It seems like so many employers are afraid to legally terminate an employee anymore. They fear retaliation in the form of lawsuits. I know one employer who willing compromised employee morale to avoid having to fire an employee who clearly violated several terms of his employment agreement, and repeatedly. I know another employer who tried to intimidate and demoralize undesired employees into quitting instead of rightfully terminating them. And on the other extreme I witnessed the termination of employee less sufficient grounds, documented or otherwise.

In all three cases there were negative results. The owner who feared terminating the employee encountered employee disrespect for supervisors and lost a good manager who left the company for lack of owner support. The intimidator encountered low employee morale, high tardiness and absenteeism and financial loss. That company closed down. Finally, the employer who failed to document his case for terminating the employee had to pay significant sums of money to settle a lawsuit out of court.

Still, very few bosses and owners like terminating an employee. But if it risks all the negative effects described above you can't afford to compromise the entire workforce and your business because of one individual.

In most cases, an employer can avoid termination procedures by conducting a proper job interview process at the outset. Take time to look for numerous jobs held over a short period of time on an application or resume, and the reasons for which the person left those jobs. Ask a person what they did during any significant period of time in which they were unemployed. But be careful not to violate EEOC guidelines regarding discriminatory questions. Look for the candidate's overall attitude and outlook on life in general. You want positive, upbeat personnel. Does the person demonstrate over aggressiveness? Don't mistake that for positive assertiveness. Does the candidate tend to speak negatively about others? Or does he or she tend to seek the positive side of fellow employees and employers? Does the applicant view obstacles as challenges or distractions?

A key element to protect you when having to address the possible termination of an employee is the matter of conditions of that employment. Unless a union contract determines the conditions, environment and disciplinary procedures of employment, it would be advisable to have an employee handbook that outlines the conditions of employment, job descriptions, probation, disciplinary and termination procedures. And have the employee sign a copy of that handbook for the personnel file. The absence of such a document can create difficulties for you.

Regarding probation, it is a common practice among many employers to place a new employee in a probationary period, generally of three to six months, in which the individual is evaluated for job performance, cooperation with fellow employees, supervisors and clients. It allows the employer, in justifiable conditions, to terminate the employment for specific and legitimate reasons.

Disciplinary procedures should be progressive and constructive by their intent. The primary objective is to assist an employee to improve performance and interaction with fellow employees, supervisors and customers. It should not be seen exclusively as a means to terminate an employee. On the other hand, if does serve a legitimate means to terminate the employee, if necessary.

Documentation of employee performance is essential. In the first place, all employees should be provided a performance appraisal at least once a year. How else are you to legitimately justify increases in salary for some as opposed to others, or higher increases for some than others? All actions taken toward an employee should be documented in his or her personnel file. And the employee should be given the opportunity to respond to all actions.

Finally, termination procedures should be formalized, including an exit interview in which the employee is afforded the opportunity to respond to any action taken.

All of these policies and procedures should also be applied equitably to the entire workforce. Otherwise, you risk discriminatory accusations.

It is appropriate to secure the advise of an attorney who specializes in labor law. You may be paying a legal fee for the service, but consider it a form of insurance against liability. Have the attorney or a qualified human resources consultant assist drafting employee manuals, documentation, disciplinary and termination procedures.

And on the Internet there are some interesting and informative sites I located that may be of further assistance to you:

• MyPrimeTime.com provides a host of related hyperlinks, and offers opportunity for online interaction regarding termination.
• The Employers Groupoffers a wide array of management training materials addressing rightful termination, interviewing, writing employee manuals, documentation and so much more related to human resources

You'll even find many law firms online with pages at their Web sites devoted to the issue of wrongful termination.

Do your homework. Get the training, legal and professional advise necessary to prevent problems if you need to terminate an employee. If termination becomes necessary you will be prepared to conduct the process in a manner that protects you, your company and the well-being of the workforce.

© 2000, Carroll Stephen Windhaus