I caught my employee looking for another job

[Mx12345]

Does anyone have any HR or upper management experience?

 

I work for a relatively small company of about 200 employees and I oversee three employees. A little over two months ago the most senior of these positions became available when the pervious employee was moving out of state because her husband got a new job. She was a fantastic model employee and I hated to lose her but I understood her position. The position remained vacant for almost two months for various reasons. After doing a round of interviews with about five people I had it narrowed down to one after doing a round of interviews with about five people I had it narrowed down to one. My upper bosses wanted a say in who was hired and I sent them her resume and they agreed she was a good candidate, but it took them almost two weeks to get me this feedback and by then she had taken another position. After a second round of interviews I had chosen another candidate who accepted the job. During the almost 2 months that the position was vacant I took on all the job duties for that position. Basically I worked 10 to 12 hour days for about seven weeks.

 

The new person has been with my team and my company now for only two weeks. I am still basically working late days because I’m training her and then getting to my duties at the end of the day. I’m optimistic however because she’s catching on quickly and I know that here soon she wont need every day training. Today I went to her desk to show her a task. I asked her to pull up the Internet and the last page she was on was a job search. She quickly tried to close out of it but she did not do it fast enough for me to not see that she’s looking for another job. To make matters worse I asked her then to bookmark a certain Internet page. She had two folders in her bookmarks; one was marked “work stuff” and the other one was marked “job opportunities.”

 

Today was such a whirlwind of a day that I didn’t address it right then and there or tell my bosses. How should I proceed with this? I don’t at all like that she’s looking for a job on company time. I’m looking forward to not having to work 10 to 12 hour days anymore but I fear that she’s going to leave soon especially if she’s currently job searching. So do I fire her and just get it over with and start looking for someone again? Or do I let it go, give myself somewhat of a breather while she’s here, and deal with it when it happens?

 

My company is currently experiencing “growing pains.” That’s why I have to work so much when we don’t have someone to replace that position. The work has to get done and my two other employees are already working hard on other tasks. As the person who runs the department, it’s up to me to keep it afloat.

[preraph]

You need to talk openly with her about it. just tell her that it seems obvious to you that she is still looking for a different job. Tell her you are looking for a permanent employee that you can depend on and don't want to train the two of them two different people back to back because it takes up a lot of your time and give her 48 hours to decide if she is going to stay with the company or not. You should talk to whoever your supervisors are and see if they would approve having her sign a contract. you do not want someone who doesn't want to be there so probably you don't want to keep her. but if after 48 hours she tells you she does want the job then you ask her if she wants it bad enough to sign a contract and guarantee that she will still be there a year from now.

 

But if it was obvious to you that she was job hunting at work, I think you can fire her with no problem. however if the files you saw were on her personal email that she uses at home and you just happened to see it because she's also using it at work I guess that's a different matter and also might mean that she's not still job hunting. But if it was on your work email, I'd say that's grounds to let her go.

 

Just so you know for the future, most companies now have a 90 day probation for all new hires. I think it involves something they have to sign and consent to, but it gives you both a no-fault out if either of you wants to discontinue the working relationship.

Edited June 4, 2019 by preraph

[Foxhall]

catching her looking for other jobs is hardly a straight sacking offence although yes if she is only there two weeks you are in the probationary period and you can decide to part company,

 

On the other hand you mention she has appeared a quick learner and therefore perhaps she will adapt to the role quickly,

 

you are back to square one if you let her go now at this point,

 

A new employment can be daunting for people, she may be keeping her options open but then again if she survives a month or two she may actually grow to like working for your company overcoming the initial doubts,

 

I would ask myself why is she having these doubts? Is there something with the culture of your company that may be off putting?

