Bad manners in the workplace – How far is too far?

For many small businesses, high-quality customer service is vital to the ongoing success of the business. What can you do to avoid, or manage, an employee who is rude to your clients or customers?

Prevention is key – recruit for success.

When hiring, make sure you’re attracting the right employees by asking about their values and vision for the business. It’s a good sign if their values and vision align with yours.

Determine if the behaviour is considered serious misconduct.

If an employee is rude to customers – determine how severe the rudeness is and/or if it is serious misconduct. If it is severe enough, or falls under serious misconduct, termination of the employee may be an option.

Examples of serious misconduct

• theft
• assault
• being drunk at work
• safety violations (to clients or co-workers)
• harassment

Identify cause of rudeness and provide ongoing management.

Identifying the reason for the employee’s behaviour means you can help avoid it happening again. Possible reasons for rudeness:

• lack of training
• low staff morale
• inconsistent/unclear expectations
• stress

Contact Employsure on 1300 651 415 for advice managing and avoiding serious misconduct and ‘rude’ employees.