An underling is someone low down in an organization who has to do what the people above them say. It is an insulting word — not a job title. Nobody puts 'underling' on a business card, and you would not call a colleague one to their face unless you were being unkind or joking. The insult is not really aimed at the person's rank; it is aimed at the idea that they have no mind of their own, that they simply obey. That is why it so often turns up in the phrase 'sent an underling' — the sting is that the important person could not be bothered to come themselves. Because the word is so obviously loaded, English speakers use it a lot as a joke, especially about themselves or between friends: 'I'll get my underlings on it', said by someone who has no underlings at all. Said with a smile, that is warm rather than cruel. Villains in films are also described as having underlings. The plural 'underlings' is far more common than the singular, because the word tends to describe a faceless group rather than one named person. If you want a neutral word, use 'junior staff', 'assistant', or 'someone who reports to her'.

手下、小嘍囉、下屬（貶義）。台灣可說「小嘍囉」「跑腿的」「手下」；帶有「只會聽命行事、沒地位」的輕蔑味道，開玩笑時也常用。中性說法要用 junior staff、助理。