What would you do: Bad time to fire poor performer
November 12, 2008 by Jim GiulianoPosted in: Behavior, Communication, In this week's e-newsletter, Latest News & Views, Management, Terminations, What would you do?
Periodically, we ask three HR managers how they’d handle a difficult situation at work. Today’s problem: A poor performer should get terminated, but there may be a hidden reason for keeping him.
The scene
“Let me sum things up before we take the next step,” said HR manager Martha Ruiz. “You’ve agreed we’re going to have to let Ronnie Jenkins go for poor performance over the last year.”
“Uh, I guess so,” replied sales manager Reese Downs.
“You guess so?” Martha repeated. “That wasn’t the way you put it last Friday when you walked in here and demanded we get rid of Ronnie.”
“I know,” Reese admitted. “Ronnie really isn’t capable of doing the job, and I’ve as much as told him so, with probation and warnings. Heck, I don’t even know what possessed me to hire him in the first place.”
“So …” Martha prodded.
“You know about Ronnie’s daughter, right?” Reese asked. “The one that got sick several months ago?”
“Of course,” Martha answered. “I know it’s been rough on him, but you’ve treated him right about it.”
What will they think?
“I’ve given him all the days off he needed to be at the hospital with her,” Reese noted. “And I never say a word when he spends all that time on the phone with the doctors and his wife.”
“Let me guess,” Martha broke in. “You’re worried that everyone here will think you fired Ronnie because he’s been distracted by his daughter’s illness.”
“You hit the nail on the head,” Reese nodded. “His performance was always awful, but how can I fire him now?”
If you were Martha, how would you answer?
Gary Lane, President, Cutler, MA
What Gary would do: If he’s not doing the job, you have to let him go. As for dealing with what the other employees think, after the firing, I’d hold small meetings – with a few employees at a time – to explain what happened and why, while respecting the fired employee’s privacy as much as possible.
Reason: Chances are, the other employees know about his performance problems, so telling them that the termination was performance-related shouldn’t come as any great shock or be met with skepticism.
Carol Knabe, HR manager, LaCrosse, WI
What Carol would do: Of course, you have to follow through on the termination, but this might be a time when you want to consider a generous severance package, if possible. I’d give Ronnie the straight truth and tell him we’re using the severance package to make allowances for his family’s situation.
Reason: You want to do the right thing by the employee and the right thing by the company. If you feel OK about that, then you can live with your decision.
John Hunter, manager, Amherst, MA
What John would do: Ronnie has to be let go. In this case, though, you’d probably want to take some special steps, such as paying for out-placement services or some other assistance in finding another job.
Reason: All you can do is be as humane as possible, and hope that Ronnie understands and respects the decision. My guess is that without your saying anything, word will get around in the company about how you tried to help the employee. If you’ve dealt fairly with employees in the past, you shouldn’t have that much trouble with fallout.
Tags: performance, privacy, terminated
November 17th, 2008 at 4:48 pm
The termination is a “no-brainer”. As far as the other considerations……be VERY careful. By doing so you are muddying the waters of the original issue. Offering a severance will create problems as everyone who termiantes after that date will expect the same. The issue is performance, focus on the problem, and deal with it as per policy/procedure.
November 17th, 2008 at 5:22 pm
No one likes to terminate; it is a necessary evil in the work place. I agree with Sarah. Why prolong the evitable. Termination should be dealt with swiftly, professionally yet with compassion.
November 17th, 2008 at 5:47 pm
I agree with Michael Moore, it’s strictly a performance issue, and I would never discuss the issue with any other employee, or hold small meetings, ever. I would not set a presedent with a severance package, either. I would, however, make sure he had exhausted his FMLA if he was even eligible for it, there was no mention. If there is not FMLA considerations, the subject of his daughter would be strictly avoided during the termination process.
November 17th, 2008 at 5:56 pm
I totally agree with Michael. If you give this employee extra “perks” or an extra large severance, you better be prepared to that with the next employee you terminate. You do for one, you do for all.
November 17th, 2008 at 6:38 pm
I agree with Michael Moore…….the termination is a no brainer. Your decision should be backed up with documentation and have some examples available for discussion. If past practice includes a severance package, then follow that practice. You should NOT call the other employees in and discuss their co-worker’s termination. Granted, gossip will cover much of it, but the reason for terminating an employee is considered confidential in our facility. If his performance has been that bad for a long time, the employees will put it together on their own and may be wondering why something wasn’t done sooner.
