A Gang of Accusers

A group leader heard rumors of an employee taking extra breaks. The group leader believed a counseling session was in order "since the rumors had come from many co-workers, and therefore it was not worth arguing over whether they were accurate."

I cautioned the group leader of the possible false assumption. The fact that accusations come from many co-workers does not guarantee that the accusations are correct. Certainly the possibility of co-workers ganging up on someone is not unheard of. Even more possible is the idea of rumors started by employees who do not have all the facts, with those rumors then being adopted and spread by other employees.

Although rumors or accusations are useful for alerting a manager to a possible issue, they alone should never be the basis for a disciplinary action. Instead, the manager needs to independently investigate to determine the facts of the matter and then to administer discipline as warranted by the facts of the matter, not the rumors.

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