Post by Stuff on Nov 14, 2006 13:14:41 GMT -5
Making the decision to terminate an employee can sometimes be difficult. Firing people is one of the most taxing responsibilities for a manager. The importance of understanding how to discipline and ultimately terminate an employee is critical in today's maze of lawsuits and out-of-court settlements. But when should someone's employment be terminated?
Marginal employees tend to fall into one of several categories; 1) the obvious poor performer that will have virtually no chance of improving performance to an acceptable level, 2) the employee that more often than not performs below expectations, but surprises now and again with acceptable performance and 3) the employee that more often than not performs at an acceptable level, but too often slips back to unacceptable levels. In the case of the first type of employee, the obvious poor performer, the decision to terminate is a relatively easy one assuming the employee's supervisor has offered enough feedback to the employee that has directed him/her to improve performance. Before actually terminating the employee make certain that the proper disciplinary process has been followed. Has there been adequate feedback to the employee about performance? Does the employee's file contain suitable documentation indicating clearly the specific performance issues? Did the employee clearly understand the consequences of low performance levels?
In the case of the second type of employee, the usually sub-par performer that shows flashes of hope, look for circumstances in the employee's work area that might be causing problems. Is there another employee creating problems for this employee? Has the employee been trained improperly or incompletely? Are there barriers to high performance outside the control of the employee? If so, do what is necessary to help the employee. If not, begin the disciplinary process because this employee will continue to struggle. And again ask yourself if this employee could potentially be successful in another position where the company has openings.
The third type of employee needs to understand clearly that consistency in performance is required. Coaching and counseling this type of employee will generally yield positive results. But, if the employee continues to slip in terms of performance from time to time, make it clear that the consequences of not meeting expectations consistently is termination of employment. In many cases, this type of employee simple loses focus and gets lazy in his/her work habits from time to time. Work with the employee to help them understand how to remain focused. Time management training might be in order as well.
Choosing when to terminate an employee can be tricky. But let us be clear that keeping marginal performers on the payroll will cost your company money and potentially cause internal problems. If you have coached the employee by providing sound and clear feedback along with any necessary training and have given them the opportunity to elevate their performance, but the employee continues to struggle, both parties are usually better off by terminating the relationship.
Employees with bad attitudes and poor performance will rarely turn their performance around. Certain personality types simply do not respond well to coaching and disciplinary processes. Others want to do well, but are limited in their ability to do the prescribed job. Obviously if someone is working hard to improve performance they should be given a reasonable chance to do so. But there has to be a definitive point at which management says enough is enough when performance continues to be less than expected.
In short, it is imperative that managers work hard to make employees as successful as possible. Unfortunately in some cases all the hard work in the world on the part of the supervisor won't fix the problem. When an employee simply can't or won't do the job as expected, it's time to terminate the relationship with that employee.
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