Employee punishment punishes the employer...

Over the years, it has become clear that punishment in the workplace is generally not an effective tool for stimulating long term behavior change. 

Whether it is in the form of discipline, a reduction in pay, an unwanted work assignment, or an angry retort, punishment undermines employee engagement and reduces commitment. 

Admittedly, punishment may improve performance on the short term, but the use of punishment typically results in negative consequences with far reaching effects.

Before resorting to punishment to correct a problem in your workgroup, consider the following costs you may actually accrue for any temporary gain punishment might afford.

• Employee fear. Whether you are punishing one employee or a team, you typically create a sense of fear in the employee and his or her cohorts that the punishment, whether deserved or not, will reappear. Nothing saps efficiency and focus from employees more destructively than fear.
• Employee hostility. Typically, employee hostility is not obvious, but is instead subtle. A hostile employee may work just enough to stay under the radar, but is unwilling to provide the discretionary effort that contributes to creating a competitive advantage. The hostile employee sees the company and management in particular as an enemy to be ultimately vanquished. This employee is not focused on building the organization, but spends time and energy undermining its success instead.
• Concealment. An employee who has been punished will often resort to concealing the behavior that led to the punishment rather than correct it. Moreover, these employees may also hide process issues that impact productivity, quality or creativity as a way to avoid punishment.
• Isolation. While an organization run’s best when its members feel they are part of a unified team, employees who have been punished tend to separate from management and their coworkers. Whether it’s because of sense of shame or anger, this separation leads to a breakdown in morale and productivity and significantly increases the likelihood of interpersonal conflict that typically results in additional punishment.
• Stagnation. While organizations must evolve to remain viable, punishment tends to inhibit creativity and innovation, not just in the individual who is punished, but in coworkers as well. As a result, employees who are preoccupied with avoiding punishment give little attention to improving the organization.

While on occasion, punishment might be necessary to resolve problems in the workplace, it should be used sparingly and carefully. When it is used, the consequences of punishment should be recognized and efforts initiated to minimize the impact of those consequences.