Struggling with Letting Go of a Non-Performing Employee? Here's How to Handle It

Please assist me with how to terminate a non-performing employee in accordance with Management's decision.

Hi,

Before you go to this extreme step, try to talk to the employee. Maybe he has some issues or is facing difficulties in performing. You can ask him to resign instead of you terminating him. That is a better solution for both of you.

For terminating, first, you need to define his non-performance and send him a warning mail. You also need to give him a timeframe to improve and inform that if he/she doesn't improve performance in the given time, the Company might take action.

After the said period expires, you can terminate the employee, giving appropriate notice as per Company standing instructions. Do maintain complete and proper documents about the same. The warning mail can be sent to the employee to his personal ID as well just in case. You need to issue a termination letter and get the employee to sign it in front of a witness.

Regards,
Jyoti

It is better not to fire for non-performance as any letter of termination on the grounds of non-performance is a black spot in the candidate's career. It is better to discuss it with the person involved and request resignation.

With Regards,
Regards

Hi Pdesona,

Firing is not the real remedy for a non-performer; it is the worst remedy. Firing makes a worker non-adaptable, more rigid, and stubborn, and the management itself becomes responsible for ultimately spoiling the employee. Mentoring a non-performer is the best remedy to extract work from him by making him realize the pros and cons and the individual loss he can sustain as a result of his non-performance. I have always been of the opinion that until the employee is able to see the unused rod in the hands of his superiors, he would be afraid of that. Once you use that rod of firing, he becomes fearless and ready to bear even stronger actions. This has been my own practiced and winning formula during my whole active service of about 40 years. Firing should be used only as a last resort when all other methods have already failed.

PS Dhingra

Hi,

My suggestion would be to reposition the person in the company according to his capability with a 3-month notice. I have done it, and it's amazing how people evolve suddenly.

Another thing you can try is to have a heart-to-heart discussion on your expectations (don't get into the blame game, show respect), and then agree that you will help the person look for a job. Together, you can help him to continue his career, rather than cutting yourself off from the person.

So treat others the way you would like to be treated. You never know what tomorrow holds. It may be that this person reappears in your life, and this time around, you may need him.

How to Fire an Employee
Legal, Ethical Employment Termination

Assuming that you have taken steps to help an employee improve his work performance - and they are not working - it may be time to fire the employee. Use the legal, ethical steps to fire an employee.

Ensure that the company's actions, as you prepare to fire an employee, are above reproach. How you fire an employee sends a powerful message to your remaining staff - either positive or negative. So, always fire an employee as a last resort.

But, do not jeopardize your company's success to retain a non-performing employee. Fire an employee to ensure the success of your other employees and your business.

Provide Feedback so the Employee Knows He Is Failing
The steps you take when you prepare to fire an employee matter. Unless the actions of the employee require immediate dismissal from the premises, progressively more intense feedback to the employee about his work performance is in order. Make sure you are communicating with the employee by obtaining feedback from the employee that you are communicating effectively. Keep in mind that the goal of the feedback is to help the employee succeed and improve. Document the content of the feedback meetings, and the date and times.

• Provide Feedback That Has an Impact
Make your feedback have the impact it deserves by the manner and approach you use to deliver feedback. Your feedback can make a difference to people if you can avoid a defensive response.

• Provide Coaching for Improved Performance
Looking for a step-by-step coaching approach you can use to help an employee improve his work performance? This approach avoids the need for discipline and produces great results.

• Hold a Critical Conversation
Chances are good that one day you will need to hold a difficult conversation. These steps will help you hold difficult conversations when people need professional feedback.

• Impart Performance Development Planning Process
If your normal process is not assisting the employee to succeed at work, and you believe there is hope that the employee can and will improve his performance, you will need to introduce a Performance Improvement Plan.

• Performance Improvement Plan
The Performance Improvement Plan (PIP) is designed to facilitate constructive discussion between a staff member and his or her supervisor and to clarify the work performance to be improved. It is implemented, at the discretion of the supervisor, when it becomes necessary to help a staff member improve his or her performance.

This format enables you to set goals, establish measures, conduct review sessions and chart progress. No specific amount of time is required for an employee to follow a performance improvement plan. In fact, if no progress is made, you can terminate an individual's employment after several weeks.

Steps to Termination
• If you believe that the employee is unwilling or unable to improve his performance, you will want to start progressive disciplinary action. Again, documentation is critical so you have a record of the steps you took in the process. Use this Progressive Discipline Warning Form to document each step.

• Following the steps in progressive discipline should be consistent for each employee you fire unless an event out-of-the-ordinary occurs. You may also provide the employee with any number of options, starting with the performance improvement plan step.

• Ask the employee if he wants to voluntarily quit rather than participate in disciplinary action. You can agree on a timeline by when the employee will have given notice.

• You can agree that, for whatever reason, the employee is incapable of doing the job, provide a couple of weeks of severance pay, and say goodbye.

• Talk with an attorney to understand all of your options. In cases where you provide any severance pay, as an example, you will want to ask the departing employee to sign a release

Hold the Employment Termination Meeting
Eventually you will want to schedule and hold the employment termination meeting. I would not give an employee more than a few minutes notice before the meeting. You will cause the employee unnecessary worry and upset. In most cases, however, this moment is expected.

Complete the steps in the Employment Ending Checklist. Some steps, you will want to have completed before the termination meeting. Consider the termination meeting to be the employee's exit interview.

