Introduction
Time and again, companies are faced with the problem of incompetency and unproductiveness of an employee, with the danger of getting negative reviews from customers and a decrease in profits. This gives rise to the discussion of having to dismiss the employee or employees responsible for the mishaps, a task that many people tend to avoid due to the unpleasantness of the situation. However, contrary to belief, dismissing an employee can be both drama-free and professional when done with candor and respect. A dismissal meeting can be used to gently dismiss an incompetent employee, as shall be discussed below.
How to cope with negative emotions
In a dismissal meeting, a manager should be prepared for emotions such as anger, confusion and resentment from the employee being fired. In order to deal with these emotion rationally, the manager should stay calm and only state the facts as they are (Miller, 2014). This means stating that all board members agreed that the employee’s dismissal was best or the company. Remaining calm ensures that the manager is able to manage the situation rationally.
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Secondly, the manager should avoid comforting the employee, as this may lead them to agreeing with the frustrations of the employee (Miller, 2014). This may make the employee think that you do not agree with the decision to dismiss them, and may plead for you to reconsider your decision. The manager should, however, treat the employee as humanly as possible. This will be helpful in maintaining the embarrassment that the employee may be experiencing at the moment. It is also useful in preventing threats from being hurled by the employee to harm the business, former boss or coworkers (Bizfillings, N.d.). Since it is probable that the employee may be filled with resentment upon being fired, the manager should also ensure that the situation is controlled by limiting their words, to avoid saying things that may hurt the employee.
Lastly, the manager should be able to answer some of the questions from the employee in good faith, while taking care not to engage in a discussion as to why they were fired as this may lead to an argument (Miller, 2014). Arguments should be avoided at all times as this can result in the manager backtracking some of the points that may have earlier been said. This may put both he manager and the business at a risk of being sued by the employee under grounds of an unfair dismissal.
Step-by-Step Process for conducting a dismissal meeting
When holding a dismissal meeting, certain steps should be followed in order to ensure that the process is done professionally. The dismissal meeting should be done away from other employees, to prevent unnecessary interruptions and attention from other employees. The locations should also be a neutral ground for both parties (Bizfillings, N.d.). Once both the manager and employee are seated, the manager should state that the employee is being dismissed and provide him or her with a substantive reason as to why he or she is being dismissed. Providing a reasonable explanation allows for the employee to see where they went wrong. By stating a valid reason for dismissal of the employee, the manager reduces chances of being sued by the ex-employee
The second step is to give the employee a chance to explain themselves and how they interpret the situation (Bizfillings, N.d.). Before an employee is called in to be dismissed, investigations are usually carried out and this involves seeking the employee’s side of the story. However, it is necessary to allow them to retell their side of the story, such as if he or she feels like the dismissal was based on harassment or discrimination, or if they think that it was based on illegal conduct in the part of the manager. Such utterances provide hints as to whether the employee may opt to sue the company, and thus the manager may inform the company’s attorney in advance.
The third step is to ensure that the employee understands that the decision is final and cannot be altered, since various alternatives have been considered and other stakeholders who have been consulted have agreed that the dismissal is the only option left (Bizfillings, N.d.). This leaves the employee no room for negotiation.
The fourth step is to briefly explain the benefits that the company will temporarily cover such as life insurance benefits or health insurance, unemployment insurance, and other vested retirement benefits. Some of these benefits are stated under the federal and state laws regarding compensation for employees and is thus a legal obligation for the company. At this point, the manager is at liberty to present the employee with their last paycheck, to allow them to walk out of the company with something positive. This is also a stage to soften the employee’s heart, so that they do not leave with resentment. At this point, the employee is presented with the terms of payment for the benefits, and if benefits such as severance pay require that a waiver be signed, it should be presented to them for signing.
The manager should then explain the job reference policy in case the employee is requested to bring one to their next job. The information to be passed here includes whether the company has a policy that provides a satisfactory job reference letter to prospective employers, and whether it includes stating the employee willingly resigned from the company (Bizfillings, N.d.). The terms for giving references should also be mentioned, such as whether reference is given upon request.
The final step is to collect any company items from the employee before they leave (Bizfillings, N.d.). Company items that may be in possession of an employee includes company car and credit cards, keys and cell phones, among others. Important records for the company should also be received before the employee officially leaves the company. In such a case, the manager can inform the employee that payment benefits will be held until all documents are handed in to allow for cooperation by the employee (Bizfillings, N.d.). The manager also reminds the employee of their obligation to keep the company’s information confidential, especially regarding innovative projects and other intellectual property (Miller, 2014). This is done to ensure that the secrets of the company are kept safe, despite the fact that the employee will not be working at the company. This marks the end of the meeting, and the manager should formally end the meeting by thanking the employee for the services they may have rendered to the company during their work period.
