To be at my wits end with this staff member

[ScottishJo31]

I am prepared to get flamed for this but I am genuinely at a loss on what to do with a member of my team. I run a small not for profit nursery, it is a lovely homely place that has had generations of children come through the door.

I manage a small team of 7 but I am having quite a few issues with one member of staff. This lady only started working for us just over a year ago after taking time out of the childcare profession to raise her three children ..( she is in fact a qualified nursery teacher but wanted to take more of a step back and become a nursery worker) she came with good references and interviewed wonderfully however over the last six months I have seen a lot of bad practise from her..she is often late, has lots of sick days, gets very irate and snappy with the children.. one or two times shouting at them for minor things like getting in her way.

She frequently sits down for long periods of time and doesn’t interact with the children very much. She moans about changing nappies and frequently tries to get other staff to do them.

We have had one or two parental comments/ complaints about her.. one parent saying she felt she lacked enthusiasm and always seemed to be sitting down whenever she collected her child and another stating that she always appears hostile.

My issue is that she has a variety of mental health issues which she is medicated for and she is very knowledgeable of her rights in the workplace.. workplace discrimination etc so where do I stand on disciplining or potentially firing her.

I have tried to be sympathetic, arranged supervision sessions ( which she doesn’t always turn up for) and always try to listen to her and her needs in order to help improve her drive, energy and working practise. But things aren’t improving and I feel she is genuinely become a liability. I have to consider the fact that she works with very young children... I have tried to give her a disciplinary before but was over-ruled by our committee chairperson who was frightened of opening a can of worms in regards to her mental health issues as he stated that some of her issues such as her lack of Motivation and lateness are directly related to her medical issues. What can I do????

You can get rid of her for no reason as she has worked for you for less than 2 years
Do you do supervisions? Set her targets and if she doesn’t fulfill them then you can use your disciplinary procedure and put her on capability
Give her a timescale and if there is no improvement then you can sack her
But you can get rid without giving a reason as she has less than 2 years service
There’s a really good group on Facebook
Early years managers 2019 where you will get some excellent advice

Not HR, so not familiar with the ins and outs of rights around health related issues - but I am an experienced manager.

Are you formally documenting how you're performance managing her? I.e. discussion specific goals, designing action plans, implementing regular reviews, etc.? That's basically the bread and butter of any performance management related situation. And, yes, I realise I'll sound horrible, but sometimes it's the only thing you can do, it helps you argue your case if and when you decide to terminate them.

What do your contracts say.

You can let someone go within 24 months of the start of their contract, but I would advise you to seek professional advice regarding her mental health issues. I they are known and have continued for over a year and unlikely to improve you're on thin ice.

If she's only been employed for less than 2 years you can dismiss her for any reason (except anything relating to her disability).

Lateness, apathy and irritability can be a sign of mental health struggles but she can't expect to perform poorly with no plan to improve. Ultimately it's the children who will suffer and that's not fair.

Do you have any HR service?

If I were you I'd put her on a recorded performance plan and tell her parents have been complaining.

No ones mental health should trump the need for children to have a safe and positive learning environment.

Thanks all... she can be a lovely person and at times wonderful with the children but these times are becoming fewer and farther between.... she can't cope with any slight stressors at work which is par for the course when you work with children aged 2,3 and 4 and is becoming quite hostile with other staff.... I will definitely look into all the advice you have suggested thanks

Are you a business owner or manager? If so you really need employ or brush up on your employer and employee rights

You really need look up ACAS code of practice.

( it’s a set of guidelines that protect you the employer and you the employee (both plural) on your rights)

Look at Acas website, the capability process. Follow the steps, document everything (attitude, sickness levels, anything else you can think of) and there won't be anything she can do in response. HR professional here. It takes a couple of months but worth doing properly to protect yourself. If she fails to attend the meetings with no good reason rearrange once, if she doesn't attend the second time give her a warning in her absence and just work through the stages to dismissal.

Also as you're not for profit your local CVS might be able to offer HR support either free or reduced price