The economy is in fine fettle once again. For those with the right qualifications (and we are not talking about academic degrees here), job offers are sprouting up all over the place. For people who have had to live with their lot these past few years, it?s time to rethink options.

In many professions where you work with your brains rather than your hands, things had turned quite grim. When frustration levels increase, you tend to take it out on co-workers. Discipline suffers. ?You end up working in a zoo,? says Mumbai-based HR consultant Shashi Rao.

Some animals are friendly (though problematic) types. Margaret Morris writing in FabJobs.com, categorises them as:

Sammy the Seal. He gets to work early and lets everyone know it by talking at the top of his lungs, telling corny jokes and laughing loudly. He will do anything for attention ? except work.

Cathy the Cat. She heads right for the lunchroom, where she inspects the sink to see if anyone has left any dirty dishes there or used up her dishwashing liquid or... When she finally gets to her desk, she complains about all the infractions she?s noted.

Joe the Jackass. He gets right on the phone and starts making personal calls.

Polly the Parrot. She starts her day by relating everything that happened at her house the evening before ? what her husband said, what her son said, what the dog did.

Mr Ed the workhorse. He is the only one actually focused on the job. He comes in early and leaves late. As a reward, he gets a triple workload dumped on him.

?The rest of us, assorted bears and walruses and hippos keep bumbling along, waiting for the keepers to arrive and toss us a paycheck,? concludes Morris. Morris sees the world through rose-tinted glasses. ?If only it were that simple,? says Rao. She attempts a categorisation. Among the inmates of her workplace zoo are:

Porcupine Pande: He goes around spreading malicious rumours. He is likely to leave one of his quills behind ? deep inside you.

Undermining Arundhati: The company?s collapsing, she tells everybody. We?ll be on the streets. There?s no question of morale with her around.

Destroying Dasmunshi: Looks harmless. But he?s the sort of guy who will smuggle a virus into the office network. If he can do any damage without getting caught, he?ll jump at the chance.

Bullying Bhakti: She has some nebulous links to the top brass. She?ll hound you even if you jump to her orders.

NO MORE MONKEYING AROUND

Signs that you should look for a new job Your co-workers drive you bananas: Obnoxious people can invade your work life. Your workplace is a zoo: A bad work environment has a whole lot of lurking menaces. All you do is monkey around all day: One can only play so many games of Donkey Kong online. You're treated like a second banana: Your ideas aren't taken seriously; there areno opportunities for advancement. Your co-workers act like animals: They live for themselves and only themselves. Source: Kate Lorenz, CareerBuilder.com

?If you find even one of these people in your organisation, you better start looking for another job,? says Rao. If you find one, you will soon find many, she explains. Like psychopaths, if there is one in an organisation, others with latent tendencies will creep out of the woodwork.

Don?t think such specimens don?t exist in the corporate world. According to CSO magazine, a resource for security executives: ?It?s actually quite common for psychopaths to become CEOs. So much so that a company in the UK now specialises in employee testing to try to identify and retrain those exhibiting psychopathic tendencies before it?s too late.?

Don?t expect the management to always help out in ridding your workplace of the terrible types. When times are bad, the one excuse you will often hear is ?He?s a loyalist. We have to put up with some idiosyncrasies?.

The only solution ? which is feasible now ? is to go yourself. Remember that, like psychopaths, saboteurs and bullies encourage people to become like themselves. Go before it is too late for you too.