It feels as if more than ever, workers are being asked to do more.
Layoffs, buyouts and job freezes in this bleak economy have left workers in many offices picking up the slack of former colleagues.
Besides handling an increased workload and stress, you might also be feeling resentful because a colleague is not pulling his or her weight. It's an increasingly common complaint I've been hearing lately from readers, friends and, yes, even co-workers.
If the issue is left unresolved, workplace experts say, it could drain productivity and spread negativity around the office.
It's incumbent on managers to set the tone of the workplace, especially after a downsizing, says Bev Rosen, president of Wellness at Work, a workplace training and consulting firm in Lutherville, who provides corporate training for firms, including The Baltimore Sun.
"They don't think much about the survivor," Rosen says. "And at the same time, the everyday practical issue that the team has to do the same with much less."
But managers are not always good at managing people. So what can you do if you believe that a colleague is not pulling his or her own weight?
Before taking your complaint to a supervisor, consider confronting your colleague, Rosen says. Confronting in the most professional way, of course.
"People have an accountability to do their jobs well and to pay attention to anyone or anything that's hindering their performance," she says. "One of the things they have to do in a tactful way is to be very concrete."
Rosen suggests starting a conversation this way: "Here are some ways that I need your help, and I'm not getting it."
I realize it's not as easy as it sounds because you might not have a good, open relationship with a colleague.
Asking a manager for help can be tricky, but sometimes it can't be avoided, says Kathy Bovard, coordinator of the human resources development graduate program at McDaniel College in Westminster.
"There's always risks associated with going to a manager to report that someone isn't doing their job or pulling their weight in the workplace," she says. "I think generally people are not likely to do that unless it becomes so unbearable for them."
Bovard says an organization's culture can dictate whom you approach first - the colleague or a manager - to resolve the problem.
