Topic: Will You Fire Your Best Employee Who Is Addicted To Gambling ? (Read 290 times)

So let me get this straight.
- He’s one of my best employees.
- His gambling activities do not interfere with his job.
- He has a great relationship with his coworkers.

I can’t believe someone who is an addict can have all these qualities. But for the sake of discussion, a company that prides itself in its moral values, I don’t think letting such an asset go would be the right thing to do. I think in such cases, the person should be given a paid leave for a few months to go on rehab and come back to work on probation.

I support your opinion. When it comes to managing employees, productivity and attendance are crucial factors that directly impact the success of a business. Dealing with an employee who is consistently unproductive and frequently absent from work can be challenging but to save the business, such employee has to be removed from the job to give way to someone who can bring utility to the business.

Firing an employee for poor performance sends a clear message to other employees about the importance of meeting expectations and contributing effectively to the organization. With this standard, a new employee will put in his best to ensure that his effort is felt in the workplace.

As long as he doesn't have problems at work or it's detrimental to his job, I don't think it's a problem. And I think there are still many gamblers who still work well and are responsible in their jobs, it's just that maybe their bosses don't know it yet.
And if I am an employer and I find out that my best employee is addicted to gambling, and I try to advise him and make sure not to interfere with his work and if it interferes or harms his work I will make sure to fire him.
It's very simple in my opinion, and first of all I will try to advise him and help him get out of his gambling addiction, on the condition that he also wants to recover and I will help and support him.

As long as the employee is only gambling with his own money and not gambling at work, then I don't think a boss needs to fire him. Professionalism as a leader is when they are able to resolve a case experienced by their employee well without prioritizing their own ego as to whether they deserve to be sanctioned or fired.

Right now many of my colleagues gamble during working hours, which is clearly bad for them and also for their work. Things like this should be avoided because they are doing something that is not good for other people to see, especially if the work is a service to the community.

If my employee become so reckless in his gambling that it gets to my attention, I will not actually be impressed with that but I'm very sure I will take my decision base on the following:

• Is it affecting his discharge of duties?
• Is it making him to bring bad reputation to my company?
• Are there complaints of him breaking the law as a result of his gambling activities?

If none of the above come out positive, I don't have any reason to sack him, instead I can advice him to seek help in handling his addiction. As a gambler myself, I know what it means to be a gambling addict and I can offer such employer experience based advice which I'm sure will help a lot.

I think the best way to go about it is to assist him and tell him the consequences if he declines to undergo rehabilitation, the boss should remind him that he agreed to have the clause about having a good moral character, with the right persuasion and assistance you can help him recover from his addiction.

He did you a big favor by performing well in your company so it's not time to return the favor by helping him to recover from his addiction, he may even perform better if he is healed from addiction.

Firing seems harsh if they're otherwise a solid worker.  Have you considered talking to them first? You could share your concerns about how the gambling seems to be impacting their work and  offer help and see if they'd be open to meeting with a counselor or joining a support group.  Make it clear you want to work with them on this, not discipline them.  People struggle sometimes.  If they care about their job and agree to take steps, it may be worth giving them a chance to improve before going straight to termination.  Just an idea.

If in the contract clause, dismissal enters one of the sanctions for anyone who violates the provisions, as a leader I will dismiss that the vision of the company's top priority.

Long before the incident, Brifing as a weekly routine needs to be cultivated as a reminder so that the prohibitions that have become a requirement are obeyed in addition to aiming to evaluate performance and evaluate other important matters relating to the vision.
I think this is not merely for the progress of the company and the safety of the company, but for the safety and welfare of employees. When the dirt is already coded, everything can change slowly without realizing it.

Firstly I won't have employed him  if I had known that he is a gambling addict, but for the fact I have him in my payroll already as my employee I don't think I will go on to sack him. Importantly, if he's doing his job as expected and my company is getting the expected results then I have no issues with his private life how he chose to live it.

The only area I could have problems with his  gambling attitude is when his attitude to gambling starts interfering with working hours, company finances, and productivity from his own end of the desk. And if you notice carefully you will see that all of these things or some of these factors will eventually set in one way or the other so far as he's an addict and not just a normal gambler like every other regular responsible gambler.

