Irresponsible employees have a direct impact on productivity and the bottom line. Workers who shirk their responsibilities and rely on other staff to pick up the slack can also damage workforce morale. Managers must act to correct irresponsible behaviour.
Step 1: Behavioural standards must be demonstrated from the top down — if management behaves irresponsibly, this creates the impression that the behaviour is sanctioned by the company.
Step 2: Inform staff that irresponsible behaviour — such as failing to turn in work by the deadline or arriving late to an important meeting — violates policy and will lead to disciplinary action.
Step 3: Schedule a private meeting to discuss incidents of irresponsibility. For example, “Your tardiness means customer calls go unanswered, and we lose business.”
Step 4: Ask the employee to suggest ways so that he can improve the behaviour. Place the onus on the employee to identify solutions for his irresponsibility.
Step 5: Follow up on performance improvement plan. If the employee has failed to correct his behaviour, and continues to act irresponsibly, issue progressively severe disciplinary actions. — Agencies
