Tips on How to separate Employees. o You gave the employee chances (frequently 2 or 3 chances are enough) and reasonable time to upgrade. The next best reviewer is the difficult worker's hiring supervisor. See Chapter 4 for evidence standards. Mostly this worker thinks she has an "in" with your employer, and your supervisor will stop this layoff as soon as he hears about it. The information shared in an exit interview can be as important as the comments you receive from your customers — even if these comments are from a sacked worker. With low-risk terminations you don't have many worries.

Now and then an immediate sacking is proper, but other times there are risks of legal repercussions. Therefore, don't be surprised that separating a jobholder like this causes heartburn. The investigation should be confidential. Tell the jobholder what he or she can expect and what they need to do to receive their severance. You can never be too careful when dimissing a jobholder and when developing an exit interview policy - your small company depends on it. You should develop a policy to document employee problems appropriately. The employee separation form can be a strong line of defense if you become involved in legal action about terminating a jobholder. To help in a legal action, you should impound the jobholder's computer.