Nope. In the eyes of a businessman, whatever the hell is wrong with you isn't an issue as long as it isn't an issue that shows during work hours. I'd probably talk it out with them first beforehand to find out what's wrong or if there's an issue, but I highly doubt it's something I can fix as their employer in the first place.

If it starts affecting his performance, say more absences, more lapses in decision making, or dazing around in the middle of work, then yea I'd fire him without a doubt. But even those that don't gamble sometimes do those, so it isn't really a "gambling" problem per se, simply a work performance problem.

It's pretty pointless to ask this of gamblers and you know who people who post in this section are
A gambler will never see another gambler as immoral, unless he himself is weird and it's a way of him punishing himself and all the gamblers around him.
To answer you, I wouldn't do anything as long as his behavior wouldn't impact his work. I would act like I don't know that he's gambling and watch him closely. If he starts doing it at work, or coming to work all tired because he couldn't sleep after losing a bet, I'd probably fire him.

Before taking any action there are things to be considered first which includes during employment does the company's employment latter speaks against gambling or prohibit any one caught gambling and if yes then when caught such worker gambling then I have to fire him/her because is against our company's ethics but if no, I don't mind leaving such person to work but I will never put such person's in finance department to avoid using our company's funds to gamble.
One thing I know is that whom ever that is a gambler when any money gets into their hands the next thing to think is how to double the money meaning even if it is company's fund they don't mind gambling with it since they always think smart of multiplying every funds that gets into their hands without knowing that action might leads to lost.

Personally, I don't think I would fire him if the employee performed well despite his gambling addiction. However, it cannot be denied that serious gambling addiction will result in decreased employee performance, especially if he really works only to fulfill his desire to gamble. Everyone also knows that serious addiction can damage many things, not only financially, but also attitudes, behavior and emotions.

I vote yes if the employee is a gambler who is already at the stage of severe addiction who has poor performance. Meanwhile, if he is just having fun without any impact on his work, then maybe he is worth keeping while asking him to reduce his intensity of gambling a little. But tell me, have you had cases like this in your personal life?

I don't think you would know if your employee gambles too much, surely they would not gamble during working hours and what they do outside of the work enviroment is not too much of your concern as an employer. So if we say somehow you find out that your employer has such an addiction, if this worker does not handle company funds, there is no problem with that.
It is not forum sponsors, the forum is not sponsored. It is signature campaigns and you can check the service section of the forum to understand more about it.

This is very true. You can’t entrust the progress of your financial company to a certain gambler who is having a gambling addiction. Sooner or later, he will be tempted to steal some of your company funds if he cannot sustain anymore his gambling addiction, irregardless if he is the best employee and your best asset in your company. That is why as early as now, try to call his attention and talk about his gambling habit. If he still do it consistently and even worsen his addiction, then most probably it’s better to fire him from your company for your own peace of mind.

Offtopic: Is it a coincidence that every poster in this topic as a Stake.com or similar ad banner below their name?

Or are these forum sponsors and displayed everywhere, not just in gambling-related subs?

The topic will be confusing to those who did not take the time to read through it carefully,  because if you take the time to read clear meaning to what the ops is saying will know the title without a close read can easily thinks that the thread is just about just any employee but reading further you will discouraged that the ops mentioned that a valuable staffs, and for sure if one is a valuable staffs that means he will have some level of skills which have to do with alot of control ability.

So the employee will have to take somethings into consideration  so that he will not lose best hands in his employers lists.

I believe this is a topic that can change a lot based on the country in which it occurs.
the employee (for example in some European countries) is highly protected and firing him without a clear reason is probably impossible.

Now, if this employee doesn't cause damage to the company and doesn't manage "spending money without external controls" I don't think he should be demoted or worse, fired.
Moreover, since you're talking about the BEST employer, I will evaluate very closely any action....

