How to deal with a slacker coworker

[sistrmoon, BSN, RN]

I'm talking the ones who insist on playing on their phone all shift. When asked to help, they have some excuse not to. How do you handle it?

[Been there,done that, ASN, RN]

I wrote them up ... each and every time.

It worked.

[caliotter3]

If you are the charge nurse, write them up. If you are a peer, report their behavior to the charge nurse, so s/he can write them up.

[classicdame, MSN, EdD]

you might even ask for an appointment with the department supervisor. Ask how they expect you to handle this situation.

[xoemmylouox, ASN, RN]

I deal with this often. I'm not a manager so I cannot write them up, and our manager refuses to. So you can take it up the chain of command if it really bothers you.

[Been there,done that, ASN, RN]

I deal with this often. I'm not a manager so I cannot write them up, and our manager refuses to. So you can take it up the chain of command if it really bothers you.

Interesting. I never had to write any one up as a charge nurse. The discussion was enough to improve performance. The last hospital position I held ( as in house agency).. I only had to access the online reporting system to document this type of behavior.

What kind of situation do you work in, that only management can write up this outrageous behavior?

[caliotter3]

I would not resign my job over the behavior of a coworker. Yet on the other hand, I would not do that person's work for them either. You have to be careful how you approach not doing your work and their work too. Refusing to do their work as well as your own could lead to you losing your job while Ms. or Mr. Lazy continues to smile at their phone screen and get paid for it.

[sistrmoon, BSN, RN]

I was acting as charge nurse(although it isn't called that on my floor). It is a position that is rotated/assigned to a different staff nurse each shift. It's not managerial and I have no power to write anyone up. I just reported to it my highest manager.

[organichombre, ADN, BSN, MSN, LPN, RN]

Document your request, their response, staffing, acuity and any extenuating circumstances and let them know that you will be passing on this info to the supervisor. Let management deal with people who chose to goof off. Too much passive aggressiveness in nursing has created this type of behavior. I recently retired from a federal nursing job and I can tell you that there are ways to get rid of people even in federal jobs but the documentation must address the reality.