Proven
employee termination procedure. Includes fool-proof termination
letters.
As a manager, you must know not only what an employee termination
letter is but also what it should include. If not done properly,
the letter can cause legal problems later. In today's society, you
must follow a proven termination procedure to avoid lawsuits. This
procedure should include your termination letter which gives plenty
of evidence to support a case for dismissal.
Your firing procedure will make the process go more smoothly for
the terminated employee, coworkers, and the company as a whole. No
one looks forward to this task. But if you think of it as a standard
company procedure to follow, you can get through it more easily.
The employee termination letter is a key document in this process.
It should be succinct and include the high points. Some items you
must include are dates of employment, the nature of employment, and
the reason for termination.
Tips for Writing An Effective Employee Termination Letter
The body of the letter should be unbiased and factual. Stay away
from any emotional opinions you may have. Keep in mind that if there
is a lawsuit, a court can use your letter as evidence against you
and the company. Use only professional language and don't write anything
that makes you, or the company look unfair.
Be sure to include the basic facts leading up to the termination.
In short, you must provide the specific reasons for firing the employee,
their problem behaviors and dates these problems occurred. One way
to do this is to review the warnings you have issued to the worker.
Mention how the incidents in these warnings affected the worker's
projects, coworkers and department. All of this should support your
case for termination.
Once you have stated your reasons for firing, give the details of
the termination package. You should list any monetary compensation
and explain any employee benefit packages the former employee should
receive.
The Final Details
Make sure the letter gives the official date of termination. Also,
have the terminated employee sign off on it. You must include a legal
statement saying that his or her signature shows acceptance of the
information. Finally, it is a good idea to have an extra witness
for the company there when you give the employee the letter. At the
close of the termination meeting, give the original copy of the employee
termination letter to the former worker while keeping a copy for
your records.
Writing this letter is not a pleasant task but it is important to
do it with proper care and attention. Write it ahead of time and
have your attorney or Human Resources Personnel review it before
you ever schedule the termination meeting. In this way, you will
lower your risk of an unfavorable outcome should the matter ever
go to court.
Remarkable
help when terminating an employee
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