.
The toxic employee must not remain in the company because a virus spreads with other employees and this can lead to a lack of commitment to work and that other valuable employees are also expelled and the only thing that others will see is that Being a toxic employee is the dominant company.
It is important to maintain continuous communication with the work team through regular meetings and personal communication to be able to know each of them opinions or suggestions of the work they are doing and even congratulate them for the work done, although this is not a monetary thing many manage to perceive that their work is certainly recognized.
References
the new herald. (August 2016). Obtained from www.elnuevoherald.com/noticias/finanzas/article88667002.html entrepreneaur. (November 15, 2014). Retrieved from www.entrepreneur.com/article/374037 entrepreneur. (November 15, 2016). Retrieved from www.entrepreneur.com/article/268508.
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