The Weekly Briefing
A READER WRITE-IN Q & A; WITH RESPONSES FROM BRUCE DOBB
Q I just found out that my only female salesperson has been falsifying client information on her call reports to cover-up the fact that she hasn’t spent enough time on the road. Her performance hasn’t even met the goals she established for herself six months ago.
I need to terminate her employment but I heard that all that will do is buy me a “wrongful termination” lawsuit. What is that and how do I avoid it?
A Wrongful termination or discharge is a type of civil litigation that is on the rise. In the last 20 years, civil litigation has increased 125 percent, while wrongful termination suits have gone up 2,000 percent.
Employers can be assessed both compensatory and punitive damages if a jury convicts them. There are countless justifiable reasons to terminate an employee. Some of the illegal ones are: discrimination based on race, color, religion, national origin, sexual orientation, physical and mental disability or because an employee accepts public assistance.
In general, you have to be fair and honest in your employee relationships, but that’s not always enough. Lots of lawyers, consultants and management advisors counsel employers in this area.
There’s plenty of expert opinion in this field an Internet search came up with 126,631 documents on wrongful termination issues. Many of the experts recommend the following practices as a means of helping an employer prevail in a wrongful termination lawsuit:
– Keep a record of poor work performance and/or misconduct with dates and reference to performance standards set out in employee handbook or written goals.
– Consistently and uniformly enforce performance standards.
– Complete periodic written performance evaluations signed by the employee.
– Offer a reasonable opportunity with a sufficient amount of time for an employee to correct substandard performance after a warning.
– Make sure all personnel policies are current and in-step with recent changes in the law, such as the Americans with Disabilities Act.
This is by no means an exhaustive list, nor is it meant as legal advise. Short of consulting a lawyer, there are a number of excellent sources of information including the following: A May 1992 Inc. magazine article “How to Fire” by the Goldhirsh Group, a seminar conducted by the Los Angeles law firm of Arter and Hadden called “Avoiding Wrongful Termination Lawsuits,” as well as videos, books and executive training consulting firms that provide on-site training.
Got a question?
Please write to Editor, The Weekly Briefing, Los Angeles Business Journal, 5700 Wilshire Blvd., Suite 170, Los Angeles, CA 90036. Bruce Dobb is the chief credit officer for the Valley Economic Development Center’s revolving loan fund. His column appears alternate weeks.