Most Important Lesson Learned in Firing an Employee
Most people wait too long to fire an employee. If an employee is misbehaving publicly, disciplinary action should start after one event. If an employee is consistently missing due dates, and you've determined the issue is not training or another identifiable factor, gather documentation, and fire the employee.
If you've introduced a company mission and vision for your workplace and managers fail to support their implementation, fire the managers. If you are developing a culture that empowers and enables employees and a manager is persistently autocratic, fire the manager. People don't change all that much; although I have witnessed transformations, I usually witness months of heartbreak and wasted effort.

Sometimes, firing an employee was the best thing that ever happened to them because it caused the employee to move on to better pastures. In most recent feedback from a former employee who had been on a five-day suspension, she thanked me. She had moved on, gotten her real estate license, and was looking forward to a great life.

Behave legally, ethically, with kindness, civility, and compassion, but do fire employees who ought to be fired.

Please Note: Every effort should be to offer you common-sense, ethical management advice, and this is not to be construed as legal advice. Employment laws and regulations vary from state to state and country to country. When in doubt, always seek legal counsel. The success of your business and your other employees depend upon it.

Dear,

There are two aspects of firing: the HR aspect which has been listed by Mr. Surendra Bhanot and the legal aspect. It should withstand the provisions of the ID Act or the Shops and Establishments Act. Ensure compliance with the legal provisions as well, or you might face litigation where the HR elements have no place, and what is tested is "whether the termination is as per the law."

With Regards,

Email: rajanassociates@eth.net
Mobile: 9025792684.

Hi there,

Terminating an employee for non-performance is absolutely okay. Non-performance on the job is a negation of the job contract itself, and tolerating a non-performing employee vitiates the performance culture/climate of the entire organization. However, the process in such cases should be transparent and data-based.

Firstly, non-performance should be discussed with the employee, and they should be put on a performance improvement plan with periodic improvement reviews by their manager and HR. If the non-performance is due to a knowledge-skill gap, then the employee should be given appropriate training.

However, if all these measures fail to bring about any improvement in the next performance review cycle, then the employee should be asked to leave. The choice of resigning should be given first. If the employee doesn't avail of this option, then their services may be terminated according to the terms of their appointment. The entire process should be humane and conform to the law.

Jai

Remedy for Employee Resignation and Legal Action

What is the remedy if an employee, who needs to be terminated, resigns after counseling, receives the notice pay, and still approaches the court for legal action through an advocate?

Regards

Dear,

This is called forced resignation, meaning that it amounts to termination. In all such cases, it is legally fought. The burden of proof is on the employee to prove his assertion.

With Regards,

Advocates & Notaries & Legal Consultants for Staffing & Recruiting Industry

E-mail: rajanassociates@eth.net

Mobile: 9025792684 - 9025792634

“Start with good people, lay out the rules, communicate with your employees, motivate them, and reward them. If you do all those things effectively, you can’t miss.”
Lee Iacocca

Relationships in personal life are similar to an employee-employer bond. The connections are glued to stay for a longer time with a mutually beneficial link. When matters worsen for unforeseen reasons, a situation arises where the bond of the relationship has to be sorted out. Both parties involved must make the breakup a smooth sail over. An employee is responsible for making the situation of firing an employer tranquil and graceful. An employee gets hired to unleash their potential in the concern.

An employee-employer bond strives to last for the long term. Unforeseen reasons can curtail the obligation for a split-off. The employer takes on the situation to make the occasion more graceful, like a split-off in marriage where both parties involved gracefully handle the separation.

Employee loyalty begins with employer loyalty. Your employees should know that if they do the job they were hired to do with a reasonable amount of competence and efficiency, you will support them.
Harvey Mackay

Points to be noted in the execution of a termination notice to an employee

The idea of termination can vary from workforce reduction to non-performance of an employee. The employer needs to summarize in detail and honesty the reasons for the split-off. In the termination order, the employer needs to mention the grounds on which the decision of termination was executed. The reasons for the split-off can be a faulty employee who committed poor performance or an act of negligence. If the employee is defaulting in performance in given tasks, the procedures of dismissal have to be graceful, and no signs of humiliation should be seen in the eyes of the terminated employee.

Terminating an employee is a stressful job for any employer. The employer is compelled to undertake the task in the interest of the concern for many reasons.

The six golden rules to adopt in firing an employee gracefully

Reasons for the split-off to be in detail in summary

A notice period for an employee on their termination order. No room for a surprise exit.

Clarity while hiring and transparency while firing is the rule book in the termination of an employee

Transparency in communications and a witness to the face-to-face talks will aid in preventing unnecessary disputes at a later date.

Legal aspects ascertained to safeguard the concern's reputations

A lawsuit by the terminated employee will puncture the concern’s goodwill in the job market.

To put an end to the gossips in the workplace

A clear-cut picture of the scenario should be showcased to colleagues. The exit plan of the employee will be transparent in the workplace to not create a panic situation among others, with clarity on what caused the termination.

A step ahead in assisting the exited employee in getting a job

Providing the necessary papers will be a gentle note of thanks for the services rendered so far. A humane approach will always be appreciated by the exiting employee who is affected by a sick note.

Any further delay in the termination of any employee found unproductive will leave a scar on the growth of a concern. Procrastination of the termination of a non-performing employee will hit the stale end of the accounts in the long run. The concern needs to be firm after taking a resolution in the termination of an employee, with no room for discussion or plea by the affected person.

Most business concerns have a policy of not recruiting any ex-employee again as they may be a spoilsport with the existing employees. We invest very heavily in the employees. We get the return, and the employee gets the return if they stay with us for a while. So, we focus on people that will commit to us for the long run.
Aneel Bhusri

https://www.bangaloresecretary.com