4 Employees Who Irritate Their Boss

Are you getting under your boss’s skin?

Workplace tension happens all the time, but some disagreements are a little more one-sided than others. If that’s the case, it may be time to reassess how much you’re contributing to workplace issues, but how do you know if you’re really the one to blame?

You’re about to find out. Below are the types of employees that leave their bosses thinking, Can you just not?

1. The Slacker

What is he good for? Absolutely nothing. Shoot him an email asking about an outstanding item he should’ve completed last week, and he’ll tell you he’s on it, and then he goes out for a 2-hour lunch with his buddies.

This is a simple fix: If you’re at work, do your work. If you’re not excited about your job, find another entry-level job. Being a slacker only hurts you: Your job will be in jeopardy, and you’ll lose the very people who could have provided great professional references for you when you start your job search again.

2. The Gossip

This is not a reality TV show: You are here to make friends (or at least, professional connections).

Spreading rumors about someone’s work ethic or whether or not somebody is about to quit or get fired is not the way to build a strong-knit team. While you may think that you’re building a support network amongst your co-workers by telling them what you overheard, you need to think about just how much you trust them…and if you’d feel comfortable having that gossip come back to upper management.

Employers tend to like a drama-free environment – so try to stay positive and keep the workplace gossip to a minimum. That way you won’t incriminate yourself when it comes to who-said-what.

3. The One Who Makes Excuses

No one is safe from blame when it comes to this employee. He didn’t send you a report on time? His computer crashed, he didn’t have wifi for 6 hours and Sarah never responded to his email with what he needed. He didn’t make it to the meeting on time? His unemployed roommate kept him up all night with his loud music and on top of that, his morning train was delayed.

Employers don’t need someone who makes excuses: They need someone who is reliable in the first place, and then, because mistakes happen, takes ownership of what went wrong. Take responsibility for your own actions and work hard to improve when you fumble. This will set you up for success instead of immaturely pointing the finger at your problems.

4. The One Who Does Just Enough to Get By

Come it at 9 am, clock out at 5 pm. This employee does exactly what is asked of him and nothing more. He isn’t willing to go above and beyond, whether that means staying late to finish up a project, offering to help out a struggling team member or coming up with helpful suggestions for the company’s products and services.

True story: The employees who do just enough to get by rarely get promoted. It’s the employees who are constantly thinking about how they can do their job better or how their contributions can help the company, who will see real rewards from their hard work.

If you’ve realized that you’re one of these employees, stop. It’s time to be more conscientious about how you behave in the workplace, and get rid of the habits that aren’t doing you, or anyone else, any favors. Meet with your boss to discuss ways you can improve your work ethic and your behaviors, then fix the problem fast. Your relationship with your work and your boss will become a lot more positive because of it!