There are people who I feel are annoying and toxic, but I don’t get rid of them because I am afraid of the reactions of those who are left. They are talking shit about the company to others and spreading discontent and it’s easy to feel like firing the person will somehow prove them right to everyone else.
Then after actually getting rid of them, suddenly a bunch of people come out the woodwork and talk to me about how the person has been terrible for years and the how they are so relived that they are gone. I get told so many stories which make me understand that things were much worse than I even realised.
Why was nobody saying anything before! That would have given me so much confidence to get rid of them sooner!
In reality, I do understand why. Talking shit about others is exactly the behaviour that the toxic people who need to be removed are doing. Well adjusted people don’t want to do it.
But still, it proves the point. Trust your gut. Don’t let a bad situation persist based on what others will think.