Managing a older member of staff

[Lipitick]

I’ve recently inherited a failing team with the remit to turn them around in 6 months.

I’m 2 months in and around 70% of the team have shown improvement, green shoots are happening etc etc

My problem is with “Tina” (not her real name).

Tina has been with the team for over 30 years. From our 1-1s and feedback from previous managers it’s clear she stopped taking on new processes a good few years ago. She’s very reluctant to change anything even when shown the bigger picture or indeed processes become obsolete.

She can be quite vocal about ‘how things were’ 10-15 years ago. We didn’t have this issue when we did it on paper or when we had the card file etc (I’m really talking office processes from the 90s)

Shes easily distracted eg making a cup of tea takes 40 odd minutes. She wanders off for periods of time. 20/30 mins to turn on and set up in the morning.

Here is the problem - I have zero backup to performance manage. She’s just turned 70. She’s “part of the furniture” as it were. Nobody wants to tread on any kind of dodgy area with her due to her age. I haven’t asked about retirement obviously but she will tell you “they’ll have to carry me out in my coffin”

This afternoon another mistake came to light whereby she hadn’t followed process and actioned something within the timeframe agreed in the SOP. It’s going to cost to rectify. I asked her for 10 mins to discuss the issue, asked her if she was unclear what the process is, explained the ramifications and what it was now going to cost to fix it. She doesn’t seem to take it in or offer any solution or assurance - just a oh yes sorry forgot about that one (standard process she should be following BAU)

What do I do?!

Here is the problem - I have zero backup to performance manage.

As PP said, what do you mean by this?

I would find someone in the tram with patience and sit her next to them - this person can write process notes for her.

Then you can have a weekly team focus and use this for any confusing processes so everyone is aware of them.

Processes change and procedures are not always amended to fall in line - take a look at that.

1-2-1 should be positive.

Ask about training needs, or adaptations that would make things easier. Praise where it due.

Involve her in projects - maybe updating things or following a task start to finish to see how it impacts others.

Sorry but speaking as an "elder person", this is discriminatory and insane as a response. Being expected to do your job and to do so effectively is not "humiliating". This has nothing to do with "strengths and weaknesses" - it has to do with someone of any age failing to do their work, follow the correct processes, causing significant errors that are costing the employer time and money, and "40 minute tea breaks". Being older - or having a disability - does not mean that there should not be expectations of effective working performance and it is bloody insulting, the number of people here who think that older and/or disabled people should not be expected to perform their jobs. Being expected to suck up massive failure to perform is not a "reasonable adjustment" in any sane playbook, and it is offensive to suggest that our "elder minds" are incapable of grasping modern concepts like, say, getting on with the job.

I am 3.5 years younger than this woman, and I am physically disabled to the degree that I receive PIP enhanced in both categories. I work with a great many older and / or disabled people. It does not take us 30 minutes to set up for work, 40 minutes to make a cup of tea. Massive errors of judgment, refusal to follow processes and all that other shit she is doing is NOT a natural consequence of age or disability, and it is insulting to say it is.

If this one older person is incapable of performing their job to a satisfactory standard, then they ought to be performance managed in exactly the same way as anyone else would be - taking due regard to what it may be reasonable to adjust for any person of any age to help them to perform equally well as their colleagues are expected to.

OP, if your management / HR are disinclined to support acting in a fair and equitable way with all staff, then you have no real options. Document in writing to your manager(s) the performance failings and the consequences. Make it clear that they are setting precedent for everyone else in the team to act as they wish with impunity. Say that you cannot take responsibility for the performance failures of your team or members of the team if you cannot act appropriately as a manager. And ask them what they intend to do. Personally I would be expecting my line manager to take over the management of this person and to deal with the consequences of her failings.

I had a 'Tina' on the team, with declining capacity over the last 5 years, exacerbated hugely by covid. She also wanted to be carried out. What I realised was that this job was her identity, and critical to her mental health and I didn't want to be the one to push her out.

What I did do was manage her role/responsibilities/hours/salary down to enable her to keep her connection and dignity whilst having a minimal impact on the rest of the team. What resolved it was a period of poor health for her, leading to a mutually agreed retirement date. We've kept in touch and keep her in the loop with social events as she had worked for the company for 30 years.

Maybe Tina would very much like to managed out, especially if it was redundancy, as that would give her a nice payout after 30 years. Alternatively, she could try to claim discrimination. Both of these outcomes could be expensive. This could be what HR and higher management are trying to avoid and so are turning a blind eye in hope she will leave soon anyway.

This is a horrendous way to treat an elder person. Yes you will be rid of her if that's the result you want but you would always know that you were the one who caused the final chapter of her working life to be stressful and humiliating.

Work isn't a charity and if they are causing issues, especially with a financial impact, they need to be got rid of.

We had a Tina in my previous team. It took 12 months, but a "restructure" solved the problem.

It is incompatible that you have to turn around a failing team within 6 months but you also cannot performance manage the biggest issue. Your boss will have to pick one.

I’d be very clear with her/him what the issue is and what you are proposing to do (clear performance/action plan with Tina with a view to her either performing or retiring in a dignified and respectful way). If they can’t support you in that then they can’t have a performing team and expensive mistakes will keep being made.

