7 Bad Employee Traits and Personal Characteristics

Being a good employee will require the right amount of effort. You’ll want to do all the right things at work to ensure you can keep your job. Unfortunately, there are many bad employee traits that may make you look undesirable in the workplace. Some of these traits could even cause you to lose your position.

You don’t want to be the employee that cannot meet or exceed the expectations of your employer. When working with others, here are the seven bad employee traits that you should avoid:

1. Rudeness

In the list of bad employee traits, a bad attitude must rank as one of the worst qualities to have. You never want to be rude while you’re at work. This is one of the worst qualities that attract the wrong attention from others and should be avoided at all costs.

If you work with the public, it’s imperative to be kind to all the people you see throughout the day. You’ll also want to be cordial to your co-workers and keep a level head and tone voice when communicating.

2. Lazy

Laziness is another bad employee trait to avoid demonstrating. Once you get a job, it’s essential to do all of your daily tasks. You never want to become lazy and fail to do what your role requires of you.

Lazy people won’t have the option of getting a promotion in most cases. This makes it even more important to do all you can to ensure you not only keep your job but are promoted in time.

3. Being late

Not showing up for work on time may look as if you don’t take your job seriously. Are you always late and just not doing your best while in your position? If this is the case, you’ll want to do whatever it takes to get to work on time. This may mean going to bed earlier or setting the alarm clock, so you’ll wake promptly.

If you want to be sure you do keep your position, it’s important always to avoid being late for work. Over time, this will undoubtedly get noticed and could cause you to lose your job.

4. Taking too much credit

If you work with a team of others and do jobs together, it’s never ideal to try and take too much credit. Saying you did most of the work when you didn’t is something you’ll ever want to do.

Just state the tasks you completed and share the rewards and glory with your teammates. This will allow you to look like a much better employee and one that may be appreciated more in the long run.

5. Lying about time worked

Being dishonest about the time you were at work is never a good idea. You’ll want always to be truthful to your employee when it comes to getting paid.

Even if you don’t have to punch a time clock, you’ll want to record the right hours on your timesheet. Failing to do so could cause you to get fired later. Keep in mind your employer may have a video that’s watching when you show up for work and the time you leave.

6. Fussing with co-workers

Getting into arguments all the time with the people you work with is never a good idea. You’ll want to remain calm on the job if you wish to avoid looking like a hot head. Many jobs conduct extensive behavioural assessments just to make sure that the team gets along and gels with each other, so you don’t want to be the personality that stands out and disrupts the other coworkers.

Talk in a low manner and speak to others politely always. It’s never a good idea to get into an argument or fight with a co-worker if you wish to have the highest quality of time on the job.

7. Stealing

Regardless of the type of work you do it’s possible you have the opportunity to take things that are not yours. This is something that may not only cost you a job but have you doing jail time, as well. Never steal from your employer because this isn’t morally right. Consider if you were the owner of the company and others started taking things from you.

Keep in mind most business owners have a webcam in place that could be monitoring all your activity while you’re at work. This isn’t the time to start acting odd or doing strange things that may make you look suspicious if you wish to keep your job. If you get caught stealing, it will most likely lead to you losing your job and possibly even face criminal charges.

Doing your part to be a good employee is always important. You never want to be labelled as a bad worker because this will never allow you to get ahead at work. Take time to do your job well and be at your workplace within a timely manner. This is the key to keeping your job and feeling secure that it will be there for you. Avoid these bad employee traits at work, and you’ll be glad you did once you’re able to be promoted and even get a raise in time.