Do you make these mistakes with your problem employee?
Letting an employee go may be fraught
with many problems and correlating legalities. Even “at will” employees
who understand that they may lose their job at any time
may have legal recourse if your reasons for firing an
employee are invalid.
Therefore, it is well to review some of the reasons
for firing an employee. Some of these include:
*Misbehavior or rudeness toward clients or customers
*Drunkenness or substance abuse on-the-job
*Theft of company property
*Frequent and unexplained absences from work
*Entering false information on records
*Gross insubordination
*Incompetence or failure to respond to training
*Fighting or other physical aggression
*Sexual harassment
*Verbal abuse
*Using company property for personal business
Document Your Reasons for Firing an Employee
In each these cases, the well-informed
employer will have clear documentation the employee
understood company
policy. Also, the employer should document evidence of
misconduct and keep it on file with a written summary
of the termination. Even when firing an “at will” employee,
the manager must exercise care in wording the reasons
for the termination. For example, the employer should
not claim “downsizing” when he or she plans
immediately to hire another employee to perform the same
job.
It is not enough merely to suspect that an employee
has violated a company policy. The employer should never
fire an employee on a whim or out of resentment. Management
should remain calm and collected during the entire process.
The reasons for firing an employee may be valid, but
handling the situation badly can cancel this.
When there are economic reasons
for firing an employee, consider several factors. The
main question an employer
will have is, “Which employee should I terminate?” This
can become a sticky situation and there are many aspects
to consider:
*Which employees have the greatest longevity of service?
*Which employee shows the greatest productivity?
*All things being equal, which employee would recover
best?
*Is voluntary retirement a possibility?
*Which employee has the best attitude toward the business?
Reasons for firing an employee are as varied as their
faces. Even when the action becomes necessary through
no fault of the employee, both the decision making process
and the act of firing are not pleasant duties. It is,
however, no time to let emotions get out of hand.
Discipline
and terminate a problem employee. Employee written
warning form.
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