Sounds as if they have got you in to get her out .

Behave, its not ageist to suggest someone not doing fundamentals of their job should be subject to the same procedures as anyone else. Sure some adjustments are reasonable, but it's not reasonable to just be like ah well she's old she can just do as she pleases. Plenty of people who are 70 would still be able to complete administrative work to a decent standard.

I have zero backup to performance manage

Then tread carefully and document everything. Tina has a protected characteristic.

If you have no authority to deal with it you pass on all of your interactions with her and request that someone who does have that authority discuss this with you, explain the company stance, the legal issues and what, if any, next steps there are to be taken.

If your hands are tied pass the problem back to the person holding the rope.

I suspect that Tina has been allowed to work like this for years and has got away with it because she's part of the furniture and management is afraid of what will happen if they even start to try to manage her out, especially if work is pretty much all she has going on in her life. However, 70 year olds are quite as capable as 20 and 30 year olds of taking the piss and coasting, so you have to identify what the problem is here and I don't envy you that one.

Pleny of good advice here, and BTW as someone approaching her 70th, I agree with every word of @Neriah 's post. Being older is no reason not to keep up with processes and doing your job competently.

Lots to f good advice here OP. Agree it's a very tricky one and you can bet your bottom dollar Tina knows this and is exploiting it to its full advantage.

I'm concerned at the lack of support from above you - have you had an explicit conversation to check your decision/performs management outcomes Tina possibly out on her arse will be backed up?

My DH inherited a very similar situation a few years back in his first people management role having had no actual people management training and it was incredibly stressful for him.

• get to know your performs management policies and procedures inside out

• as said above document EVERYTHING. It'll feel onerous and time consuming to begin with but you'll be glad you did it if you ever have to take drastic action

• be firm fair and consistent with everyone all the time

Good luck OP X

I would look at the gold she has and harvest it. As a woman if 70 she has earned her stripes.

I would identify her strengths and assign tasks that align. Would she document some processes, develop team resources, empower younger members of staff? Basically I would work with her as anyone who is working at 70 has seen multiple regenerations of an organisation and that data will be gold if used correctly.

And as a lady Approaching A Certain Age myself and struggling to navigate how much more difficult the every stuff is with brain fog and other such peri gifts women/people like this seriously boil my piss because they make it harder for everyone coming later who aren't taking the piss and still want to add value and are proud of their work

Take her down capability.

I like @goodthinking99 suggested approach. Seems to maintain dignity and continuity for all whilst reducing liability for you and the team.

Agree it's a very tricky one and you can bet your bottom dollar Tina knows this and is exploiting it to its full advantage

Also a possibility, given the 40 minute tea breaks she apparently hasn't been pulled up on before now, the wandering off and taking 30 minutes to set up.

Then tread carefully and document everything. Tina has a protected characteristic.

When people say things like this you know they’re talking nonsense. Everyone has multiple protected characteristics, do you not know what they are?

OP if you’re not getting support to performance manage her you need to put the onus on management or HR, whoever is not supporting you. Write a list of issues with specific examples, and ask what the expected action is if not performance management. Give examples of what you have been doing and the results you’re getting from the rest of the team.

Hopefully conversations with her can start to discover if it's a question of she wants to do a good job but for whatever reason need support or guidance.

This is clearly different to an individual who is very capable but just not willing and refuses to accept how things have changed. But happy to turn up, fanny about for the day and get paid for it

This is a great answer. I think too focussing her role on the tasks that suit her strengths rather than forcing her to change to new processes is the best way forward.

How nice. You sound like such an honourable and decent person.

@Lipitick the law forbids you to fire her on the grounds of age. but we must also remember that other employees will see her getting preferential treatment and complain about that. it really is not fair on the employer to be put in this position. (We have been through it in my hubby's business!) I have found this snippet

Capability is a potentially fair reason to dismiss
Since the abolition of the default retirement age, in order to dismiss an older employee fairly and without liability for age discrimination, an employer should (as for all other (younger) employees) dismiss only for reasons related to the employee’s capability, conduct, because the employee is redundant or for another sound, good business-related reason. Therefore, if an employer wants to dismiss an older employee because of performance concerns (as is the case with Doris), in order to avoid liability they should in most cases follow a performance management process, even if this is seen as an undignified way to end a long career.

But it does because the OP has referred to it several times in their posts and is clearly ageist. If this is is in the UK you can not make someone retire , that’s not legal . If you want to criticise their work it can not be in the basis of age . I am in my middle 60s and have just been given a raise in my current role as my company don’t want to lose my experience and quite often I am the one bringing in new proceedures etc. So the OP has to proceed very carefully or they could find themselves in the middle of a constructive dismissal case. I would suggest talking to HR a about how to approach this in the correct legal manner and find a way of using the persons experience in the best possible way . And supporting them with any necessary changes .

I think step back, try and identify the underlying issues, and what can be done to support the employees through change. Check whether any reasonable adjustments are both reasonable and possible in the context of the team as a whole. Aim not to be an ageist arse, and find out what/whether anything can be done to develop the employee. And yes, it might need some tough conversations to really help them understand the problem, but in an ideal world with some support the employee should make the changes needed.