November 17th, 2008 at 6:47 pm
WATCH OUT!
Ronnie could claim his poor performance was due to his daughter’s disability (she has been very sick for months, she has been in the hospital).
His absences would then be FMLA protected (the phrase “over the last year” was used, implying that he may warrant FMLA protection). If performance is related to attendance in a great way, he could claim that he was terminated for missing work by caring for his sick daughter.
It is easy to say “it is based on performance”, but the manager has shot themself in the foot. They hired him a long ways back, and only now are picking on his performance…now that his daughter is sick. It looks very bad.
I would sit down with Ronnie, show him what is expected of him on a day-to-day basis, ask if he can perfrom the duties as required, and let him succeed or fail based on that discussion. Planning and communication are enormous with all issues like this.
November 18th, 2008 at 8:33 am
I very much agree with Michael Moore. The termination is something that needs to be done. Regardless of the issues that have come up with the daughter his performance was never up to par. The employee even knows this by all the warnings.
Everything else to me seems to be fluff. No need to have a severance package as you are terminating for cause not downsizing. Holding meetings to me would be too much since everyone might already know that there was a performance issue.
I know that this may sound cold, leniency has gone on long enough. There would have to be some sort of closure to the entire situation.
November 18th, 2008 at 11:37 am
Previous documentation regarding Ronnie’s poor performance (warnings, probation, PIP’s, etc.) should be sufficient back-up for a termination. Was Ronnie’s performance poor BEFORE his daughter’s illness? Is Ronnie’s performance significantly worse since his daughter’s illness or about the same poor level as always?
Did Ronnie take FMLA during this time, or did he continue to work? If he was on leave, obviously some of his work would not be done. If he was at work, his pre-occupation with his daughter could account for some poor performance.
In my opinion, prior documentation of performance issues is crucial.
If the performance issues have gotten worse since his daughter’s illness, Ronnie should take FMLA to deal with his daughter’s illness. When he returns, he should be counseled re a performance improvement plan with specific time frame and expectations. If he does not meet the expectations, then terminate. Under no circumstances should there be any extras in a severance package. That sets a nasty precedent. Assistance with finding another job would be OK.
No one has suggested that there might be another position, in the same company, that might be better suited to Ronnie. That should be investigated before termination.
Under no circumstances should any meetings be held to discuss this with other employees. Talk about a breach of confidentiality. If an individual asks you about Ronnie you can simply state that all appropriate policies and procedures were followed.
November 18th, 2008 at 12:11 pm
I agree with Jonathon here. FMLA is a huge factor. If the employee is protected, but has never been offered information of that protection, it could seem that Reese is terming Ronnie based on factors that may be or could have been covered under FMLA. Martha should make sure all protections and company benefits the employee may be eligible for have been exhausted. If Ronnie could be covered, Martha would have to explain that information to Ronnie and give him a certain amount of time to comply. If he isn’t eligible, separation may be in line, so long as Reese followed through with any performance improvement plans he set forth for Ronnie.
However, if Ronnie is able to be covered by FMLA, that doesn’t disclude his obligation to perform as a business need. The business just needs to make certain they have covered all thier bases before considering separation. That way it strengthens thier arguement that the separation was performance based, not on the situation with his daughter.
November 18th, 2008 at 3:08 pm
Jonathon is absolutely correct. You have opened the door for problems by not handling more swiftly. As far as a severance package, typically most companies do not give severance for poor performance. Severance should be used when there are lay-offs or job eliminations. This is a sticky situation and you better have good notes on file to back up your claim.
January 5th, 2009 at 1:17 pm
You can’t fire him now. It would be a huge mistake. The first wrong thing that happened here is that poor performance was allowed to continue for an entire year. Huge error. Since this company has lived with this issue for over a year here is what I would suggest…Transfer Ronnie to another department or job duty, assign him a mentor, meet with him to discuss future performance goals, explain in great detail what FMLA is and how it works, and count my blessings that I work for a company that does not kick a person while he is down. You will reap the rewards of these actions over and over.
March 26th, 2009 at 9:51 am
The first question is did you document his performance? If not, you need to start immediately. If he were to pursue legal action you need proof of his lack of performance and to show that you gave him every opportunity to get on track. If there is documentation, he should be terminated based on poor performance. His family issues do not come into play nor should they. I also agree with a follow up meeting with only those employees in his department letting them know he was let go and how his work will be covered until a replacement is named.