Most people will have to work with a chronic complainer or two in their professional lives, whether it’s a dismal coworker or complaining boss. But those who veer from negative to toxic could actually be costing an organization money, and productivity.

Businesses also run the risk of complaints becoming contagious. “People see it and they’re brought down by it too, or they’re saying, ‘Gee, this is an organization that tolerates this kind of thing, I may as well start complaining, too,’” says Robert M. Galford, managing partner of the Center for Leading Organizations and coauthor of Simple Sabotage: A Modern Field Manual for Detecting and Rooting Out Everyday Behaviors That Undermine Your Workplace. So knowing how to handle complainers is especially important for those in management positions.

If you can’t avoid them altogether, there are several ways to deal with a chronic complainer. 

What is a chronic complainer?

Chronic complainers are those people who “never seem to be satisfied unless they have something to criticize or oppose,” writes Harvey Deutschendorf for Fast Company. “They’re experts at picking out the negative in any situation and won’t hesitate to point it out to you or anyone else who will listen.” 

While everyone is negative sometimes, the constant pessimism from a chronic complainer can start to affect a person’s coworkers and work. For example, if someone is constantly bringing up the drawbacks of a workplace, it can be easier for others to dwell on them and bring down morale. Or if the complaints feel personal to any coworkers they may feel bullied or be otherwise emotionally affected.

How to deal with a chronic complainer?

Here are few different methods for dealing with negative people at work:

1. Listen for the need.

The workplace often rewards those who get things done. As a result, you often react to work situations with a problem-solving mentality. You hear about a problem and want to get started on fixing it. When people complain, though, it is important to start by hearing them out. There are two reasons why this is valuable.

First, there are times when people just need to get a frustration off their chest. There may not be a problem to solve, but you can’t know that until you give people a chance to talk and to truly be heard.

Second, in the process of talking, people may also give clues about other things that are bothering them. Do they mention that they have been anxious or stressed for a while? Is there a pattern to what they complain about? 

2. Look at the context.

The motivational mechanisms in our brains govern how we take the goals we want to pursue and turn them into actions. Many of these brain regions reside deep inside the brain. They are evolutionarily old mechanisms that we share with lots of other animals. Consequently, these mechanisms are not that well connected to newer brain regions like those that give human beings self-awareness.

That means that when we try to figure out why we are feeling the way we do, we actually have to observe our own behavior and create an explanation. And sometimes, we get that explanation wrong.

Take a situation Fast Company writer Art Markman found himself in as an example: At a panel discussion at a conference for HR managers, he was asked why so many employees seem to have a sense of entitlement. If a small perk (like free lunch on Fridays) gets taken away, suddenly there are loud complaints. This manager was frustrated by these complaints and angry with her colleagues that they would come to her with seemingly petty complaints.

Now, it is quite possible that she works with a group of petty individuals who gripe at the drop of a hat. But, it is also possible that there is more going on here than just the perks. Suppose that several employees are already frustrated and anxious at work. Perhaps they have been having difficulties with their boss. Or, they might be concerned about impending layoffs. It might just be that the work environment feels less friendly than it used to. Whatever the problem is, these individuals might not be completely sure where the stress is coming from, they just know something is wrong.

When we see someone else do something, we often assume they acted as they did, because of some factor about who they are. It is natural, then, when you hear someone complain to assume that is because they are whiny or entitled. You have to overcome that natural bias and look at the situation in which the complaint occurred. Take a little time to find out more about what is going on in their work environment.

3. Let them vent.

Always begin by acknowledging the complaint and the complainer. Whether or not you think a complaint has merit, you have to start by granting the legitimacy of the complainer’s point of view. Empathy is a very powerful cure-all, but it must be displayed freely and without reservation on your part.

Some people turn into chronic complainers because they feel they’re not being heard. They repeat the negative commentary until someone validates what they have to say, says empowerment speaker and coach Erica Latrice. “Complainers may want you to try to talk them out of their woe-is-me complaining. If you are in an environment where you have to be around complainers a lot, just use the phrase, ‘If I were you, I would feel the same way,’” she suggests. That allows them to feel heard and may short-circuit the need to repeat a negative message.

