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Perceptions Of The Characteristics Of Good, Bad And Ordinary Workers On The Job: The Influence Of Work Experience And Culture, Chong W. Kim, Andrew Sikula Sr., Harlan M. Smith Ii

Management Faculty Research

As noted in Kim & Sikula (2003; 2004), there are three types of people in the workplace: people of Necessity, Common people, and Parasites. A person of Necessity is irreplaceable, crucial to the functioning of an organization. The Common person is a worker of average ability and talent who makes no significant difference to the success of an organization. Parasites are detrimental freeloaders, harmful to the functioning of an organization.

In the 2004 paper we analyzed the survey responses of 25 students in an MBA Organizational Behavior class, and of 13 working managers, all in the United States. In this …