An employee can properly finish the agreed work and leave at the agreed time, and still receive a remark that they are no longer dedicated enough. The problem then may be an expectation that was never clearly stated.
Additional tasks, availability after working hours and taking over other people's work should not be assumed. We should discuss the scope, deadline, compensation and what will have to be moved due to the new obligation.
On the other hand, withdrawal can be a sign of dissatisfaction or loss of trust. Management should ask what has changed, instead of declaring every limit to be laziness. The employee should clearly state what they can take on and what makes their work difficult.
Such a conversation does not solve every problem, but it shows what we are really arguing about. If the company depends on people constantly giving more than agreed, the organization of the work should be reconsidered, not just their will.
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