One person is blamed for everything
Every problem in the department traces back to one person, and the complaints keep coming even in weeks they're on leave.
Rule out first
Whether they really are underperforming. A role designed to fail. A track record of real mistakes.
What could explain it
Scapegoating: They're blamed for things they weren't involved in, the blame relieves the group, and nobody looks at the system.
Family roles (golden child, scapegoat, lost child, mascot): The team behaves like a family: someone has to carry the badness, and when this person leaves, a new one is found.
Basic assumption groups (Bion): The group is anxious and has moved into fight mode; it needs an enemy more than a solution.
Projective identification: The person has started to act out what's projected onto them (defensive, clumsy, late), which confirms the story.
Peter principle: They really are out of their depth; others' accounts agree on specifics, and problems stop when they're moved.
A next move
Look at what happens when they're absent or reassigned. Problems stop: they were the issue. Problems continue or a new target appears: the group needed a scapegoat.
If it’s you
Who carries the blame in my team, and what would we have to face without them?