Navigating Workplace Insubordination: A Comprehensive Guide

By Belinda Pondayi
Last Updated 8/22/2025
Navigating Workplace Insubordination: A Comprehensive Guide

Firing a defiant employee might be the single biggest mistake you can make. For decades, the HR playbook offered a straightforward path. You document the incident, follow a progressive disciplinary process, and, if needed, terminate. But is this approach deeply flawed? Is the act of defiance not the real problem, but a symptom of a much deeper, more dangerous issue? 


The data is startling. Gartner research shows that people never report nearly 60% of all misconduct they observe in the workplace, mainly due to fear of retaliation. This means that for every insubordinate act you see, there is a huge, hidden problem of a dysfunctional culture beneath the surface. 


This article makes the case for a radical shift in perspective: treat insubordination not as an isolated behavioral issue, but as a key piece of information that points to leadership failures, cultural toxicity, and significant legal risk. By ignoring the context that triggers defiance, leaders are not punishing an employee; they often silence an early warning signal.


Understanding Insubordination in the Workplace


To effectively manage insubordination, you must first understand its true nature. It is more than an employee having a bad day; it is a form of harmful action between people at work. A foundational meta-analysis that combined 235 separate studies covering over 66,000 employees provided a key insight. Actions targeting individuals, like insubordination, are deeply connected to actions targeting the company, like theft or absenteeism. The study found a strong positive connection between the two, meaning an employee who is insubordinate is also highly likely to engage in other behaviors that harm the company. This single piece of evidence changes insubordination from a simple manager-employee problem to a major sign of wider risk.


The causes are rarely as simple as a "bad attitude." Insubordination is frequently a reaction, an "angry employee" response, to perceived mistreatment. A detailed legal analysis of U.S. federal court cases argues that an employer's own unethical, discriminatory, or hostile conduct often provokes defiance. This is a behavioral science finding, not only a legal theory. A study of 287 employees found a direct, positive link between abusive supervision and the insubordination that follows. In other words, poor leadership does not only demotivate; it actively creates defiance. Ignoring this context has severe consequences. As Deloitte warns, leaders who assume their culture is healthy are making a dangerous mistake, exposing the organization to serious legal, reputational, and financial damage.


Preventing and Addressing Insubordination


Reacting with discipline first is a failing strategy. The data shows that the system has already broken. With 68% of misconduct reports going to direct managers, and only two-thirds of them feeling prepared to handle the reports, organizations operate with a massive blind spot. A modern, evidence-based approach must focus on proactive prevention and solving problems with their context in mind.


Establishing Clear Expectations and Communication


While setting clear policies is basic, its true purpose is to create a predictable and fair environment. This is about more than defining unacceptable behavior in a handbook. It is about training managers to communicate expectations consistently, provide constructive feedback regularly, and build professional, respectful relationships. When the rules of engagement are clear and you apply them equitably, it reduces the mix of confusion and perceived unfairness where insubordination often starts.


Early Intervention and Conflict Resolution Strategies


Given that most issues first appear with direct managers, equipping them is the most critical way to intervene. Instead of waiting for an incident to escalate to HR, you must train managers to identify the early warning signs of conflict. This includes helping with difficult conversations, de-escalating tense situations, and, most importantly, looking at more than the surface behavior to understand the root cause. Is the employee's pushback due to a lack of resources, unclear direction, or a feeling of being disrespected? Early, empathetic inquiry can resolve an issue before it grows into a formal act of defiance.


Documentation and Disciplinary Procedures


This is where organizations must evolve most. The common practice of treating insubordination as a legitimate reason for termination without investigating the preceding events is a major legal risk. The legal analysis by Susan Carle suggests a more advanced framework adapted from the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB), which gives more flexibility for employees reacting to unfair conditions. Adopting a model based on the NLRB’s Atlantic Steel doctrine could completely change how HR investigates these incidents. Before taking disciplinary action, this framework asks a manager or HR leader to consider four key factors:


●  The place of the discussion: Was the outburst in a public or private setting?

●  The subject matter of the discussion: Was it related to a legitimate complaint about working conditions or perceived discrimination?

●  The nature of the employee's outburst: Was it a brief, spontaneous reaction or a sustained campaign of defiance?