I voted "No" because I don't want to lose an employee who is addicted to gambling. in fact, I will try my best to support him/her to get rid of that addiction. Let's say if your own brother is addicted to gambling then will you throw him out of your house because he's an addict or you'll support him to get rid of that addiction?

Your answer will always be that you'll support him to get rid of that addiction. If you do that for your brother then you should do same for your employee. Even, if he/she is unable to give up on gambling still you should not fire that employee if he/she has a good moral character and he/she does good for your company.

I really don't see how the employees personal life would affect me, so long he doesn't use his addiction to interrupt my business operations and he shouldn't gamble during working hours. Well as a gambling addict, I don't know if it would be possible for him to really hide his addiction from everyone. Even though he trys to, it won't be for long.
And to start with, an irresponsible gambler, who turns out to be an addict, would probably not be able to meet such working standards that would make him the best in his field. He will be distracted and not really focus on his work. But for situation like this, he probably won't get a job at first..
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It may seem that an employee's personal struggles should not affect business operations, but the reality is that gambling addiction can have far-reaching consequences for workplace dynamics and individual well-being. It can have significant implications for workplace productivity, morale, and safety. If an employee's addiction leads to absenteeism or impaired performance, it can disrupt business operations and affect overall company dynamics.

People struggling with gambling addiction may attempt to hide their condition, but it's often difficult to conceal the signs of addiction over an extended period. Distraction, lack of focus, and preoccupation with gambling-related thoughts can impede job performance and hinder professional development. Some people may be able to overcome their addiction and regain stability in their personal and professional lives, but others may require ongoing support and intervention to address their gambling-related issues effectively.

Few minutes ago in one of my response to particular post, I said that I'm going to sack my worker who is addicted to gambling and just few minutes later, I'm seeing this topic now. There's a difference between an employee and the best employee and that's why I expect this topic to be difficult for a lot of people to give their opinions. When someone is employed, he automatically becomes an employee but to be considered as the best employee, the said person must work better than his/her other colleagues and that's why it'll be a very difficult decision for many employers to sack such person even after discovering that their best employee is a gambling addict.
Gambling addiction is actually one of the worst things that can happen to any individual and if for any reason I find out that my best employee is addicted to gambling, I'll first try make him see reasons why he must work on himself and get over his gambling addiction and if he decides to end his addiction, I'll provided him with every necessary support he'll need to break through from his addiction but if I find out that he's not ready to end his gambling addiction, I'll simply sack him because to me, I see hik as a threat to my establishment

We owned a small eatery just a few blocks from our home and overall, we have 3 people working there (2 cooks & 1 all-around helper).

They are all addicted to playing online slot games even during their duty but still, no work goes idle and they can maintain a smooth operation. I even play with them and I know what they're doing during work operation. I even allowed them to drink late at night as long as it wouldn't affect the next day's operation.

Being addicted to gambling doesn't mean they are being irresponsible people already. If they are a better and responsible person outside their gambling habit, that shouldn't be a reason to fire them. It's unfair to judge the book by its cover. Different story though, if I will see them showing strange behaviours.

I agree with you, actually we need a detailed statement for this case because if he has experienced a gambling addiction recently then the company leadership needs to review his performance regularly but if the condition is that he has experienced a gambling addiction but it does not interfere with work activities and there are no rules ethics are violated then there is no reason to fire him. However, I suggest never placing him in the position of financial staff or treasurer because there is the potential for unexpected things to happen because he has access to use company finances for personal needs.

I really don't see how the employees personal life would affect me, so long he doesn't use his addiction to interrupt my business operations and he shouldn't gamble during working hours. Well as a gambling addict, I don't know if it would be possible for him to really hide his addiction from everyone. Even though he trys to, it won't be for long.
And to start with, an irresponsible gambler, who turns out to be an addict, would probably not be able to meet such working standards that would make him the best in his field. He will be distracted and not really focus on his work. But for situation like this, he probably won't get a job at first..

If the employee is not in charge of finances then I can leave him since gambling is a private thing and also it will becomes a problems if he gamble at work I will fire him, but if he only gamble at his free time, he can be free to gamble but I will make sure that I put him far from the company finances since I already know how gambling addicts behave with money.

