Employee Retention

1. Employee Retention Dealing with Problem Behavior

2. “Hire slowly, fire quickly”

3. Performance Problems • What’s the cause of the performance problem? • skill, motivation, ability, obstacles • What’s the appropriate solution? • training • job design • rewards • transfer • termination

4. Modifying Behavior • Identify behavior you want to stop/encourage • Analyze reinforcers • Identify obstacles to desired behavior • Clarify performance expectations • Obtain agreement • Follow-up and: • Coach continuing problems • Reinforce correct behavior

5. Progressive Discipline • Investigate and document problem • Oral warning • Written warning • Suspension (or final warning) • <optional: Termination hearing> • Termination Severe infractions lead directly to termination

6. Progressive Discipline: Benefits

7. Progressive Discipline: Caveats

8. Fear of Firing • Terminations are the single largest reason for employee lawsuits. Why? • Fear of a wrongful discharge suit paralyzes some employers • Don’t employers have a right to employ who they want?

9. Employment at Will Doctrine • Employer may terminate employment for good reason, poor reason, or no reason at all • except discrimination on protected characteristics or retaliation for exercising legal rights • Employee has the same right • 60-65% of employees fall in this category

10. Employment at Will: Exceptions • Breach of contract • Collective bargaining agreements • Literal or Implied contracts • Duty of good faith/fair dealing • Public policy • Refusing to violate law • Retaliation • “Smoker’s Right Bill” (Colorado)

11. Fairness in Firing • Ultimate issue: Will your decision be judged to be fair? • To the employee affected • To coworkers • To a jury (or arbitrator)

12. Why Terminate Employees? • For Cause • What about off-the-job behavior? • Reductions in force

13. Alternatives to Termination • Transfer • Restructure • Neutralize • Encouraging employee to resign

14. Transfers • When appropriate? • Employee has valuable skills that can be applied elsewhere • Performance problems won’t affect new position • Easier in larger and “richer” firms • New supervisor should be fully appraised

15. Restructuring • Same basic guidelines as for transfers • More likely in good times and labor shortages • Employee involvement particularly important

16. Neutralizing • When you want to fire, but can’t • Restructuring work so negatives have least impact on you, coworkers or customers • Ensuring that employee “is no longer in the way of employees who are making money for the company”

17. What About Encouraging Employee to Resign? • Can be useful if employee voluntarily quits because they realize their behavior won’t be tolerated • But beware of constructive discharge

18. Firing Summary-I • What warrants termination? • Chronic Performance Problems • Absenteeism • Dishonesty • Insubordination • Substance abuse?

19. Firing Summary-II • Clarify employment at will • Disclaimers in hiring process • Check/revise policy manual • Avoid appearance of wrongful discharge • Base decision on business issues • Use progressive discipline • Be consistent