How to Deal With an Employee Who Always Brings Personal Problems to Work

Personal problems can affect the morale of all employees.

It's important to keep your work life and personal life separate. This includes staying out of other employees' personal problems. What may be brought up in a short, water cooler-type conversation should end there. However, when an employee's work performance begins to suffer because of personal problems, you must become involved and find a way to get your employee working efficiently. Neglecting to take action can result in further decrease in work performance and can even negatively affect other employees.

Instructions

1. Help the employee separate the personal problems from the workspace. Refrain from attempting to solve the personal problem. Stay focused on the employee's work performance aspect of the problem without pushing for the specifics of the problem while listening to what the employee wants to share. Talking about the problem addresses the elephant in the room and may fix the work performance issue.

2. Ask the employee what can be done to help. If the employee's issue is with overlapping obligations between work and personal life, a change in schedule may resolve the issue. Consider the possibility of the employee taking time off to sort the problem out. There may be a situation in which the problem is so severe that time off is the only solution.

3. Inform the employee of company resources that are available, such as counseling. Inform the employee of any company car pools if the issue relates to transportation. Although compassion is important, you can't spend too much time dealing with an employee's personal issues. Talking to a qualified professional will benefit both you and the employee.

References

• Performance Management Made Easy: Personal Problems at Work