You tried to help. You thought you were doing the right thing. You offered flexibility. You gave someone a second (or third) chance. And yet? Boom. You’re facing a complaint, a lawsuit threat, or a good old-fashioned employee meltdown. Welcome to HR: where sometimes, no good deed goes unpunished.
How Trying to Be Nice Can Backfire
- Being Too Flexible with Policies:
You let one employee work remotely from Mexico for a “short trip.” Now everyone wants to work from random beaches (I mean, ditto TBH), and your inbox is filling up with tax risk memos and fairness complaints. Whoops. - Forgiving Too Much:
You kept coaching and giving warnings without formal write-ups because you wanted to be supportive. Fast forward: that same employee is now claiming retaliation after being disciplined, and you have zero documentation to back you up. Oops. - Making Side Deals:
You adjusted someone’s schedule or pay to “help them out.” Seems harmless, until the rest of the team finds out and asks why policies don’t apply to everyone. Great, now you’ve got morale issues too. - Skipping Documentation to Be “Nice”:
Not documenting that awkward conversation might feel compassionate at the time. But when that employee claims they were never coached? Good luck proving otherwise.
This Is Why We Can’t Have Nice Things: HR Edition (Yep, Even When You’re Trying to Be Nice)
You tried to help. You thought you were doing the right thing. You offered flexibility. You gave someone a second (or third) chance. And yet? It blew up in your face. You’re facing a complaint, a lawsuit threat, or a good old-fashioned employee meltdown. Welcome to HR: where sometimes, no good deed goes unpunished.
How Trying to Be Nice Can Backfire
We love working with small to mid-size businesses, and one of the great things about them is that they treat their employees well. But sometimes, being too flexible with policies can bite you fast. You let one employee work remotely from Mexico for a “short trip.” Now everyone wants to work from random beaches, and your inbox is filling up with tax risk memos and fairness complaints. Whoops.
Forgiving too much is another classic misstep. You kept coaching and giving warnings without formal write-ups because you wanted to be supportive. Fast forward: that same employee is now claiming retaliation after being disciplined, and you have zero documentation to back you up. Oops.
Making side deals might seem like a harmless favor, but it’s a fast way to ruin morale. You adjusted someone’s schedule or pay to “help them out.” Seems fine until the rest of the team finds out and asks why policies don’t apply to everyone. Great, now you’ve got morale issues too.
Skipping documentation to be “nice” feels good in the moment. Not documenting that awkward conversation might feel compassionate at the time. But when that employee claims they were never coached? Good luck proving otherwise.
How to Keep Being a Decent Human Without Creating a Legal Mess:
Policy isn’t just for fun. When you break precedent, you set a new standard that can end up creating a narrative you never intended. Document exceptions and explain why they exist. Use policies as your safety net—you’ll thank yourself later. Show compassion, but set boundaries. You can care about people AND hold them accountable. In fact, that’s good leadership. Set clear expectations and timelines, even when you’re being supportive.
Our recommendation? Avoid backroom deals like the plague. Transparency isn’t optional. Loop in HR (even if you ARE HR). Otherwise, your one-off solutions could spiral fast. Always coach and document simultaneously. Coaching without documentation is like telling secrets to a diary that doesn’t exist. Write it down. Always.
And finally, if something feels weird? Call us. Seriously. If your gut says, “This feels risky,” it probably is. Phone a friend (who happens to be in HR).
The Moral of the Story? Protect Yourself, Protect the Company, and Lead with Professional Compassion.
Because in HR? No good deed goes unpunished… unless you manage it wisely.