●  Whether the outburst was provoked: Crucially, was the act of insubordination triggered by an employer's own unfair labor practice or discriminatory act?


Using this four-factor analysis changes documentation from a simple record of a violation to a detailed investigation of the context, which provides a much stronger defense and leads to fairer outcomes.


Involving HR and Legal Considerations


With only 14% of misconduct reports going through official channels like HR or compliance, the function is often in the dark until a situation becomes critical. HR's role should be to design the systems and training that empower managers while ensuring a clear escalation path for serious issues. HR should be involved not as a last resort, but as a strategic partner when a manager's initial attempt to help fails, when the subject matter involves protected classes or potential discrimination, or when the employee's behavior signals a broader risk to the team or organization. This ensures that complex cases receive the necessary legal and procedural review before you take any irreversible disciplinary action.


Empowering Managers to Lead with Confidence


The research is clear. Managerial behavior primarily drives insubordination. Therefore, empowering managers is a core risk management strategy, not a "soft skill" initiative.


Developing Emotional Intelligence and Conflict Resolution Skills


The study linking abusive supervision directly to insubordination is a clear call for action. Organizations must invest in developing managers' emotional intelligence. This includes training in self-awareness (understanding their own triggers), empathy (trying to understand the employee's perspective), and effective communication (providing feedback without aggression). A manager who can remain calm, listen actively, and focus on the action, not the person, is far less likely to provoke a defiant reaction.


Fostering a Positive and Inclusive Work Culture


Insubordination cases are often symptoms of what legal scholars call "second-generation" discrimination. This is less about obvious prejudice and more about hostile environments, mental shortcuts, and ways of interacting that exclude people. Managers are the main builders of their team's small-scale culture. Empowering them means training them to recognize and stop these subtle patterns, to create psychological safety where team members feel safe raising concerns, and to build a genuinely inclusive environment. This proactive culture-building is the most powerful tool for preventing the conditions that lead to employee outbursts.


Coaching and Mentoring Insubordinate Employees


When an employee acts out, the instinct is to punish. An empowered manager sees it as a coachable moment. Unless the infraction is very serious, the first step should be a private conversation aimed at understanding the "why" behind the behavior. By adopting a coaching mindset, a manager can help the employee understand the impact of their actions, identify the underlying issue that caused the behavior, and create a plan for moving forward constructively. This approach can often save a valuable employee and strengthen the manager-employee relationship.


Leading by Example and Promoting Accountability


Accountability must be for everyone. If employees see leaders or high-performers getting away with disrespectful behavior, it destroys trust and signals that the rules do not apply to everyone. Empowered managers hold themselves to the highest standards, address performance and behavioral issues consistently across their team, and are transparent in their decision-making. This creates a culture of fairness where employees are less likely to feel that defiance is their only option for being heard.


Advanced Strategies for Handling Complex Insubordination Cases


Not all insubordination is straightforward. Certain complex situations require a more advanced, strategic approach that balances accountability with organizational risk.


Dealing with Persistent or Escalating Insubordination


When insubordination is not an isolated incident but a pattern of behavior, it is a major red flag. The meta-analysis that connected harmful actions between people to harmful actions against the company tells us that a persistently insubordinate employee may be engaging in other destructive behaviors. In these cases, a progressive disciplinary process is appropriate, but you must document it with great care using a context-aware framework. You should investigate each incident not in isolation, but as part of the ongoing pattern. The focus must be on the cumulative impact on the team, the business, and the culture, building a strong, defensible case for more severe action, including termination, if the behavior does not change.


Navigating Insubordination from High-Performing Employees


This is one of the most challenging scenarios for any leader. A star performer who is also defiant or disrespectful creates a toxic dilemma. You may be tempted to look the other way to protect their output. However, the research on abusive supervision offers a very relevant insight. The link between abusive supervision and insubordination is stronger when the supervisor is a high performer. This suggests employees have a lower tolerance for mistreatment from a leader they know is capable of better. Tolerating insubordination from a high-performer sends a damaging message to the rest of the team. That results matter more than respect. It creates a protected class of employee, creates resentment, and weakens the psychological safety of the entire team. Your strategy here must be firm and consistent. Address the behavior through coaching and direct feedback, making it clear that performance and conduct are two separate and equally important measures of success.


