How to tell an employee they smell
- Overall review score, percent
- 76
- Competency score, percent of scale
- 76
- Ratings to fill in
- 9
Every figure on this page is computed from the inputs you enter, by the method stated below it. The only constants HeadcountDesk supplies are the published federal payroll tax rates and the overtime multiplier, each cited where it is used. The defaults are a worked example to replace with your own.
How to tell an employee they smell is the difficult conversation nobody wants, and it has the same shape as every other one: privately, soon, plainly and kindly, with the effect on colleagues or customers stated as the reason, the employee heard, because the cause may be medical or personal and may need accommodating, a change agreed, and a short note filed. The handbook's dress and hygiene section is what makes it a workplace standard rather than a personal remark. The review template on this site records what was agreed, free; HeadcountDesk Pro keeps the note.
Try the free tools Free to use. No account, no card, no sign-up.
Privately, soon, plainly
One to one, within days, in two sentences: the observation and its effect on colleagues or customers. No euphemism the employee has to decode, no audience.
Hear the cause
A medical condition, a housing situation, a laundry problem: the cause may need an accommodation rather than a warning, and the employee will only say so if asked kindly. Write down what they say.
The standard and the agreement
The handbook's hygiene section is the standard; the agreement is what changes and when it is reviewed. The free employee handbook template on this site has the section; the free review template on this site records the agreement.
The note
Brief, dated, factual, filed. If the cause is medical, the note lives with the confidential material. From the vendors' own pricing pages: Homebase lists Essentials at $24 per location per month billed annually or $30 monthly, with a free Basic plan for one location of up to ten employees; BambooHR lists Core at $10 and Pro at $17 per employee per month; Deputy lists Core at $6.50 per user per month. HeadcountDesk Pro is $24 a month per location.
How to tell an employee they smell: common questions
Should HR or the manager raise it?
The manager, one to one; HR where the cause may be medical.
What if the cause is medical?
It may need an accommodation; the conversation shifts from a standard to a support, and the note goes in the confidential file.
Is the handbook template free?
Yes, with no account. Pro keeps the note.
Will it do what you need for How to tell an employee they smell?
Tell us what your business needs and we will tell you straight whether HeadcountDesk Pro does it today, whether it is coming, or whether you are better off with something else. A person reads these and replies.