Tweet

Help - How Do I Fire My Employee?

Guest post by: Dianne Shaddock

Article Overview: Problem employees can hurt your business bad and as a manager, one should be able to perform all possible measures to help and retain an employee. But if all else fails, here are some tips for managers in ending a working relationship with a problem employee.

Help - How Do I Fire My Employee?

Sometimes the best way to understand a situation is to learn from similar experiences. The following story is a hypothetical situation of an employer who needs to think about the best way to end a working relationship because of attendance issues.

Maybe this story can help you with your difficult employee issue.

Terry has been working for Greenleaf Landscaping for ten months. For 9 out of the 10 months, Terry has called in sick or has been a "no show" for at least one day out of the month.

Terry always has what sounds like a reasonable explanation. One month, his mother was ill and he had to take her to the E.R. Another time, he was in a car accident. The car was totaled and he couldn't make it in. In the most recent incident, he and his wife were closing on a house.

Marianne, Terry's supervisor, shared these details with human resources:

" I want an employee that I can rely on and trust; and who really wants to work here." "Terry doesn't fit the bill." "I want to end Terry's employment with the company, but I'm so nervous about it." "I don't know how to begin to approach Terry about my concerns." "How do you terminate an employee?" "Can I terminate an employee for being late for work or for being absent frequently?"

How would you respond in this situation?

You are in the best position to fire an employee if you have had clear discussions that have been documented over time.

In this case, Marianne should meet with Terry and share with him her concerns over his numerous absences. It's important to reinforce that her concerns are not new and that she has expressed her concerns about his attendance over a period of time.

Marianne can then share with Terry what the impact that his repeated absences have on the business. The manager should feel comfortable with the knowledge that she has coached Terry over time and that she has clearly communicated her concerns and gave Terry fair warning that the repeated absences could have negative consequences.

All excessive absenteeism situations are not always so cut and dry. One thing to keep in mind when dealing with excessive absenteeism situations in the workplace is whether there are documented medical reasons for the absences.

If an employee indicates that there are medical reasons for the absence, consult with a human resources expert or employment lawyer.

Just because an employee indicates that they are absent due to medical reasons doesn't mean that they can't be terminated. What it does mean is that you should work with the employee in conjunction with human resources or an employment lawyer to determine whether the condition may warrant federally mandated Family Medical Leave, (FMLA), or whether there are any accommodations that should be made for the employee under the American with Disabilities Act, (ADA) before deciding whether termination is the best direction to take.

Remember that there are some circumstances, such as an employee's serious medical condition, or when the employee may be out caring for a sick family member, where frequent absences may be covered under the Family Medical Leave Act, (FMLA). The key here is that the employee should make you aware of the situation so that you can work with them in conjunction with the law.

You should always consult with an employment attorney or the Department of Labor for your State to learn more about how to handle sick time absence cases if you don't have access to a human resources professional.

Related Articles
  LEADERS HAVE BLOOD GROUP OF FIRE POSITIVE.
  LEADERS LIVE WITH BLOOD GROUP OF ” FIRE POSITIVE.”
  Becoming An Online Entrepreneur: Keep Your Fire Burning
  Keep Your Fire Stoked
  3 critical elements of a research survey. Part 3 – Analysis.
  Car Insurance - Fire and Theft Coverage
  Managers Beware: Tips to Prevent Liability under the ADA
  Extreme Value Theory and Jeff Smith
  Quitting vs. Unemployment Claims
  Joint Ventures - Don't Sell Your Time
  Terminating an Employee
  How To Fire An Employee: The Do's and Don'ts of Terminating Employees to Keep You Out of Hot Water
  When You Really Have to Say, "You're Fired!"
  Tied Up and Gagged by China's New Labor Law
  Trimming Startups, One Inscrutable Position at a Time
  The Art of Firing
  Building Bares All - Property Insurance
  From Our Q&A “Can I deduct my Gun”
  How to avoid Employment Litigation Risks when Terminating or Firing Employees
  Business Blues - consider your risks

Article Tags: help in firing employees, help with problem employees, management tips for managers, tips for managers in firing employees, Tips in firing problem employees, tips in retention policy



Related Forum Posts
Re: Forum Upgrade - and Fire Fox for mac too
Post subject: It's Not Personal, just business - I so agree! Actually, the business world as we know it IS in trouble. I heard some stats last week that they expect by the time 2050 that 70% of workers will be freelancers. Employee/Executive Bullying won't be able to stand it when it could be easier for someone to simply contract with the nicer guy (or gal). I, for one, will be choosing the nicer ones!
2 Forums Updates - Many of you have been writing in suggesting that on my website and in my newsletter we include the link to the actual forum post and not just the name of the post and a link to the Forums home page. Well, after looking into it I'm pleased to announce that this feature is now available. Thank you everyone for the suggestions! We've also added names for members based on how much they post. Level one is Newbie, Level 2 is Intern, Level 3 is Employee and so on... There are 10 levels in total. I'm looking forward to seeing how everyone does! Keep the suggestions coming - they are great!
Re: Finding AND Keeping Good People - Employee retention or as you mention “Keeping the Good People” is one of the biggest challenges for any growing business. It takes a huge effort from the entrepreneur’s end. I can come up with the following when it comes to KEEPing the good people- 1. Motivation of the employees 2. Recognition of the needs of the employees 3. Activities to make the employees feel valuable towards the organization 4. Make benefits more accessible 5. Offer profit sharing incentives 6. Create clear career paths at the company 7. Consider telecommuting, job sharing and other flexible working arrangements 8. Incentives are essential and they don't have to be huge 9. Have other managers praise an employee's work 10. Be sensitive to the balance between work and private life
Re: Urban market promotion - [quote="myownboss":38izvbws]This could be interesting - how can we learn more about your service?[/quote:38izvbws] Depending on what your particular product or service is, there are a number of possible vehicles. At this time, I'm working on an Urban Music related tour across Canada, which would be an interesting opportunity for an entrepreneur, company or business group to align their product or service with this concept. Fire me off an email to discuss this in more detail: info@soundsupremacy.com. Cheers.


Share this article with your friends. Fund someone's dream.

Leave a comment below or share on the left and you'll help support entrepreneurs in Africa through our partnership with Kiva. Over $50,000 raised and counting - Please keep sharing! Learn more.

Newsletter

Get advice & tips from famous business
owners, new articles by entrepreneur
experts, my latest website updates, &
special sneak peaks at what's to come!

Name:
Email:

Popular Articles

2011 Global Brand Trends Letter

3 Key Factors For Raising Capital

Quick Tips on Buying a Business

Suggestions

Email us your ideas on how to make our
website more valuable! Thank you Sharon
from Toronto Salsa Lessons / Classes for
your suggestions to make the newsletter
look like the website and profile younger
entrepreneurs like Jennifer Lopez.