Identifying employees with negative attitudes

Key insight: Leadership IQ’s three-year study of the factors that determine if new hires succeed or fail found that 81% of new hires fail because of factors that make up attitude.

Although you might think that this should be obvious, it isn’t always the case.

It’s not unusual for an employee with a negative attitude to be adequate in their work and quiet in their role so as not to stand out as a troublemaker to the boss, while still having a negative attitude towards other co-workers, customers, and their work.

The first step is identifying if one of your staff is showcasing the characteristics of someone with a poor attitude.

Before you can deal with this problem, you first need to be able to identify the employees who have a negative attitude.

At this stage, the key questions you need to ask yourself are:

What’s the impact of the employee’s behaviour on their duties and the wider company?
How do the person’s actions differ from the standards set for overall employee behaviour, and is it in breach of their workplace contract?
What’s the effect of this individual’s behaviour on the people who work with them?

Spotting negative-minded employees

So, once we’ve answered the three key questions, we are now able to identify the staff members who are displaying a negative attitude in your workplace.

To spot these negative minded employees, look out for your staff members who display the following:

Spotting negative-minded employees

Lateness

People arriving late is a very common occurrence in the average workforce of today.

For most employers, these are isolated incidents and there’s a perfectly good reason for them, such as bad traffic or a late bus. But when someone makes poor punctuality a habit, it can cause serious problems both directly and indirectly.

As well as impacting productivity, it’s a sign that your employee is disengaged and unmotivated in their work.

Bullying

Workplace bullying is, unfortunately, a common problem in the workplace today, and as a result, it can have a major impact on the happiness of your workforce and the productivity of the business. Common instances of workplace bullying include individuals being unfairly treated or excluded by their peers.

This can also include gossiping about other employees or management to cause tension between staff members.

Not responding well to criticism

Accepting feedback isn’t always easy, but employees should recognise the difference between understandable disappointment and showing an unprofessional, disrespectful attitude to anyone who offers constructive criticism.

Spotting negative-minded employees

Having nothing positive to say

Constant negativity being displayed by an employee is a warning sign that someone is unhappy in their job and lacks the engagement or motivation required to do their job to the best of their ability.

This can include constantly complaining about the business, their workload, customers or colleagues and undermining the authority of management and criticising decisions made.

Lying

Misrepresenting your credentials, lying on timesheets, misusing expense accounts or even stealing the credit for a co-worker’s accomplishments, is generally frowned upon by others and can lead to distrust in the workplace with other staff members.

This can also include exaggerating problems or mistakes made by either the company or other members of staff.

Rudeness

The workplace should be a positive, comfortable, and inviting place for employees to spend their days, so rude attitudes are simply unacceptable and can result in a hostile workplace.

What’s more, rudeness can be particularly problematic if it impacts your client relationships too.

Spotting negative-minded employees

Poor email communication

This can range from everything from not responding to e-mails, to not putting on an out-of-office reply, to not being aware of how you come across in an email via the tone of your language.

As a result of this, employees could miss important meetings or deadlines, cause delays or confusion, or even come off as unprofessional.

Poor grammar

When you hear someone using poor grammar, slang, or profanity, it translates into a belief that the person is being unprofessional.

Your staff need to remember that they are not at home, or speaking with friends at a social gathering, and what they may consider as ‘banter’ may be offensive to someone else.

Inefficiency

Bad habits like being unorganised, wasting time, or being too talkative can make you an extremely inefficient worker, and can even impact others.

Generally, this can be seen as spending too much time on water cooler talk, having a messy and unorganised desk, and spending too much time on non-work-related tasks.

Understanding the impact of negative attitudes

Negative attitudes among employees can lead to a toxic work environment, impacting not only the individuals exhibiting such attitudes but also their colleagues and the organisation as a whole.

Here are some key consequences:

Decreased productivity
Poor employee morale
Reduced team cohesion
Decreased team goals
Overall organisational performance
Increased conflict
Impact on customer relations
Absenteeism
High turnover rates
Difficulties in attracting/retaining talent

The cause and effect of quiet quitting

Quiet quitting refers to when employees gradually disengage from their work and responsibilities, without formally resigning or giving notice.

This type of quitting can involve small changes in behaviour such as missing deadlines, reducing the quality of work, or losing motivation.

Unlike traditional quitting, quiet quitting can take a long time for an employer to realise and can have a significant impact on a company’s productivity and morale.

Essentially, your employees will be doing the bare minimum to get by. According to the HR Director, 1 in 3 UK workers currently label themselves as ‘quiet quitters’.

The cause and effect of quiet quitting

As an HR manager, it’s important to pay close attention to the signs of quiet quitting and proactively address any issues that may be contributing to disengagement. Here are a few steps you can take to help prevent quiet quitting:

Encourage your employees to share their thoughts and feelings with you. If employees feel like they can talk openly with their HR manager, they may be more likely to express their concerns and avoid disengaging from their work.
If employees are feeling overwhelmed or unfulfilled in their job, offer support and resources to help them manage their workload. This can include additional training, flexible work arrangements, or access to counselling services.

The cause and effect of quiet quitting

Key insight: Moorepay’s survey showed that 33% of employers believe that introducing flexible working options would improve employee motivation. This was the most popular response after improving salaries. Read our free Flexible Working Guide for more on this!

Take a close look at the company culture and see if there are any changes that can be made to improve employee satisfaction. For example, if employees feel like they are not being rewarded for their work, investigate the appreciation structure you have or review the benefits programme you offer. To learn more, check out our ‘building company culture’ webinar.
Foster a positive work environment. Encourage collaboration and teamwork and create a positive and supportive work environment. This can help employees feel valued and appreciated and may help prevent disengagement.