A article I came across entitled ”Top 10 Reasons Employees
Get Fired” written by Patty Inglish, an accomplished writer who lives in Ohio, that provides a good
reminder of what employers expect in today’s workforce. If you like this, I’d suggest dropping her a
line, or visit her article which also appears on HubPages
Dishonesty,
evasion, or lack of integrity on the job.
It is important to be honest, straightforward, and
forthcoming on the job with management and coworkers. However, this does not
mean that you should blurt out everything you know -- It is important to protect
your company's proprietary information, such as copyrighted and trademarked
materials, company manuals, program materials, and new projects, services, and
inventions in order to prevent corporate espionage and theft. Time sheets and
expense reports must be 100% true and accurate, without padding. Projects
reports, especially facts and figures must not be faked.
Employees should not use company materials or equipment for
their own personal purposes and this includes telephones, cell phones, copiers,
laptops, PDAs, and the Internet. However, some employers will make an exception
in some cases - for example, printing up few flyers for a charity -- but ask
them first in order to preserve ongoing trust. Most employers also permit
emergency phone calls from and to family members and allow parents to call to
check on their children. Absolutely no employee should use company time,
equipment, and materials to operate a personal business on company time, such
as an Internet sales page, or a Pampered Chef or Tupperware business, etc.
Lying on a resume.
More and more employers are checking every single reference
a job candidate provides. If there are notations on your resume of more than
one business "closed down" or one or more employers having died, or
there are untraceable educational certifications, you risk being fired for
fraud. Be prepared to show some sort of documentation for those closed down
business and schools. Many employers now require that you show them, and
provide them a copy of, your High School, Vocational School, and College
transcripts and diplomas, so have them ready.
Please understand that reference checking continues after
you are hired. Some employers even run credit checks on their employees every 6
months.
If any one tells you to make up information to make your
resume look better, they are either 1) naïve or ill-informed, or 2) trying to
get you into trouble, because some people make it their hobby to hurt others.
Refusing to follow
directions and orders.
This is pretty self explanatory. Your company owns your
working time and you must do what your supervisors and bosses ask you to do. If
you have a better idea, you must talk to them and go through proper channels in
order to "do it your way." If you are asked to do something illegal,
unethical, or what you consider immoral, you need to take a stand on that in a
professional manner.
Sometimes, people who cannot follow directions simply need
to start their own businesses, and that's perfectly OK. It's a part of the
Multiple Intelligences phenomenon and absolutely acceptable.
Talking too much
and conducting personal business at work.
Don
't be guilty
of misusing company resources, including the Internet, office supplies, and
especially telephones; too much idle (personal talking) with coworkers.
Non-business talking wastes more company dollars than any other activity. It
should be saved for lunch and break times. This includes talking on the
phone/email with stockbrokers, travel agents, hairdressers, bankers, etc.
In the 1960s and into the early 1970s, many offices and
factories did not allow any conversation - employees were to work, not talk.
This policy loosened somewhat in the 1980s and 1990s and then as employers
discovered how much talking costs them, they began laying off the talkers.
HOWEVER, some employers allow a certain amount of this type of activity and it
is important to understand YOUR company policies and follow them.
Inconsistency -
unreliable work and behaviors.
Employees must be stable and consistent in behaviors and
productivity in order to benefit the company and produce profits or positive
outcomes. While most people have ups and downs, if these interfere with
productivity and accuracy in their jobs, they need to contact their Employee
Assistance Program or seek professional help. If employee reviews are given
regularly, these trends can be caught in time to be guided into something more
positive. If you are not receiving employee reviews, ask for one
Inability to get
along with other people.
Some people have a lower "Social IQ" than others,
some are loners, and some are sociopathic or have personality disorders. Unless
there is a mental health disorder present (like the sociopathic or personality
disorder symptoms) people can learn to be civil and have productive
conversations - even those with Aspberger's syndrome and other autism spectrum
disorders.
Management should notice extreme problems with employee's getting
along with others and intervene professionally with a referral to the Employee
Assistance Program for consultation and help or the Professional Development
Program for training like awareness and communications education.
Without these latter two programs, that exist to benefit the worker as well as the business, many more employees would
be fired and end up possibly in jail or homeless.
Inability to
actually do assigned job tasks.
If employees lie convincingly enough during an interview or
on a resume, stating that they can do certain tasks, but proving unable to
perform these duties on he job, they will likely be fired if they cannot learn
to do them very quickly. However, some tasks that require certifications and
licenses cannot be quickly learned on the job during the first weeks. These
deficits will expose the employee as unable to perform assigned duties and
having lied during the application process .
However, occasionally there is a lack of initial orientation
and training on the job and the employee needs to ask for help early on.
Sometimes, through misunderstanding, an employee will be assigned tasks that
are beyond their training or education or in an entirely different field. This
is certainly a mis-match. Such an employee needs to speak up right away in a
professional manner and ask for help or reassignment. These employees may need
to report their circumstances to Human Resources, an Employee Assistance
Program, a Union Steward, or their attorney if the situation escalates.
Performing tasks
slowly, with numerous errors.
Some employees are sloppy and not invested in doing a good
job. Unless their attitudes change for more productive beliefs, they will
likely be fired.
On the other hand, and unwisely, some employees try to
"string out" their work and make it last longer in order to have job
security. This is dishonest. A better plan is to finish their tasks at an
acceptable rate and ask coworkers if they can help them, and after that, go to
the boss and ask for more work. Not only is this honest, but it lets the boss
know that you are a good worker and deserving of raises and promotions.
Unfortunately, some companies do not have adequate training
and follow-up programs in place, leaving employees to figure out their jobs on
their own. In these cases, slow work and high error rate are not actually the
workers' fault. Alternatively, some people are simply in the wrong job for them
and they need to be placed into jobs in which they can excel. These people need
to ask for help from their supervisors and bosses and these management persons
need to notice the problem and be prepared to help, either with training and
coaching, or a job change.
High absenteeism
rate.
When you are hired as an employee, your company owns the
time that you are at work, except for lunches, breaks, and authorized time off.
It is not a sign of integrity to take every minute of sick
time you have, just because you are allotted that amount and are not actually
sick. Some employers have solved this problem by lumping vacations, mental
health days, sick time, holidays, days for family funerals, and personal days
into one category called "Time Off" or similar. You don't have to
give any explanation. Longer family-leave and parental leave time usually
requires previous authorization though. However, if you need to take sick time
for another reason, confide in your bosses and they may make an accommodation
for you.
If an employee is having problems with job burnout that
often manifests as absences and tardiness or is suffering frequent accidents,
drug/alcohol abuse, family difficulties, or other mental health or physical issues,
many employers have Employee Assistance Programs to help guide and treat these
problems. Employees should take advantage of this help to 1) increase the
quality of their own lives and 2) become more consistent and productive
workers.
Drug and/or alcohol
abuse.
This leads to inconsistent work, errors, accidents, poor
interpersonal relationships, increased absenteeism, lower morale among
coworkers and supervisors, bad publicity for the company, and other negatives.
Drug and alcohol problems both are usually only one of a set of serious
disorders known as Co-Occurring Disorders, so there is usually much more to the
problem than drug use or drinking that got out of hand.
