How to Terminate an Employee the Legal Way

 Most small business owners don’t even have an employee handbook and it’s something they truly need. To set initial procedures for terminating an employee, you need to have something written in your employee handbook. A sample employee handbook can be found in our Media Gallery. Use this to help you design your own and pay attention to employee warnings. If you will only tolerate three employee warnings before termination, then list that in your handbook.

If you feel employee theft or coming to work intoxicated is enough for immediate termination, put that in your handbook as well. When giving out employee handbooks to new employees, make sure you create an employee acknowledgment page. Have the new employee sign the acknowledgment page to prove they received a copy of the handbook, have read it, and understand it. Put the acknowledgment form in the employee’s file along with your signature as a witness. Make sure you call attention to what are grounds for termination at your company so the employee understands the process.

Dealing with difficult employees is never easy but when things go awry if you don’t document the employee problem, how can you prove to the employee their repeated faults or inadequacies? Included in our Media Gallery is a great employee warning form, which includes a place for the employee to sign.

If you need to give a written warning to an employee, make sure you do the following:

• Be Specific – On the Employee Warning form, be specific. There is no need to write a novel but if the employee is repeatedly late to work or is violating a company policy, write it down and keep it to the point.
• Have a Witness – Some employees can be difficult during employee warning times so it’s best to have a witness present. The witness should be a supervisor, upper management, or a co-owner. Never use a co-worker as a witness. Explain to the witness they are just there to observe and not provide input.
• Employee’s Signature – One of the reasons it’s good to have a witness present is that often employees who receive written warnings refuse to sign the warning form. If this happens, simply write, “Employee refused to sign,” and have the witness sign and date form.
• Distribute Copies – It’s very important to give the employee a copy of the written warning whether they sign it or not. Distribute copies to the employee’s personnel file and your human resources department head. Make sure the employee understand that the warning is part of their permanent record with your company.

Please read on to Page 2 to find out how to terminate an employee legally along with tips on completing the termination process.