But also I will not blame anyone for taking the action to fire a worker who seems to be uncontrolly addicted to gambling if it against their working ethics.

The best employee in many scenarios will have been trained by the company hence why he is the best. They may have spent a lot of resources in equipping by training the staff to be better than when he/she was, when first employed.
It will surely be a disappointing news to the management about such a gambling habit and am sure they'll inquire if such gambling habit is brought to work, that is, done during working hours or after working hours and how much he spends to gamble.

Trying to help such an employee might be the first step by conversation and reason, because he is clearly the best and would cost much more to be replaced. If such habit puts such an employee into much debt that it is no longer a secret, it would be a worrisome news to the management obviously and could cause such an employee to either be reappointed, transferred, demoted, queried, suspended or ultimately be fired.

Gambling conclusions and the best employees, of course those are two different things, for me of course I will take some professional actions towards these employees.
Action.
* Whose money is used in gambling by the employee.
If he uses company money and steals, of course I will fire the employee, I don't care if he is good or bad.
However, if he uses his own money, I can only give him the best advice. If he continues to gamble without paying attention to my advice, of course I will take the best attitude for the company and employees.

The point is: what is certain is that I will first provide direction and advice to the employee, what is certain is that I will continue to take action for the good of both parties, if he changes it will certainly be safe for him and vice versa.

Oddly enough people who are addicted to something that is primarily a money sink, will need to still have a source of income in order to be able to afford it. They might get left behind in family affairs, friendships etc... But they'll do everything in their power to keep their job. Employers of course sometimes will take advantage of that. Instead of offering them some time off to quit and find peace, they'll keep pressuring such people and if they kick back, just fire them on the spot...

Sadly it's a reality that we keep seeing more and more frequently but I'm hoping that it'll become easier in future if more people around this issue focus on it and demand governments act to help people that are addicted in more realistic terms. Our taxes should go towards helping other people more and gambling addiction is very real. There should be infrastructure to help these people too if they want to quit. It's not always down the the individual human or company. Also worker's rights should be improved so workers can't be fired so easily if they're certifiably addicted. At least they should be entitled to more time off without pay but also not getting fired.

As long as he is doing his job during office hours, I have no problem with him. If he is only gambling outside office hours, why not? But if his gambling is already interrupting his office works, then, I might talk to him and give him options what he really want to do with his job.


I would consider such route of approaching this matter. If he is a top performing employee but has gambling addiction problem, maybe, he also needs help on this matter. If you truly care for the well-being of the employee, you will also assist them in helping themselves especially if he shows willingness to change for the betterment of himself.

In my opinion, when a company does not have any rules that prohibit people with a proven addiction and in the treatment phase or who have not yet been cured and proven that they are cured, they cannot work in the company, so they cannot fire addicted people. Also, concerns about people's private lives should not be dealt with at work. This is in the labor law approved by the governments and when the employee signs a contract with the company, the employee must read the contract and then must respect the company's rules, if the company's rules do not say anything about prohibiting people addicted to gaming. bad luck, so there's no problem with the employee playing games

Now it is necessary to make it very clear that in many companies they prohibit employees from touching phones in the company, this means that employees who are addicted to gambling should not gamble on the job, this could get them fired. Now if I were the owner of a company I would interview people and ask them if they have any addictions and if they do then I would give them time to go and get treatment with a doctor while they are complying with the treatment, they would continue receiving their salary. Even if he was the best employee, I would still temporarily release him from his job to give him space to undergo treatment, because health should always come first.

If you're pro-company then you'd let him stay because qccording to this discussion, he is your best employee and that means he's good for your company. Him being hooked with gambling is a problem of him and not to the company in the first place. What's best is to lead him the best way such as having an in depth talk with him or letting him undergo seminars that could open his eyes on the danger of gambling than to fire him. There will always be a better way to resolve a problem. If that employee matters in your company, it should be an enough reason for you to be patient with him and his behavior. He won't be a good employee in the first place if he's really a bad person. We just have our own weak spots; know his reason why he up to gambling. If it is to earn more, why not offer him a higher salary if he's that worthy of such feat.