Could you do a little bit more to help at this phase and make things seem more manageable for her,

 

Are you putting unreasonable expectations on her at an early stage,

 

I understand you American companies have no time for slackers but working 10-12 hours a day, she is seeing this in her first two weeks, she is probably thinking "lets get the hell out of here"

 

perhaps have a conversation with her try to reassure her that your company is a great place to work and so on and to make it all seem less daunting.

[thefooloftheyear]

Ive been running my own companies for decades...Employees looking for other jobs is part of business life...For every one you "catch" there are dozens that are doing it behind your back...

 

If you aren't in charge of hiring recruiting and someone else is, then mention it to them..If you are the one, then store that and be in the lookout for replacements...then move on with your daily activities..

 

In this age, its very rare to have 'lifers"....Everyone's a free agent and will exercise options as they can-particularly in this current booming cycle of the economy.....The best thing an employer/manager or hiring agent can do is the same....Be always on the lookout for new people...always...

 

Point is, don't let this derail you from the job at hand and don't give that person the kind of power to let it occupy your mind space...This is normal and expected behavior..

 

TFY

[Eternal Sunshine]

I wouldn't worry at all. I am always browsing job ads out of habit. At the beginning of a new job, it's normal not be 100% where this is going.

 

 

One of the people reporting to me has let me know that she has applied for another job. She didn't like the company culture but felt like it's fair to tell me. I told her that I would be sorry to see her go but if she thinks she would be happier somewhere else - I will even provide a reference. She is still here 8 months later. I don't dwell on it. As long as her performance is satisfactory, that's all I care about. Also, while looking for work on "company time" seems bad, realistically it takes under a minute to refresh job ads. It will hardly kill her productivity.

[d0nnivain]

You can fire somebody for any reason or no reason. You just can't fire them for an illegal reason (because they are a member of a protected class: gender, religion, sexual orientation, health status etc.)

 

You have concluded she's disloyal and misappropriating company resources (looking for a new job while you are paying her & using company resources to do it). At best that makes her stupid for not realizing how easy it was to get caught. You have to wonder what other dumb things she's doing.

 

Of course you can fire her.

 

However, you already invested so much time & money finding her. Can you really afford to be a person down again? Assuming you have an HR department, 200 employees isn't that small of a company, you may be better served talking to her. Find out what she doesn't like besides the hours. Perhaps she has ideas to improve the situation. Either way to assure confidentiality if she didn't already sign a non-disclosure agreement & a covenant not to compete, you may need a small severance package just to get the signed release from her so firing her will cost even more money

[Art_Critic]

Ive been running my own companies for decades...Employees looking for other jobs is part of business life...For every one you "catch" there are dozens that are doing it behind your back...

 

 

Agreed.. it's part of doing business however, they should do that on their own time... using company resources to look for another job IMO is something that should be handled.

I would pull the person aside and mention to them that they should do that type of research at home and not on company time and computers.

I would then treat it a forewarning that they are leaving and prepare for that..

 

If a new employee was doing that I would be shocked and unless they were doing an outstanding job at the end of the probationary period I would turn them loose as they are not fully on the team the way they need to be.

[Foxhall]

You can fire somebody for any reason or no reason.

 

usually agree with you but perhaps not this time!

 

I know with us anyway this perspective would be deemed very controversial and dangerous with the escalation of employment law,

 

you would need a really good reason before firing someone.

[d0nnivain]

usually agree with you but perhaps not this time!

 

I know with us anyway this perspective would be deemed very controversial and dangerous with the escalation of employment law,

 

you would need a really good reason before firing someone.

 

Most US states are employment at will. That means the employer decides when, where & why to fire somebody. They don't need a reason. The only thing they can't do is fire somebody because of that employee's membership in a protected class.

 

The employee must prove discrimination by showing

 

• The employee is in a protected class (based on race, gender, and so on).
   
  
• The employee was qualified for the position. For example, an applicant who wasn't hired would have to show that he met the requirements for the job; an employee who was fired would have to show that she was performing the job adequately and meeting the employer's expectations.
   
