Employee Dismissal Procedure – Six Ways Employers Can Prepare for Disciplinary Action or Termination

Employee Dismissal Procedure

Remaining compliant with current employment laws is crucial when dealing with the employee dismissal procedure. It’s essential that you document the employee’s behavior and actions to ensure that you will not face the challenges you may face with an unemployment insurance (UI) claim.

There are proper ways of handling disciplinary matters, and every termination situation is complicated, so it’s important that you do everything you can to make the employee dismissal procedure smoother. It all starts with making sure that these termination situations are handled in an organized and consistent way. Being organized and prepared with effective documentation can also help prevent more unemployment insurance (UI) claims from occurring.

Here are some best practices to follow when dealing with discipline or an employee dismissal procedure:

• Validate Information: Be sure that you validate the information relating to the employee’s actions. It’s crucial to find and interview whomever reported the employee’s misconduct to be sure they have the correct information and all the facts. This important information can help your company avoid facing an unwarranted UI claim.
• Know Company Policy: If it’s a disciplinary issue with an employee not following company policy, be sure everyone involved in the employee dismissal procedure understands the actual policy. If needed, review the employee handbook with the employee and give them another copy of the policy. If the employee was knowledgeable of the policy at the time of their actions, that helps your case if you end up facing an unemployment hearing. Also, make sure the employee signs off on the company policy.
• Make Sure Your Procedures are Consistent: Every business should have a progressive discipline process in place. Employees should always receive a verbal warning first, then a written warning prior to termination, etc. Although, some policy violations warrant immediate termination.  There should be a very clear understanding for what actions would be grounds for the reasons of dismissal.
• Develop a Plan: Before the meeting, decide who is going to speak and what will be said. For unionized workplaces, confirm whether an employee’s representative needs to be informed about or present for the meeting.
• Prepare Paperwork in Advance: For this process, there’s always a large amount of paperwork that must be signed. Be sure that everything is ready prior to the meeting, so that there is no time wasted and the meeting does not go long.
• Have a Witness Present: Having the conversation with the employee alone can put the company at risk for legal action. The conversation can be verified when another witness is present and always meet the employee in person if possible.

Whatever the situation, these guidelines can help protect your business from facing a UI hearing. An employee dismissal procedure can go even more smoothly when you hire a third-party agency which has the right expertise. Industrial U.I. has spent many years helping employers deal with employment issues. Our team can support you as you navigate the muddy waters of the unemployment insurance process. Contact us today for more information on our services.