Let's say you fired him, who benefit from such action? No one; you just lost your best employee and he lost his source of income. Help each other given how both party needs the counterpart. Gambling addiction is something that could be aided with proper procedures especially professional help therefore giving up on him should not be an option.

Its really bad that you would really be getting involved with someones life and stepping on the things that they've been doing is something that out of their privacy.Just like on what others been saying that as long my employee doesnt really give out any headaches then he would definitely stay on the company without any issues. Its his money or salary after all and you dont have the rights
on how he should gonna make use of it. Addicted or not, we do have our own choices which it isnt really just that limited to gambling itself but also in other things or aspects in life as well.

I wouldnt stop him/her but i would really be making out some advises about on the things he's been doing. Just like on others telling that
if he didnt do something that affects his work then it would really be just that fine.

If I was an employer in a company where I should take care of employees, observing not only their results and work but also their behaviors, being a friend to them would be so helpful for both sides and create a close relationship between us.
So instead of immediately firing the employee who is addicted to gambling I prefer offering support and needed resources for him to fix that addiction. Beside that, I may need to review and update company policies to better support employees facing addiction issues as long as they are serious in their work and not causing hard to others.

Ultimately the decision of firing someone at work should prioritize the well being of the employee while also considering the impact on the company. Terminating a good and valuable employee to us should be a last resort after exploring all available options for support and rehabilitation.

I assumed gambling is something of choice and is something that is personal to anyone that wants to take part in it. If the employers addiction is in no way affecting the company and flow of the business, I won’t have a problem with that otherwise I will have to fire him and get another person that would not joke with the companies goals at the expense of their love for gambling. If we are even in good times and not allowing anything happening to the companies business due to his addiction, I would advise him on his addiction and should know how to control it now, so that it doesn’t get into him too much beyond control or cause him harm in the future.

As long as he (the best employee) always maintains work ethics such as integrity, discipline, responsibility and upholds the value of honesty, I don't have a problem with any activities he carries out outside working hours. I will remind him about Professionalism and Responsibility if his addiction starts to increase, his professionalism and responsibility as an employee are very important to improve the company's integrity and reputation.

Even though he is the best employee, he must ensure that he respects the regulations and rules that apply in the workplace. As long as he is still productive or his gambling addiction does not interfere with his work, I will not immediately take action by firing him. A small warning needs to be taken to prevent unexpected things from happening which could make him become a person who forgets the code of ethics at work.

If indeed I am faced with this, then indeed we must look at other situations whether the addiction can interfere with the work they do and damage our company or not because after all it is also important.

As long as the addiction does not hinder the work they do and does not harm us as employers (companies) then indeed I think it does not matter if we still employ the addict with a note that he will not take actions that harm many people including the company where he is employed and remain professional with the work he does.

But if indeed it has a bad impact then there is indeed no reason for us to keep them addicts as workers because after all we as superiors then surely we do not want to take risks that can have a long-term impact on the company that we manage so why keep someone who will be a problem in the end.

First, point of correction, the poll,  "No" and "I will just ignore" are actually the samething, so, if you can correct that, did be fine.

Now back to the topic being discussed, if like you said, I am an employer and one of my best staffs is gambling addict, I won't fire him or her, and actually, it doesn't make sense to fire the person, what I did do is, if some how, I find out that he or she is a gambling addict, I did take it upon myself to help him or her come out from that addition, he or she is an asset to my company, and have contributed alot to the success and continual progress of my company, to give back, and as a form of appreciation for his effort over the years in my company, I will offer to help him or her come out from gambling addiction, and I will do everything within my power to bring him or her out.

The only reason I will sack such a person is, if it is discovered beyond all reasonable doubt that the employee has been stealing money from my company to fuel his or her gambling activities due to addiction, I will have no choice but to immediately sack such person, for by stealing, he or she has lost both the reward for his hard work and my respect for him or her.

Ok. A gambler doesn't necessarily have moral character issues, so in my opinion he can be a gambler and still remain on the company. The case has to be analyzed individually, though. The manager or boss have to make sure his gambling habits aren't impacting the company negatively through his performance at the job.