  
• The employee was rejected for the position -- in other words, the applicants was not hired, or the employee was not promoted or was fired.
   
  
• An employee outside of the protected class was selected for the position, or the employer continued to look for candidates. For example, an employee who claims she was not promoted because she was a women could show that a man was promoted instead, or that the company continued to look for internal candidates after rejecting her.
  

 

Once the employee proves those things, the burden shifts to the employer to offer a reason for the termination. Here the OP would show that the employee was job hunting on company time & using company resources. That is akin to stealing.

 

Once the employer gave the reason the employee would have the opportunity to show that the employer's stated reason was a mere pretext.

 

Then it's up to the jury. But honestly when the employer has a reason -- here the job searching on company time -- I doubt the employee could prevail.

 

Plus if you read the rest of my post, I suggested the company pay a small severance to this employee if they fired her. By offering her a little bit of money she would be required to sign a release giving up her right to sue. Problem solved.

[Foxhall]

ok I find that interesting actually,

 

 

the notion of "employment at will" this would not be the Irish way but always good to hear how other systems operate,

 

It is a bit too Donald Trump esque for my liking "your fired" (The Apprentice) but as I say insightful all the same.

 

the severance pay idea- yes that would perhaps ease the blow a little and as you point out prevent any future legal actions.

 

again Id feel the job browsing thing as a bit harsh on its own though to warrant firing someone.

Edited June 4, 2019 by Foxhall

[Mr. Lucky]

Agreed.. it's part of doing business however, they should do that on their own time...

 

Same with FB and NCAA tournament results - and we all know how that goes.

 

I'm with the moderates on this, it's just a piece of intel. I'd pass it on to HR while continuing to work to asses her training and progress.

 

In my company, I'd have a sit-down with a new key employee after 3-4 weeks for a general discussion about challenges and opportunities. OP, Is there something like that on the upcoming calendar?

 

Mr. Lucky

[Art_Critic]

Same with FB and NCAA tournament results - and we all know how that goes.

 

I know... I little is okay.. I just let someone go a few weeks ago who youtubed TV half the day and wouldn't stop.

There were other issues but that was the main one.

 

In moderation anything is okay but when it goes beyond moderation their daily priorities shift and that is when it's getting in the way.

 

I think looking for a job during work hours while at work is counter productive not only to the employee but the company and the workers there.

 

Nobody needs their coworker killing time looking for a job instead of being part of the process.

[Mx12345]

My company has an HR department, and also she is on a 30 day probationary period, something she signed when she started. I know I can easily fire for this.

 

I like what one poster said, about finding out why she would be wanting to leave. We gave her what she was asking for salary wise, and she had also been unemployed for three months when we hired her, so I don't think money is the issue. I also want to point out, that SHE is not working 10-12 hour days. She is working her 40 hour work week. She was advised during busy times, she'd have to work a few late nights. I'm the only person who works those hours right now though.

 

I think she might not like the work. When I was doing interviews I let the candidates know there was a lot of data entry to the job and asked each one of they were okay with that. Of course she said no problem. At the end of the first week, she had done nothing but data entry because she was catching up my department in that area from the previous person leaving. She even came and asked one day if there was anything else she should be doing and I told her just keep with inputting the reports for now. Last week however I gave her other things to do.

 

I think at the end of the week I will let her know that I saw the job searching. Ill ask her if she has any issues or concerns with the job, let her know we are not looking to waste our time training. And then also let her know that she is free to look off company time and off company equipment.

[Flame Aura]

My company has an HR department, and also she is on a 30 day probationary period, something she signed when she started. I know I can easily fire for this.

 

I like what one poster said, about finding out why she would be wanting to leave. We gave her what she was asking for salary wise, and she had also been unemployed for three months when we hired her, so I don't think money is the issue. I also want to point out, that SHE is not working 10-12 hour days. She is working her 40 hour work week. She was advised during busy times, she'd have to work a few late nights. I'm the only person who works those hours right now though.

