Performance issues

[Mindstroms]

Hi, please can ask for your help with this. A staff member is constantly trying not to attend performance meetings despite being asked to attend and they are still declining. The complaint is from both in-house and contractors. We are constantly having to deal with their errors and there are some behavioural issues too such as being rude, not responding to emails and not answering calls etc. I contacted the HR but the staff told HR that I am lying and that they have no clue what I’m talking. I have all the emails and documents but HR has told me not to chase them because it will cause anxiety and instead start with an occupational health referral. Is this correct? I’m not sure why I can’t raise the issue with them directly and set up an action plan.

Sounds like HR bullshit for "we won't be allowing you to do anything about this". But this is about company policy, not law - you need to speak to your line manager and take your lead from them, because if your company has no appetite for backing managers then you will be hung out to dry.

Thank you. I feel somewhat frustrated and angry about this because I am having to do all the work and not allowed to even raise any questions and instead just put up with this.
I think I will go back and ask them to remove this person from my line management then at least I don’t have to pick up their mess.

Does this person happen to have been there a long time? Are there perhaps some politics you are unaware of? Perhaps they are friends to HR or with senior management?

HRs reaction is really odd so I would urge caution, seems like any action on your part might not be well received. Is there someone senior in the business you can maybe have an open discussion with to ask what is going on and what they would advise you to do?

Your HR sounds a bit wet.
the performance meeting is not a choice- your a manager requesting they attend. It can be difficult when there are behavioural issues also when a fine line with performance and conduct.
i would lump it all in the performance- are you trying to address this informally or moving to formal?
in any event I’d be inviting them to a meeting and making it clear in the invite if they don’t attend, decisions will made in their absence on the evidence you have.
id also make it clear to them it’s their opportunity to discuss issues, understand expectations and look at what support they need. It’s also their opportunity to raise any mitigating circumstances - so if at this meeting they raise stress or anxiety yes refer them to occ health for professional advice on how best to support them… but it doesn’t stop poor performance discussions.
Not sure why HR are saying to refer incase it causes anxiety?! Yes anyone under poor performance will feel the pressure but the discussions should be supportive on how a manager can help get them up to speed.

All you can do is keep asking HR.

Whatyoutalkingabouteh today I sent HR an email with the summary of the action plan we discussed. HR have asked for me to come up with few options to offer e.g flexible work for time keeping, reduction in workload so that they can work efficiently etc. Basically baby sit them and no mention of a review date or option to move on with the capability process . I am feeling bit paranoid I think the staff might have contacted the HR before me and may have given false statements . I spoke with a senior management person and they weren’t sure what to say but advised me to be cautious but go ahead with the process slowly and see how it goes. This feels very wrong and incredibly insulting.

It sounds like there's something else going on that you don't know about with all those responses from HR.

Getting them removed from your team sounds like a good plan

And move the problem to another manager? That’s not the answer

usual plans are a min 1 month, max 3 months. It should state in your policy but if not, check with your HR.

id be looking at a reduction of work if occ health advised this ie their performance is affected by a medical condition.

if feels like you’re not being given the full picture. You still need to be able to have that discussion with the employee to understand what they need

That was exactly my thoughts. HR want nothing to change, your manager is advising an extereme level of caution - either your employer is litigation risk averse, or they know something they are not telling you.

I honestly think that in this situation I would be covering my own back with a grievance outlining the situation, the damage being done to the employer, the policy requirements for handling this situation, and the attempts you have made to resolve it under policy / blockages you have experienced; and asking for the person to be moved to someone elses management because you cannot manage someone if you are not allowed to manage. Moving the problem on is not ideal - but that isn't your problem, it is the employers problem. But if you end up being perceived as being (or even blamed for being) the inept manager because you haven't dealt with it, then you can lose staff and clients. That's your performance on the line!

Tell HR that this person is causing you an unreasonable amount of stress due to their behaviour. Then ask to get them removed.

If for any reason they don't support you more, get your GP to assess you for stress and go to occupational health yourself. HR will need to help you too.

I recently started a new job in the public sector and now the organisation has announced it's going through a huge restructure. There have been a huge number of people who have applied for voluntary redundancy including people I directly work with.

On top of that, the job isn't want was described to me and I'm not enjoying it. My anxiety has got bad and I've found myself in tears over little things. I spend evenings worrying I'm not good enough. I've not had much feedback and I worry people don't like me as messages can appear very blunt and often my messages can get ignored. I've worked in the public sector for 8 years so I'm no stranger to how challenging it can be, its just staring to feel unsustainable.

As I said I'm new to the role and there's alot to learn as its a very busy and complex department. The morale in the organisation is extremely low and there's talks of alot of changes and redundancies. I feel like there's not much support as people are so busy and the handover was pretty much non existent. I'm worried I've made a mistake leaving my old role and I don't know whether it's too soon to look for another job. Anyone else experienced this?