How to Spot a Toxic Employee Before You Hire Them

As difficult as it is to find good workers in today’s labor market, weeding out toxic ones is just as challenging. Some candidates look great on paper and some present really well in person. Harder still, toxic qualities often don’t manifest themselves until the individual is several months into the job—when they’re working alongside coworkers, facing deadlines, or under pressure.

More than a problem employee with a bad attitude, a toxic employee will spread their harmful behavior to others. They may bully others, start office drama, or talk poorly about coworkers behind their backs. Generally speaking, toxic employees are:

• Resistant to change
• Unwilling to take responsibility for their mistakes
• Argumentative or defensive with coworkers
• Overconfident in their abilities
• Self-seeking with a lack of awareness for others

Believe it or not, avoiding a toxic employee is better than hiring a top performing employee. A study from Harvard Business Review found that a company would save more in turnover costs—roughly $12,500—by avoiding a toxic employee than they would gain in productivity—roughly $5,300—from a top performing employee (Source).

How to spot a toxic employee before you hire them

Unsurprisingly, a lot of the advice out there focuses on helping employers manage these problem employees. But wouldn’t it be nice to avoid hiring toxic workers in the first place? Here are five things to consider when evaluating candidates for your positions.

How do they deal with difficulties in the workplace?

Ask the candidate to explain how they’ve dealt with problematic (but very probable) work situations, like conflict with coworkers or project failure. While the average candidate might frame their response in terms of what they learned from those experiences, a toxic employee will blame others for their shortcomings and play the victim whenever possible.

How do they speak about their past employers?

At some point, you’ll want to know why the candidate is seeking new employment. Whatever the reason, it’s an opportunity to evaluate how the individual speaks about their past (or current) employers. Even if they were let go from their job, the interview is not the place to air grievances. If the candidate responds by bashing the employer, discrediting their colleagues, or complaining about their duties, you may have a potentially toxic employee on your hands.

What does the rest of your team think?

Make sure candidates interview with multiple people, including the department manager and future work colleagues. Some people act differently when dealing with management, with peers, and with subordinates. Involving more people in the pre-screening process increases your chances of spotting any toxic tendencies early on, before you move the candidate further in the hiring process.

What do their references say?

Even if the candidate sails through the interview without red flags, don’t skip on reference checking. Similarly, you might ask the candidates to provide references from both supervisors and coworkers to get a well-rounded view of the candidate. Ask about their team work abilities, their willingness to take on new tasks, and areas for improvement.

Hiring a toxic employee is a costly mistake that most businesses can’t afford to make. By spotting toxic tendencies early on, you can preserve the performance, morale, and productivity of your existing team.

If you need help pre-screening candidates for your open positions, partner with ALTRES Staffing. Our candidates go through a rigorous process of evaluation, skills testing, reference checking, and in some cases, personality assessments, to not only help weed out potentially toxic candidates but find the right individuals for your company. Contact us today for more information!