Mitigating the Impact of Insubordination on the Broader Team


An act of public insubordination can harm a team's culture, but so can how you handle the response. If the team sees the disciplinary action as unfair, retaliatory, or inconsistent, it can damage morale and trust far more than the original incident. After you address the situation with the employee, you must thoughtfully manage the team dynamic. This does not mean sharing confidential details, but it may involve reaffirming team norms, clarifying roles and expectations, and holding a team session focused on communication and respect. Your goal is to restore a sense of stability and psychological safety, showing that the organization is committed to a fair process and a healthy culture.


The common thinking on insubordination fails our organizations. By treating defiance as a simple disciplinary matter, we ignore the critical information it contains. An act of insubordination is a test of our culture's strength, a measure of our leadership quality, and a measure of psychological safety. When we shift our focus from punishing the outburst to understanding what provoked it, we turn a moment of conflict into a chance for major organizational improvement. This evidence-based, context-aware approach is not a better way to manage people; it is a stronger and more legally defensible way to run a business.


Frequently Asked Questions


How do you handle an insubordinate employee? 

The most effective approach is to first investigate the context privately. Try to understand the "why" behind the behavior. Was it a reaction to a perceived injustice or abusive supervision? Use a structured guide, like the NLRB's four factors (place, subject, nature, and provocation), to direct your investigation before you use a standard disciplinary process.


How serious is a write-up at work? 

A formal write-up is a significant step in the disciplinary process and creates a legal record. However, its strength depends on the quality of the investigation before it. A write-up issued as a quick reaction to an employee's outburst, without considering the provoking context, can be a major risk in a later discrimination or retaliation claim.


How to deal with staff who undermine you? 

Undermining behavior is a form of insubordination and harmful action between coworkers. Address it directly and privately, using specific examples of the behavior. Center the conversation on the impact of their actions on the team and the project, not as a personal attack. This behavior often comes from insecurity or a lack of clear roles, which you can address through coaching.


What to do if your boss accuses you of insubordination? 

If you believe someone has wrongly accused you, especially if your action was a response to mistreatment or an unethical request, it is critical to remain professional. Request a private meeting to discuss the situation. Calmly explain your perspective and the context of your actions. Document the conversation, the events that came before it, and your concerns in writing for your own records. If the situation involves discrimination or harassment, it may be necessary to report it to HR.


Can you be fired for insubordination? 

Yes, insubordination is a valid reason for termination in most places. However, an employee can challenge the legality of that termination. If an employee can show that the employer's own discriminatory or illegal actions provoked their insubordination, the firing could be considered retaliatory and unlawful.


How to prevent insubordination in the workplace? 

Prevention is about culture, not control. The most effective strategies include training managers in emotional intelligence and conflict resolution, creating a culture of psychological safety where employees feel safe to speak up without fear, ensuring leaders model respectful behavior, and addressing toxic or abusive behaviors from leaders at all levels, no matter their performance.


What are the signs of an insubordinate employee? 

Early signs can be subtle. They include consistently challenging or ignoring feedback, passive-aggressive behavior, missing deadlines for tasks they disagree with, and speaking disrespectfully about management to other team members. Viewing these signs not as attitude problems but as potential symptoms of deeper issues allows for you to step in early.


How do you discipline an insubordinate employee? 

Discipline should be proportional, consistent, and, most importantly, aware of the context. Avoid rigid, zero-tolerance policies. The process should always begin with a fair and thorough investigation into the circumstances of the incident. Any disciplinary action, from a verbal warning to termination, must be supported by documentation that shows a complete view of the entire situation, not only the employee's final reaction.

Belinda Pondayi

Belinda Pondayi is a seasoned Software Developer with a BSc Honors Degree in Computer Science and a Microsoft 365 Certified: Endpoint Administrator Associate certification. She has experience as a Database Engineer, Website Developer, Mobile App Developer, and Software Developer, having developed over 20 WordPress websites. Belinda is committed to excellence and meticulous in her work. She embraces challenges with a problem-solving mindset and thinks creatively to overcome obstacles. Passionate about continuous improvement, she regularly seeks feedback and stays updated with emerging technologies like AI. Additionally, she writes content for the Human Capital Hub blog.

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