I will ignore his personal affairs with gambling, because as you said, he is one of my best employees, therefore I conclude he is being benefical for the business, despite being a heavy gambler. I would just talk to him and advise him regards his gambling routine in order to try helping to not let it go out of control, not only because he is a good employee, but also because he is my friend, so I feel like I have right to talk to him about it.

I would not fire my employee but rather i would really be giving out some piece of advises. Well, its their money so its their full rights on what they should gonna do but as a boss then it wont really be that bad for you to give out at least some piece of advises on which it might be that something that could change them up. I wont fire him as long there would be no violations and still that he's doing his job well.
Somewhat you would really be trying out to be careful on giving him some tasks that involves huge money on which we know that once you do become an addict then there's a tendency about having those kind of issues when it comes to potential spending of those funds on being not authorize. Somehow we cant make out those kind of conclusions but its always better to be advanced rather than on late.

If that person does not have position which is somehow related to the management of money, then I don't see why it would be a option to fire them as soon as possible in the spot. I would try to give a warning before even considering to take any further actions, to be honest.

Also, I would like to point out how unlikely this situation is from happening in the real world, usually people who are addicted to gambling or have problems with their gambling management do not perform well enough at their jobs and other places of their routine. It would take someone to be specially organized and with a powerful willpower to manage to get somich two incompatible things together and at the same time.

From your words, take noticed of one thing, that you say the best performing employee, which means he can be an addicted gamblers which is to his own benefits or bad as long as that doesn't have anything to do with a drop in the quality of his delivery capacity in the field of what he does, sometimes, we just need to admit people with the way they are because such is part of them and this has to be concerning their personal lifestyle and not under a professional ethics.

Rules are rules, I found out that an employee who assigned to work for my company broke any of my rules, there is going to be a fine, I wouldn't sack him that instant but he will definitely pay for breaking the rules. After a while, I will place him on observation mode, if in the future he didn't repeat that in the future, then there is no course for alarm but if next time he did same thing again, I will fire him without hesitation. This is not just about gambling but for taking the company or business rules for granted.


If you are talking on a gambling nature, I don't think it's nice to sack someone who do gambling, as long as you are not doing in whole at work, I think we will be cool and be on the same page but I will make sure that the unit you work doesn't involve money so you don't use the business money to gamble. However, if it's base on company rules that gambling isn't allow, I will make sure you stop or you leave the business and go else were where such Will be tolerated.

The "good moral character" rule is there to prevent theft, embezzlement, and the like, not that the company actually cares about one's character
So as long as no rules are broken, and everything is running as it should, I see no reason for firing the employee in question. There are some exceptions if my company is a talent agency. In this situation, the public perception matters for the talent in question, so yeah, I see a reason to terminate his/her contract.

Since this is a hypothetical question, we can say that as long as he performs well, we see no reason to fire him. However, in reality, a person who is addicted to gambling often displays unwanted behavior, like borrowing money from co-workers, arriving late, not having a good focus, etc., which will negatively impact his performance.

I will not fire my employee if he is an addicted gambler. I will consider his productivity and conduct during working hours. This will form the basis for judging the employee and so my decision will not be based on whether he is an addicted gambler or not. In my thinking, it is not ethical to fire an employee solely because he is addicted to gambling. Even when you know that your employee is an addict, it is proper to support your employee and help them overcome their addiction rather than terminating their employment. Addiction is a serious issue that requires understanding and assistance, and firing the employee would not address the root cause of the problem.

I understand also that most employers will be more bothered about their business growth than the feelings of their employees but then employers must approach the situation with empathy and offer resources such as counselling, support groups, or access to addiction treatment programs. By providing a supportive environment, the employer can help the employee seek help and work towards recovery while still maintaining his job.

