HR Management & Compliance

A Termination Primer


Botched terminations can lead to both damage to a company’s reputation and potentially expensive lawsuits. Here’s how to do them right.


“You’re fired!”


Thanks to Donald Trump’s TV show, The Apprentice, that little phrase has led to quite a bit of entertainment these last few years. But unlike the world of TV, in the real-life world, it can be lead to major trouble for the firing organization if a termination is not handled correctly.


Perhaps that’s the reason that “The Donald” has stated in interviews that he seldom does terminations himself when not in front of the camera. Others, presumably expert in the process, do them for him.


You probably don’t have anyone on staff for this unpleasant duty. So perhaps it’s fortunate that employment experts have come up with several lists of suggestions to follow when it’s time for an employee and a company to involuntarily part ways. Here’s a consensus of what the experts recommend:


–First, determine if the contemplated termination is legal. Things to watch out for … terminations based on Title VII violations, such as being fired for reasons related to race, gender, age (40+), national origin, pregnancy, disability, or desire to take protected leave. Other possible legal violations: terminations for union or union-building activity, for refusal to work in unsafe conditions, and for asserting the legal right to complain or act as a “whistle blower” to government agencies under EEO, ADA, OSHA, or other law.



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Terminate within your own policies. Ask if your organization has made any written or implied contract with the employee. Have you promised “work as long as you want it,” or an “annual salary”? Does your handbook promise written warning before firing or other progressive disciplinary steps that were not observed? Has everything relevant to the termination been documented? Ask also if you are committing what lawyers call a “tort of outrage.” This is defined on the American Bar Association’s blog, abanet.org, as “high handed interrogation methods or flagrant misrepresentations … as to the reason for discharge.”


Terminate humanely. Several experts suggest these steps:


–Schedule a termination meeting early in the day and early in the week. Do not fire someone just before a weekend or a holiday.


–Have a witness present to corroborate what occurs. Company officials present often include the line manager and the HR professional.


–Have the final paycheck and information on continuing benefits at hand for the meeting.


–Tell the employee at the outset of the meeting that the termination is happening; then allow a chance to vent feelings. Listen calmly, but make it clear that the decision is final and do not engage in any negotiation or agreement to delay the inevitable.


–Allow the person a chance to say goodbye to co-workers and to gather belongings; then quietly escort the individual from the premises.



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Don’t Accept Unemployment Claims at Face Value


The law firm of Littler Mendelson, P.C., also recommends one additional step: Noting that unemployment insurance claims can unnecessarily increase tax obligations or even trigger a tax audit, they advise employers to “review the basis for all unemployment claims and determine the basis for the worker’s separation. It could be that the worker was terminated for cause under state law, or that the worker was an independent contractor whose contract terminated.”



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