trying to come up with wording

System

I am trying to shore up our discipline policies. I am sending out a reminder about the proper procedures that are outlined in the policy manual. What I am TRYING to do is to stop managers from overly relying on being "at will". They fire for performance without training, warnings,write ups etc.
I searched this site for at will postings but could find none. I know that there is someone/s that can loan me some nice wording to outline why "at will" does not protect us in cases of termination. Could swear I'd seen it before here. I've gotta come up with this quite lengthy document by the end of the day.
Thanks for any help!

Hatchetman

[font size="1" color="#FF0000"]LAST EDITED ON 09-10-03 AT 01:56PM (CST)[/font][p]I don't have any specific wording since I work in a public sector and "at will employment" is not used (terminations are for cause).

However, what you want to do is to point out that a poorly documented, or abritrary or capricious termination, even though perhaps legal under the "at will doctrine" presents the company and thus the supervisor and manager with several major problems:

1. Increases likelihood that the employee will file a discrimination or wrongful discharge case, which costs the company money to respond to (even if there were no trial), and could cost the company subsstantial dollars (hundreds of thousand even) if there is a legal suit.

2. Creates retention problems. Why discharge an emplyee under at will doctrine if corrective steps can be implmented that would remove problems? It's an attitude approach by the manager and supervisor.

3. Increases operating costs to the company. The time and effort and costs to recruit and train an emplyee is tossed out when an emplyee is fired. Thus, invoking at will simply because it is available creates new costs to recruit and train indivduals which could have been avoid, perhaps, if steps other than discharge were taken.

4. Creates morale problems. Employees are human. They make mistakes. Most employees work hard and do their best. Efforts of the supervisor or manager -- efforts for which they are being paid as supervisor and manager-- to help the employee improve and remove those problems create a more loyal employee and acknowledges that the emplyee is still valuable to the comapny and would be more so if the problems did not exist.

5. Immediate discharge under the at will doctorine should only be done when the action of the emplyee immediately render the employee unsuitable for employment with the company. Or, discharge under "at will" should be used when prior reasonable steps that have not corrected the problem and there is no likelihood that any further effort by the supervisor or manager will correct the problem.

Crout

Send an email to gillian2 requesting information. That's your best bet on such short notice. I also have some things in hard copy, which I could fax to you. Let me know.

ray a

Are managers allowed to fire without going through you? We use a progressive discipline process which allows some flexibility for seriousness of the offense. Managers are allowed to issue verbal warnings, but anything higher must go through HR. I am involved in written warnings, suspensions and terminations.

Don D

Ray has touched on my thought. If your company allows supervisors to 'fire' people without discussion and clearance through an HR professional, who is employed for the benefit and protection of the company and who is expected to temper the poor judgements made in such cases as this, then no matter how quickly you go to press this afternoon, your wording will likely not impact those supervisors, given that degree of 'power' they perceive themselves to have. I think your only quick salvation is to be able to state a policy that no employee termination or written discipline will occur without first having discussed and cleared it with yourself or whomever in HR. Sadly, otherwise you'll be relegated to the putting out of fires.

POPEYE

Could not have said it better myself!! Agree 100%

Hunter1

One thing you might incorporate is a rule that we use. Our supervisors are allowed to "suspend, pending investigation". It doesn't matter how serious the violation is, they don't get to fire on the spot. If they have a serious violation during their shift, they can get the employee out of the workplace without having to make the 'final' decision. HR gets involved at the earliest possible time, and many times, cooler heads prevail. And, you look better to an investigating agency; you took the time to investigate and cool off before making that decision. Looks good.