Discipline & Termination

How to take the sting—and legal risk—out of terminations

October 21, 2021
Is there a “best” way to fire an employee? There is no conversation more traumatic for both the employer delivering the message and the employee receiving it. That said, there are some best practices that can help for all involved.

Fired HR pro faces prison for sabotaging resume database

September 7, 2021
A fired HR director from Florida has been convicted of illegally accessing and damaging her former employer’s computer files after she deleted tens of thousands of HR records.

When you should (and shouldn’t) change the way an employee works

August 27, 2021
Asking an employee to reform more than one or two behaviors at a time can quickly overwhelm and demotivate them, no matter how calm and accepting they may seem. Here, then, is a checklist to use when deciding if employee behavior needs change.

A guide to fireable offenses

July 23, 2021
Some acts are grounds for termination regardless of industry, company or position.

Can you fire worker for being a public jerk?

June 17, 2021
When an employee’s bad behavior outside of the workplace draws negative attention on your organization online, is it legal to terminate that person?

Is our progressive discipline procedure confusing for the staff?

May 17, 2021
Q: “My company is in 36 states including California, Colorado and New York. The company has three stages of progressive discipline – Verbal/Written/Final. Managers tend to issue Performance Improvement Plans (PIP) and count it as part of the progressive discipline without designating if it is part of the (Verbal/ Written/Final Warning). My concern is that employees could [feel] angst by this practice because it is not documented in the policy as being an independent stage of progressive discipline — meaning if only a PIP document is issued to an employee, how do they know if they are facing disciplinary action, or what stage of disciplinary action? What do you suggest?” – Anonymous, Texas

4 smart things to do when hiring and firing remotely

May 14, 2021
Leaders know that bringing new people on board and handling terminations properly are two activities too important to perform haphazardly. While remote hiring and firing pose challenges, managers cannot use location as an excuse to slack.

A positive approach to discipline

January 27, 2021
Discipline is an unpleasant fact of life for managers (and employees). It’s worse if you treat it as punishment. Instead of reprimands and warnings, try this approach.

Craft an effective warning letter

January 27, 2021
Except in extremely rare circumstances, managers shouldn’t fire employees without going through a disciplinary process that documents the problem and affords the employee a chance to improve. A warning letter to the employee is usually a key element of that process.

Disciplining remotely: What are the best practices?

January 11, 2021
Q: “What is the recommendation for writing someone up when they work in the field and rarely visit the office? Is it a call then an email with the write-up?” – Quintila, California