askST Jobs: I keep having to pick up a colleague’s work. How should I raise it with my boss?

An employee’s role is to highlight the issue and its impact, while managing the colleague’s performance is ultimately the manager’s responsibility.

ST ILLUSTRATION: MANNY FRANCISCO

Published Oct 12, 2026, 05:00 AM

Updated Oct 12, 2026, 05:43 AM

- Workers should raise workload concerns calmly, with clear examples of extra tasks, missed deadlines and work they covered for a colleague.

- Experts say to avoid blame, scorekeeping and phrases like ‘pulling their weight’; focus on the impact on the team and ask for solutions.

- Managers should be asked to clarify duties, rebalance work or reset priorities, while performance issues remain the boss’s responsibility.

In this series, business correspondent Timothy Goh offers practical answers to candid questions on navigating workplace challenges and getting ahead in your career. Get more tips by signing up to The Straits Times’ Headstart newsletter .

How can employees raise concerns about an uneven workload without blaming a colleague?

Raising a genuine workload concern is not the same as complaining, but the difference lies in how employees present it, said Michelle Koh, managing director at executive search firm The Edge Partnership.

“Raise the issue when you are calm rather than in a moment of frustration... If you approach your manager when emotions are running high, it can easily come across as a complaint about a person rather than a genuine concern about the work,” she said.

Before speaking to their manager, employees should have specific examples ready, including the tasks they have taken over, deadlines they have stepped in to meet and instances where responsibilities have fallen back on them.

“Avoid sweeping statements such as ‘I’m always doing their work’ unless you can back them up,” said Koh.

“Keep the conversation focused on the impact on the work and the team – once it sounds like an attack on your colleague, it becomes personal and your point gets lost.”

Koh noted that it also helps to remember that employees may not know the full circumstances behind a colleague’s performance.

Their role is to highlight the issue and its impact, while managing the colleague’s performance is ultimately the manager’s responsibility.

“Above all, go into the conversation looking for a solution... Ask whether responsibilities can be clarified, workloads redistributed or priorities reset,” she said.

Tan Weixi, managing partner at Workplace Asia, said the biggest mistake employees can make when raising concerns about a colleague is framing the issue around whether the person is “pulling their weight”.

“That is a judgment, and it puts the boss in the uncomfortable position of having to referee between two employees,” he said.

Employees should also avoid keeping a running scorecard of every mistake and instead focus on patterns that genuinely affect the delivery of work, Tan said.

Where appropriate, they could speak to the colleague first, as there may be circumstances that they are unaware of.

“Don’t make your boss the judge of your colleague. Make your boss aware of the work problem – and be clear about what you need them to help resolve,” he said.

Timothy Goh is a business correspondent at The Straits Times. He covers commodities and currencies, with occasional forays into listed companies.

员工的职责是指出问题及其影响，而管理同事的绩效最终是经理的责任。

插图：曼尼·弗朗西斯科

发布于 2026 年 10 月 12 日上午 5:00

更新于2026年10月12日 上午5:43

- 员工应冷静地提出工作量方面的担忧，并清楚地举例说明额外的任务、错过的截止日期以及他们为同事完成的工作。

专家建议避免互相指责、斤斤计较以及使用“尽职尽责”之类的措辞；应该关注对团队的影响并寻求解决方案。

- 应要求经理明确职责、重新平衡工作或重新调整优先级，而绩效问题仍是老板的责任。

在本系列文章中，商业记者吴添福将就如何应对职场挑战和如何在职业生涯中取得成功等坦诚问题，提供切实可行的解答。订阅《海峡时报》的“Headstart”新闻简报，获取更多实用技巧。

员工如何在不指责同事的情况下表达对工作量不均衡的担忧？

猎头公司 The Edge Partnership 的董事总经理 Michelle Koh 表示，提出真正的工作量担忧与抱怨不同，区别在于员工如何表达。

“在冷静的时候提出问题，而不是在沮丧的时候……如果你在情绪激动的时候去找你的经理，很容易被误解为对某个人的抱怨，而不是对工作的真正关心，”她说。

在与经理交谈之前，员工应该准备好具体的例子，包括他们接手的任务、他们挺身而出完成的截止日期以及责任落到他们身上的情况。

Koh说：“除非你能拿出证据，否则不要妄下断言，比如‘我一直在做他们的工作’。”

“要让谈话重点放在对工作和团队的影响上——一旦听起来像是在攻击你的同事，那就变成了人身攻击，你的观点也就被忽略了。”

Koh指出，还要记住，员工可能并不了解同事表现背后的全部情况。

他们的职责是指出问题及其影响，而管理同事的绩效最终是经理的责任。

“最重要的是，在对话中要寻求解决方案……询问是否可以明确职责、重新分配工作量或重新调整优先级，”她说。

Workplace Asia 的管理合伙人谭维熙表示，员工在提出对同事的担忧时可能犯的最大错误是，将问题围绕着该人是否“尽职尽责”展开。

“这是一种判断，它让老板陷入了尴尬的境地，他不得不在两名员工之间进行调解，”他说。

Tan表示，员工也应该避免记录每一次错误，而应该关注真正影响工作交付的模式。

在适当情况下，他们可以先与同事沟通，因为可能存在他们不了解的情况。

“不要让你的老板来评判你的同事。要让你的老板了解工作中的问题——并清楚地说明你需要他们帮忙解决什么问题，”他说。

Timothy Goh是《海峡时报》的商业记者，主要报道大宗商品和货币，偶尔也关注上市公司。