I used to work in an organization where the best staff is an alcoholic but our boss refused to sack him because he is still highly productive. I will not fire a staff who is a gambling addict since his gambling disorder is not affecting his productivity in my organization. But I will not also ignore him because it might start affecting his performance in the future if not checked. Gambling addiction can lead him to debt or lead to family problems and these problems could lead to poor performance. He might consider stealing from the organization if he eventually falls into debt or he might become depressed if he starts having family problems. I will have to seek means to help him choose responsible gambling. If possible we could seek medical assistance to enable him to become free from gambling addiction.  

You're the one without a good moral character if you just fire a guy without giving him a chance, you have to understand that addiction is not something that just came, and you did not even consider how he worked hard so the bucks keep coming into your company.

He did his share for the company so why not do your share to your best employee but give him a chance to change or like what the others are saying give him a chance, if he's not your best employee you can fire him but since he is then give him all the chance he deserves.

I also voted no he deserves his place in the company because he earned it, if he agrees to be rehabilitated I will give him a chance to remain in the company to avoid disruption in the sales performance.

But if he remains addicted to gambling after the warning and refuses to undergo rehabilitation I will just put him in a position where there is no money involved and he can only go back to his old position if he agrees to be rehabilitated.

For being the best employee, he does need consideration. This is the kind of guy who works hard and there could be a purpose to it like he has a family to take care of. This will hurt his family if he goes home jobless the next day.

But if I have to fire him to set an example for the rest, I will give him time to look for a new job and pay for another month or two to repay his service.

It depends on what you mean by moral character. It is subjective if also include gambling to fall under moral character as owner of gambling company. Some people don't consider gambling as immoral.


If the clause includes gambling prohibition for my staff for example and like you said, a best worker is found to be violating the company's rule severally, of course he or she has to be fired. If he is left there, he will become a bad egg and corrupt other workers. Despite being the best worker which he could be using as advantage on the employer, he has to be fired.

What employers do with their best staff is to attach another worker to the best person so that he can also get same knowledge from the best hand and afterwards they are fired.

Moreover, such best work might be as a result of his work experience not only qualification, so another worker who is exposed to such number of experience can also acquire the knowledge to assume another position of best worker. So a worker who refuse to stop violating rules of a company has to be fired, nobody is indispensable


Not because those addicted to gambling has no good moral character but because he may be a bad influence on others. In an off line gambling, usually the workers are encumbered to gamble and if they are caught in the act irresponsibly, they are fired or their phones and properties are seized. This reason for this is to ensure that they don't gamble with company's money.


Nobody is indispensable. There will be other good hands if exposed to same training that the " best"" worker has gone through.

I would fire him but of course if its reasonable and here's the ff;

1. Too many absences
2. Not efficient
3. Always late
4. Having some attitude issue with his/her co-workers
 
For sure that would be a solid reason for me to fire him/her but if those things above isnt something that you could see
then there's no reason on doing so. Its his money or salary, yes we could show some concern but firing him isnt really just that ethical as an employer.
Somewhat there are bosses which are really having those perfectionist kind of approach on which if they dont like on the things that their workers been doing
then they do immediately fires them.

having a gambling addiction doesn't mean they don't have good morals. while it can be concerning that an employee of yours is a gambling addict, you don't necessarily need to fire them, if they are the best-performing employee and your company might suffer if you fire them, then you need to approach this issue in a different way that would benefit your company.

It wouldn't be wrong if the company discussed taking him to therapy. Because if you fire him, your competitor will hire him to skyrocket their sales. In your context, the employee happens to be a salesman, and they're in high demand. Everyone needs to push up their sales and make high profits. If the habit hasn't affected his productivity, there'll be no need to take him out of the company. He's a good asset to the company. I don't think the company will be making the right decision by removing the employee from the business. Moreover, if the board decides to stick to the company's deal or contract.

It's not wrong to fire him, especially when they are other competent salesmen to replace his position. Because a gambling addict can cheat on the company and sell higher than the normal price to customers, thereby reducing the credibility of the company on the market. It's either the company helps him get well or sacks him. I'd want to heal the fellow, since he's known the in and out of the company. It would be wrong to chase him out of the company, he could go and reveal lots of secrets to our competitors, on ways to bypass my business or company. The cooperate world is filled with loads of competition and managers need to be careful with how they deal with employees.