Compensation
In terms of compensation, fictitious company XYZ may opt to provide a dismissed employee with several benefits which will include health and life insurance, unemployment insurance and severance pay (HG.org, N.d.). Severance pay will be determined by the amount of time that the employee will have worked for the company and the unemployment benefit will rely on the nature of the dismissal, since certain reasons for dismissal such as violence in the workplace and theft do not warrant this benefit, while other benefits will remain constant, that is, the amount that the employee initially received while working for the company will continue to be paid for a stipulated amount of time. The severance pay will amount to one or two weeks of pay for each year that the employee served in the company, despite the fact that the company is not legally obligated to provide it.
The severance pay will be determined by the number of years that an employee has served the company, which will be regarded as the pay per number of years of employment. This means that if the employee had worked for the company for 10 years, their amount can be given as a lump sum before they leave, or will be monthly for 10 months, depending on the agreement of the employee. In the case of monthly payments, the following chart shows the amount that will be disbursed each month:
| Date of payment | Pay per number of years of employment | Amount being paid |
| January 31, 2017 | 1 year ($3,400) | $3,400 |
| February 31, 2017 | 2 years($3,400) | $3,400 |
| March 31, 2017 | 3 years($3,400) | $3,400 |
| April 31, 2017 | 4 years ($3,400) | $3,400 |
| May 31, 2017 | 5 years ($3,400) | $3,400 |
| June 31, 2017 | 6 years($3,400) | $3,400 |
| July 31, 2017 | 7 years($3,400) | $3,400 |
| August 31, 2017 | 8 years($3,400) | $3,400 |
| September 31, 2017 | 9 years($3,400) | $3,400 |
| October 31, 2017 | 10 years ($3,400) | $3,400 |
| Total severance pay amount= ($3,400)*10= $34,000 | ||
The severance pay disbursement above is in accordance with the company’s procedure for benefits payment. It is upon the dismissed employee to sign a waiver on the type of preferred payment. If the employee opts to receive a lump sum, an amount of $34,000 will be paid on January 31, 2017. Other benefits for this employee will also be paid for a period of 10 months.
How lay-off may affect the company
When employees are laid off due to various reasons, the company will be affected in various ways. Firstly, a lay-off will result in increased turnover of the retained employees (Lowrie, N.d.). Employees will start to consider or seek job opportunities in other companies, as it may be disheartening to watch one of them leave the organization. They also begin to doubt the integrity of the company, and may even decide to resign alongside the laid-off employees. This also demotivates the employees, resulting in a decrease in the quality and quantity of work done, thereby affecting the amount of revenue earned by the company. Another effect is incurring of costs when paying for the benefits of an employee who has been laid off (Lowrie, N.d.). Despite the fact that the primary goal for a lay-off is to save costs by reducing the number of heads to be paid within the company, more money is spent in catering for the benefits such as the issuance of severance pay and life insurance benefits. In severe cases, the company will be required to employ temporary help or ask employees to work overtime in order to cover the initial amount of work that was done in a day, and this will result in an increase in their ay since the company will have to cater for overtime costs. The temporary employees may not have the skill-set for the initial employees, thus the quality of work done may be poor, and this may cause the company to incur insurmountable losses. A final effect of lay-off is the decrease in customer loyalty (Lowrie, N.d.). This is because the decrease in employees will result in slower provision of services, thus the employees may opt to seek the services of a different organization. Lay-offs are usually an indication that the company is experiencing a crisis and thus there may be a delay in output, which may also not be of the desired quality and quantity. As such, customers tend to feel alienated and may opt to leave, resulting in losses for the company.
References
Bizfillings. (N.d.). Conducting a Termination Meeting. Retrieved from https://www.bizfillings.com/toolkit/research-topics/office-hr-conducting-a-termination-meeting
HG.org. (N.d.). What Benefits are Employees Entitled to after Termination? Retrieved from https://www.hg.org/article.asp?id=31293
Lowrie, L. (N.d.). How a Layoff Affects an Organization. Chron. Retrieved from http://smallbusiness.chron.com/layoff-affects-organization-77197.html
Miller, B. (2014). What Should Happen at a Termination Meeting? HR Daily Advisor. Retrieved from http://hrdailyadvisor.blr.com/2014/08/29/what-should-happen-at-a-termination-meeting/
