You’re Fired–Tip of the Week
No, I’m not pretending to be Donald Trump.
There are all kinds of ways to tell an employee that she’s fired. And doing it like The Donald does it is better than some methods of firing I’ve seen. Have you ever done it this way: deactivate the employee’s access card to the building–or disable her computer–or walk into her office or cubicle or space and ask her to follow you to HR? Don’t do that.
You may have just learned that the employee is guilty of misconduct, a serious policy violation, or some other bad thing. It’s tempting to lock her out. Shut down everything she has access to. March her down the hall in front of co-workers. You might as well use handcuffs.
There are situations when you’ll have to act quickly and do some of the things I’ve said you shouldn’t do. Imminent workplace violence. Harassment just witnessed and reported by others. Theft of company property. Reasonable suspicion that an employee is on the verge of emailing confidential information outside the company. You have to act quickly and firmly and worry about the consequences later.
Those are rare situations, however. Most of the time, you use progressive discipline. You meet with the employee and tell her what you’re going to do. You ask her to return company property. You do all of this in private. You treat your employee with respect when you’re taking from her something quite valuable–a job–even when you have every right and reason to do so. And you don’t do this just because you’re trying to prevent a lawsuit. You do this because it’s good management. You do this because it’s a fundamental part of common sense.
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About Chris Parker
Chris Parker's practice focuses on the representation and counseling of companies in matters pertaining to the workplace and the protection of their intellectual property and trade secrets. In addition to serving as an advocate for clients, Mr. Parker is also trained as a mediator and frequently serves as a third-party neutral.
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About Jimmy Daniel
Jimmy Daniel provides counseling to businesses of all sizes related to the employment relationship. He assists in the drafting of employment agreements, policies, and handbooks, as well as provides guidance related to compliance with federal, state, and local legislation such as the Fair Labor Standards Act and the Family and Medical Leave Act.
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About Larry Bridgesmith
While serving in an Of Counsel relationship with the firm, Mr. Bridgesmith also serves as the Executive Director at the Institute for Conflict Resolution at Lipscomb University and as an officer and principal in Strategic Resolutions Group, LLC. In these roles, Mr. Bridgesmith brings over 30 years of legal experience in dispute resolution and innovative workplace strategies to clients, students and business entities alike.
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Great Advice! Still too many employers get caught up in focuing on the person deserves to be fired so just get them the hell out of hear. They forget that this person despite deserving to be fired, is a human being that should be treated in a respectfull manner. Even beyond worrying about a lawsuit, do it because you don’t want that person to be angered to the point that bad things happen to you. Its called enlightened self-interest.
Thanks for weighing in, and thanks for the additional philosophical approach.