You present the memorandum at the firing meeting the day you terminate the jobholder. You should have documentation showing "before and after" of the overall demographics of your small company by protected group. The proper way to lay off a worker is for behavioral problems such as poor performance, tardiness or missing work. Write this report in the objective style you learned in Chapter 6. You don't need to write down these guidelines of insubordination. Or, it can be indirect, such as failing to follow a program as set forth in your employee handbook. The wise supervisor will put the employee into escalating discipline and document directives in a clear, concise written format. o The higher the firing risk, the higher the cost (time, money and emotion) for you and the company. We know executives are different from rank-in-file workers, and they need to be treated differently during the layoff procedure. Make sure there are plans to handle sacked employees if they get violent in the dismissal meeting, if they decide to charge the executive suite or if they leave the building and decide to return.

You hear from her legal counselor you sacked her because she refused to sleep with the supervisor. This makes a solid case for the firing, and any legal adviser will have a more difficult time finding a loophole in your dismissing program. Once you have stated your reasons for separating, give the details of the lay off package. Regardless of the problem, extensive worker investigations before lay off are necessary if you hope to keep yourself free from legal troubles. Most importantly always keep your ear to the ground since employee misconduct can damage your small company.