 

I think she might not like the work. When I was doing interviews I let the candidates know there was a lot of data entry to the job and asked each one of they were okay with that. Of course she said no problem. At the end of the first week, she had done nothing but data entry because she was catching up my department in that area from the previous person leaving. She even came and asked one day if there was anything else she should be doing and I told her just keep with inputting the reports for now. Last week however I gave her other things to do.

 

I think at the end of the week I will let her know that I saw the job searching. Ill ask her if she has any issues or concerns with the job, let her know we are not looking to waste our time training. And then also let her know that she is free to look off company time and off company equipment.

Data entry... and you are surprised she is looking for another job? What she is doing now sounds so boring, I would be looking for a new job too.

 

 

Just because she has accepted this job doesn't mean she needs to do it for the rest of her life. If she is not happy with it then she should find something she is happy with. She, just like every other employee, should be looking after themselves first, not what the company wants. Even more so over on the other side of the pond in the US where I know employee laws are non existent and can be fired 'at will'. So happy none of that flies over here in Europe as its simply a joke.

 

 

Anyway all you need to do is sit down with her 1 on 1 and talk to her. Ask her how she find the job. Is it interesting or boring. Would she be happy doing it for the next x years or does she want to move on to something else.

 

 

Ive left jobs weeks after starting... should always look after #1.

[Fekenaws]

I look for jobs constantly and I don't plan on leaving for another year and a half. I want to know my next projected salary's worth, where opportunities might be, etc. I don't stay at any job longer than 3 years, in this current age and economy that is a death sentence to your potential gross income, mainly because companies think that "inflation raises" are somehow enough to keep an employee at bay.

[preraph]

Shouldn't be doing it on the clock. She's wasting company time and expenses doing that.

 

She probably doesn't like the work, it's true. But then she shouldn't have taken the job if she had a problem. Truth is she's probably going to always be sneaking around doing her own business on company time. If I were you, I'd get rid of her at the 30-day probation end. Because she's not going to change just because you had a talk with her. This is what she does. It's probably why she lost her last job, screwing around at work.

[JuneL]

In this time and age, everybody has a smartphone. You’ll be hard pressed to find someone who absolutely doesn’t look at her phone during work hours. As long as she’s doing a decent/good job (which sounds like she does), what’s the problem? Plus, like you said, doing data entry the whole day is very boring. Who is to say her productivity doesn’t improve by being able to look at other stuff online occasionally?

[preraph]

You're just not allowed to use your smartphone in a lot of offices. It's not accepted. If the boss is on the ball enough to be checking his own productivity, he'll see the drop. Yes, people steal furtive glances at their smartphones, but I know my boss will tell a person who is doing it routinely to stop and then when she didn't, he fired her. If people use them sparingly, on breaks, and just glance at them but don't spend time using them, then most bosses will overlook it, but that one person who just lives on it is going bye-bye. On that girl, he found out she wasn't really doing the job but was just making up stuff to put in her notes to the accounts.

 

Someone who wastes company times does it in more than one way and smartphones is only the tip of the iceberg but is an excellent indicator there's more messing around being done.

 

Wasting time at work in a severe way is just bad work ethic and you're not going to have a talk and get someone to change their work ethic. They'll just find another way to do it.

[JuneL]

The point is, this particular employee is picking up things fast, by the OP’s own admission. Also, paradoxically, looking at your phones occasionally may be more productive in her case — there’s a lot of diminishing returns for doing long hours of data entry!

 

Let me share with you guys one of Bill Gates wisdoms: He likes lazy employees, as they can find smart ways to do a given job. A smart employer only cares about the output and productivity!

[preraph]

^ I've never known that to be true. Lazy employees were always just lazy employees who other people had to make up for in my work experience. I think it's good to be tolerant and not too strict, but a lazy employee? No.

