WHAT TO SAY · PERFORMANCE
How to tell an employee to stop working late and overworking
Overworking is often a sign of too much work, unclear priorities or fear. Saying "take care of yourself" is not enough; change something.
Before you start
- Look at their workload honestly.
- Check what you are modelling yourself: late emails count.
The script
- OPEN WITH
[Name], I have noticed you are often working late, and I want to talk about it.
Your messages at [late times] and the weekend work suggest you have too much on, or feel you need to.
What is driving it?
Let us take [task] off your list, and agree that [time] is the end of the day unless it is a real emergency.
I would rather have you here for years than burnt out in months.
Replace the [brackets] with real details. Say it in your own words; the structure matters more than the exact wording.
If they say…
“I like being ahead.”
I appreciate that. I still want to protect your evenings, and I want the team to see that is normal.
What to avoid
- Praising the late nights.
- Sending late-night messages yourself.
Related
- Wellbeing check-in questions
- How to tell an employee their work is not good enough
- How to tell an employee their probation is being extended
- How to tell an employee about a mistake that affected a customer
- How to talk to an employee about frequent sick days
- How to tell an employee they are going on a performance improvement plan
- All 24 scripts