How to tell employee they smell

[Dingdong99]

We've just taken in a new person at work

He's 23, and I've noticed he has a bit of bad breath, but the bigger problem is the body odour

It's a client facing role and I get that it's hot but still

I feel bad but need to say something. How would you deliver this without giving him a complex / making me hate him forever!

Don't do this.

I think the best way to do it is for it to come from someone say hr or whatever as an anonymous complaint and deliver it via email. Telling someone to their face is awful and embarrassing and they will not like you anymore in an instance. Nameless person has complained, message delivered, no awkward conversation and they have no idea who has said it.

I had a similar experience years ago. It involved a 23 year old too. It was mentioned to his line manager who then had a quiet word.

I have a colleague like this, bad breath and bad bo. Nobody says anything but people gently stay away from her.
She is young.
In my old workplace ( retail) we had a colleague like this too and I remember the manager spoke to her.

Rip the plaster of quick, dealt with working with a smelly woman late 2018 it use to make me want to vomit.

a strong smell stuff as if clothes wasn’t cleaned.

Sadly the British public didn’t dare tell her she stank.

I'm a fan of Kim Scott's approach of Radical Candor - the book is great for anyone who leads or manages others, I especially like that it has practical things you can "do" rather than just improving your knowledge iyswim.

Here's her thoughts on BO, but it's also worth looking at her YouTube intro video first

www.radicalcandor.com/how-to-be-radically-candid-about-b-o-2/

Just chiming in to agree absolutely don't send a "general" email or have a general discussion - all employees hate this, its the cowards way out -managers should be able to have awkward conversations as part of their job role.

If its a general email chances are the person who needs to know will not realise its about them but everyone else WILL and will a) talk about them behind their back b) be pissed off they got moaned at for something that has no relevance to them and c) lose all respect for their manager.

I had to do this once. The guy was a similar age and seemed to care a lot about how he looked, but not so much how he smelt. I did it as part of a general catch up about his work so it didn't feel like all the focus was on his odour and I kept it chatty.

I said I'd noticed recently that he didn't smell so good and I wanted to say something before anyone else commented (I'd actually had a lot of complaints). He looked alarmed but I did my best to keep it casual, no big deal, but said it would be great if he can think of what's causing it and deal with it. I then turned back to comment on some really good stuff he'd done with a client recently to move off the subject before the meeting ended.

He definitely smelt better after that. Sometimes I'd notice it slightly but he was trying and it was much better than it had been. What amazed me was that he lived with his parents and neither of them had thought to say something to him. I was a bit pissed off that it came down to me, his manager, when his mum could have spared him the embarrassment!

You need somebody else in with you as a witness in case there is a complaint afterwards. Somebody from HR preferably. Be properly prepared for the interview before you go in and even if you say that it there will be no official record keep your own minutes of what has been said.

Tricky though because that's something you can't always do something about. I used to have horrific breath and knew it - people used to step away when I spoke. A friend used to randomly talk about cleaning her teeth, which really upset me as I cleaned my teeth after every meal, used dental brushes, mouthwash, sucked mints. But i was on medication that made my breath foul. As soon as I came off it, my breath became sweet again. I was so self conscious I used to cover my mouth with my hand when I spoke.

That is not going to help his bad breath

This

Please do say something. I was once in a supermarket and there was a horrendous smell, we worked it out that it was one of the employees starving shelves. Like he hadn’t washed himself or clothes for years. We actually couldn’t walk down the aisle to get what we needed and you could see other people turning around and walking away. It must have affected him to see people recoil at him if he genuinely didn’t know.

If he's thick-skinned or nose blind he won't even realise it's aimed at him.

OP is he on a probationary period? I'd honestly let him go, say he wasn't a good fit for the team. Personal hygiene is an individual's responsibility and I don't think employers should need to get involved with it. Even if he's got a medical condition it's his responsibility to sort it out. I see it as a moral failing, a sign of laziness and disrespect, I wouldn't want to employ someone with those qualities. If he knows he's got an issue he can check with friends or family before he starts a new job, to check it's under control and ensure he's presentable. If he doesn't have a medical condition that's even worse!

If you can't get rid of him easily then you'll have to say something.

Are you the manager?

If so keep it factual. Say that in the hot weather smell is more noticeable and can he please make sure to use deodorant.

I had this at work. I just sat him down and said his body odour was strong and affecting other staff; didn't happen again and we are now good friends

Some of the advice on this thread is shocking and anyone saying it would (quite rightly) be hauled up on a disciplinary.

@Dingdong99 take advice from your HR dept. You don't say if you are this person's line manager or not. Even if you are, take advice first. It could well be that problems of this kind are not dealt with at direct manager level, but at HR level.

If you are the one to tell him, you need to keep it brief and factual. You don't give advice. Advice is very open to misinterpretation. You don't say there has been a complaint. What will you say if the answer is "I'd like to see that complaint in writing" (which is what I'd ask for in the employee's position) and he'd be perfectly within his rights to do so. There are invariably protocols in place for complaints about other employees. You haven't actually said if it's just you who has noticed the smell or if others have mentioned it to you. If that's the case he mustn't find out that others are effectively gossiping about him. You certainly do not point him in the direction of videos on how to wash.

Give it a few weeks, then mention that a customer complained.

Agree, people think standing under running water cleans them, it doesn’t, it runs over you but doesn’t wash away greasy sweat and the bacteria that grows on it. My sister used to get in the shower and then when she got out she still smelt, her feet were black around her ankles, between her fingers was grime, she didn’t like toothpaste so didn’t clean her teeth properly. You couldn’t tell her. Don’t know why she was so grubby, both bought up the same. Haven’t seen her for years, but her clothes also stank as did her flat. Some people are just dirty smelly buggers!

Don't do that op, that's so shitty.

I wonder if you could do it gently and check in with him given he is a new worker.
Ask him how he is finding the new job, is travel ok for him etc. maybe he travels from far and struggles to get up in good time to shower).

Then maybe say you're aware it's been really hot for staff and that as a result they maybe need to take action to stay clean and presentable so..they're welcome to use shower facilities (do you have them on site? ) or bring a change of clothes as needed and take time to be customer ready?

If he still doesn't get the hint from that or share any difficulties he's having- then you're going to have to have a more direct approach - I.e. I've noticed your presentation isn't the best, is everything ok as I want to make sure it's comfortable for you here and it may be hard for you if you're struggling with any personal presentation issues... then if they ask...say it's likely to do with how they smell...

I know someone who was told and the next day they hadn’t washed or changed their clothes and they smelt even worse. Within weeks they went to work somewhere else fortunately.

Some of the advice on this thread is shocking!

Definitely don't tell him in a maternal way! Definitely don't give him a detailed list of how to clean different body parts!

In a workplace setting, this needs to be handled in a professional way, meaning his line manager or HR should speak to him. Assuming that's your role OP, you need to have a polite, professional conversation explaining that the role is client facing and what the dress code and hygiene standards are. Be honest, kind but direct and respectful.

Odaban is great for sweating totally stops it. I found out bad breath is often a sign of ill health for those mentioning it.

No it’s not shitty or lazy advice at all! And I wouldn’t be hauled up on a disciplinary for a making a decision to be diplomatic. Have any of you ever worked in business?

It’s not HRs role- one for the line manager I’m afraid!