[Els]

Everyone is always browsing. If you're going to make a habit out of "catching" people who do that, expect all the best employees to avoid your company like the plague.

[Els]

You're just not allowed to use your smartphone in a lot of offices. It's not accepted. If the boss is on the ball enough to be checking his own productivity, he'll see the drop. Yes, people steal furtive glances at their smartphones, but I know my boss will tell a person who is doing it routinely to stop and then when she didn't, he fired her. If people use them sparingly, on breaks, and just glance at them but don't spend time using them, then most bosses will overlook it, but that one person who just lives on it is going bye-bye. On that girl, he found out she wasn't really doing the job but was just making up stuff to put in her notes to the accounts.

 

Someone who wastes company times does it in more than one way and smartphones is only the tip of the iceberg but is an excellent indicator there's more messing around being done.

 

Wasting time at work in a severe way is just bad work ethic and you're not going to have a talk and get someone to change their work ethic. They'll just find another way to do it.

 

Lol. Want to cite some ACTUAL Fortune 100 companies who have policies like that?

 

IMO, it's only the mediocre companies that treat their office employees like children. Google, Apple, Facebook, all the other giants - they recognize that the best and brightest aren't going to put up with that.

 

 

Obviously, if you are in a customer-facing role, that would be different, because you'd have an image to maintain to your customers. In the office, nobody cares.

[JuneL]

^ I've never known that to be true. Lazy employees were always just lazy employees who other people had to make up for in my work experience. I think it's good to be tolerant and not too strict, but a lazy employee? No.

 

To be precise, that Bill Gates wisdom was about choosing a lazy employee for a hard job, as that employee will find an easy way to do it.

 

That’s why I said a smart boss will look at your output (quality and quantity) and productivity. If some employee is spending her whole day watching youtube and not delivering her job, then there’s an issue. But my point is, browsing the internet occasionally may not be detrimental (or may be beneficial in certain situations) to your work per se.

[vla1120]

There is a happy medium. My number one goal, as departmental supervisor, is that my departmental work gets done efficiently and quickly. As long as everyone is on task enough to accomplish that, I could care less if they want to play a round of mini-golf in the office. I am also very big on teamwork. If one of us fails, we all fail. My team knows that I will go to bat for them in any situation as long as they have pulled their weight and do not deceive me in any way.

 

If I were you, I'd have a sit down with this new employee. I wouldn't assume anything about her past or why she was unemployed for two months before taking your job. Judge her by her merits. Hopefully, she will be forthcoming about the situation. Sometimes, coming to a new job from the outside, it's much easier to recognize and point out dysfunction in the new company. I've gotten some good suggestions on improvements from new hires who were able to look at the process with fresh eyes. (And even though the job might have lots of data entry, hopefully, when your department catches up, she'll have other tasks that will be more challenging?)

[JuneL]

There is a happy medium. My number one goal, as departmental supervisor, is that my departmental work gets done efficiently and quickly. As long as everyone is on task enough to accomplish that, I could care less if they want to play a round of mini-golf in the office. I am also very big on teamwork. If one of us fails, we all fail. My team knows that I will go to bat for them in any situation as long as they have pulled their weight and do not deceive me in any way.

 

If I were you, I'd have a sit down with this new employee. I wouldn't assume anything about her past or why she was unemployed for two months before taking your job. Judge her by her merits. Hopefully, she will be forthcoming about the situation. Sometimes, coming to a new job from the outside, it's much easier to recognize and point out dysfunction in the new company. I've gotten some good suggestions on improvements from new hires who were able to look at the process with fresh eyes. (And even though the job might have lots of data entry, hopefully, when your department catches up, she'll have other tasks that will be more challenging?)

 

You sound like a smart supervisor. My cousin used to brag about his glowing reviews. His boss would praise him for how hard he worked; in reality, he would sneak out to play golf often He worked for one of the top IT firms and his work hours and location were quite flexible.