A member of staff, who is generally good at her job, is having personal problems. Her stress and tearfulness is now creating an uncomfortable atmosphere within the nursery, with other staff members trying to avoid her. What should we do?
The consensus view is that an effective manager should be able to intervene to stop a problem deteriorating to this level, because they know their staff well enough via team-building exercises and staff appraisals to be able to spot the early warning signs.
As Jane McKeown, manager of the Kids & Co Nursery in Darlington, says, 'Given the average age of nursery staff, 20 to 30, there are bound to be emotional ups and downs. They have so much going on in their lives: forming relationships, getting married, having children, buying a first home, possibly splitting up and getting divorced.'
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