As the complainer vents to you, and as you are acknowledging the complainer’s problem, keep asking if there is anything more—any further dissatisfaction that has not yet been voiced. Let them get it all out.

4. Reframe the situation.

If a complainer feels a company has wronged them in some way, then they’ll naturally be examining every new interaction for evidence to confirm this personal belief. As a result, something that might have begun as a flawed company policy of some kind, or an oversight or simple mistake, could soon be interpreted by the complainer as bad intentions on the company’s part.

Sometimes, negative people just need a bit of perspective adjustment, Galford says. Try helping them reframe the situation. You might offer a different perspective on the situation or action that is being criticized. For example, if a coworker is criticizing a company policy, you might offer insight into why the policy was instituted in the first place and the good that it does. “When you say, ‘Let’s think about this in a different way,’ or, ‘If we start first by understanding the reason things are this way,’ you can change the nature of the dialogue,” Galford says.

5. Change your response.

Complainers can be energy drains for their audiences. But often, their negative talk can energize them because it places blame on others and boosts their self-esteem, says David M. Long, assistant professor of organizational behavior at the College of William & Mary. So, like other communication styles, accepting that complaining may be an individual’s way of communicating without taking it personally can be an effective coping technique.

One thing you don’t want to do is encourage the person to pretend to be more positive. Long says:

“Research on the topic of emotional labor shows that asking people to be positive when they are not is resource-draining for them. People need to be real and authentic, so forced positivity is not the best approach. A better approach might be for the chronic complainers to offer their own solutions to problems, and come up with a plan for reaching that solution.”

6. Ask for solutions.

It is tempting to hear a complaint and to want to fix the problem. But, it is important to create a work environment in which issues can get resolved before they escalate to the point where complaints are being lobbed around.

Even after you are pretty sure what the problem is, you might not want to give your recommended solution right away. That means that you have to ask a lot of questions and lead people to generate their own solutions. Sometimes, the complainer actually has suggestions to make the situation better, Latrice says. Ask questions such as: “How would you solve this?” or “What would you do differently?” If the person is serious about change, they may have some good ideas, she says.

Asking questions will help the complainer to further understand the problem and develop their own solutions. It will take longer in the moment, but it creates a better-functioning workplace in the long run. 

7. Call them out.

If other tactics don’t work, sometimes you just need to call out the behavior, Galford says. By noting that the individual has a habit of being negative, you risk alienating them. But it’s possible they’ve gotten into a habit or don’t realize how they’re coming across, he says. By noting that the coworker tends to take a negative view, you might offer them food for thought about behavior change.

Latrice suggests highlighting your own feelings instead of being accusatory. For example, try: “I feel uncomfortable when I hear that kind of criticism,” instead of, “You’re always so negative.” Using humor can also be an effective way to defuse a confrontation.

8. Redirect the conversation.

When someone is simply a chronic complainer who doesn’t want solutions or acknowledgement, there’s still hope. The tactic that media trainers have been teaching corporate executives and politicians for decades is called the bridge. Media trainer Trish McDermott, cofounder of Panic Media Training, a firm that helps organizations have difficult conversations with the media, explains that bridging subtly changes the subject by acknowledging what was said, then moving on to another topic.

“Good bridging is, ‘Hey, I’m glad you asked that question. I don’t really have an answer, but I have some thoughts. Let me share them with you,’” she demonstrates. “It’s not a giant leap for mankind away from the negativity,” she says. “It’s a small step.” Then, continue on to discuss the new topic until you can extricate yourself from the conversation.

Of course, if you’re not getting anywhere with these tactics and the coworker is negatively affecting your workplace, you may need to enlist the help of someone higher on the organizational chart. But, Latrice says, depending on the complainer’s motivations, you may find that simply responding appropriately makes the situation better.

Don Peppers and Art Markman also contributed writing, reporting, and/or advice to this article and a previous version.