As long as he is efficient in carrying out his duties, and since he is the best. I would not fire him, because his input is very important for my company's growth.

I will only talk to him, and think of a way to help him out because he is important for the success of my business. Assuming he allows his gambling activities to affect his work, I will fire him. We cannot tell among those serious and committed employees who are gambling addict but don't allow it affect their work.

Firing someone over their own problems doesn't seat well with me, and I don't think this will be anything inline with their employment playbook on how someone can get sacked!!
If I were their supervisor or the person that can get them fired, why not help in getting the person back on track as labour turnover is expensive in terms of finding a replacement, running interviews, training the new employee etcetera , and besides a healthy employee means better productivity at work which is a win-win once the gambling addiction is brought under control.

Agreed, wrongful dismissal is a cost on the company and you don't want to make the wrong call for something that can be sorted out verbally , unless it involves company losing funds as a result of the employee...otherwise other course of action is advisable!!

This seems contradictory if I have the best employee there is no way he will become a gambling addict, because people who are addicted to gambling will definitely not focus on work let alone be the best employee, for example at my workplace there are lots of employees who don't work well and are even less productive on average. On average, they were gambling during working hours, obviously they were caught by CCTV cameras so they were fired by my boss, I think I would do the same thing if I were the boss, of course I would fire my employees who were addicted to gambling.

Even though he is the best employee for me, I will definitely fire him, of course his work will also be messy and will not be completed or will be less productive. It is rare for someone who is addicted to gambling to be the best employee, wherever they can definitely not be found, most gambling addicts don't know when. must stop gambling and when to gamble, they will continue to ignore anyone's advice even if it is someone closest to them, especially their boss, it is certain that people who are addicted to gambling will never be able to become the best employees even though they are there. I will definitely fire them too if they are caught by my eyes. .  

Eventually his addiction will affect his job performance. His supervisor will notice it. His colleagues will notice it. I will notice it. He will become a weak link in the team and cause the revenue of the organization to plummet. I don't want that. I'll tell him to take a break and within that time sign him up for therapy if that's what he needs. If not, I'll fire him.Poor performance is contagious.

Definitely not because he is proven working properly and the best among the rest even with his gambling addiction. His personal life such as gambling activity shouldn’t be your concern as employees because your main focus is his contribution to your work.

You already mention that he is the best despite his addiction which means he clearly can separate his work to his problem which is a good quality of an employee. Also I don’t consider that he is already have an addiction if he can still perform a solid performance because no one can do that in reality but in your case I will both for no.

If he is not in charge of funds, I have not problem with him. If he is in charge of funds, my mind will not be at rest. I will only make sure I do my work very well like making sure I know everything that is going on in my organization. In this era of online gambling, you can not know who is gambling and who is not gambling but just make sure you protect your company by knowing what workers are doing and making sure  that they do their job correctly.

I would make it very clear to him that what he does on weekends, is his prerogative.

I would warn him that you believe that, unless he gets help, he will not be your best employee for much longer. Because gambling, as any other addiction, is a poor way to 'recharge one's battery'.

I would be even more demanding to him, and offer him a RAISE if he showed commitment to cut down on gambling and GENIUINELY tried to replace it with something more ... socially acceptable.

Shouldn't be just a warning first? There is a law for this one which you just can't fire anyone without verbal warning first. It would be unfair to him.

I wouldn't fire him as he is the best employee and if this guy is loyal and had stayed in the company during the covid means this guy is playing an important role in the company and will likely give him and chance to do his best to quit gambling and I might even spend money for his rehab is he is up for it.

Let's say you are an employer and there is a clause in every worker's contract that they should have a good moral character to remain in your company.

Then you found out that one of your best employees who happens to be your best-performing employee is addicted to gambling and spends a lot of money on casinos.

Will you fire him because you think that those addicted to gambling do not have a good moral character and should not stay in your company?

Or you will just ignore it because you cannot afford to lose a good employee, because you worry that sales might suffer if you cut him from your company?

Please vote and let me know what you think.