Employee Discipline
Even though Texas is listed as an “at will” state, there are methods to use instead of just firing someone. “At will” means you can hire and fire at will as long as you don not discriminate. I like using a discipline method and process. Let’s give the employee every chance to keep their job, keeping in mind that there will be times you just have to fire someone because of the facts at hand. Below is just an outline of the process i prefer to use. For more details you can google employee discipline process.
1. Verbal warning – verbal communicate to the employee what your expectations are and that they are not meeting those. This takes into count that you have already given them your expectations and a job description.
2. Written warning – if the problem did not get corrected from verbal warning then warn them again and write down the infractions and have the employee sign the letter.
3. Probation – if the problem persists then meet with the employee and state they are are on probation. Establish a period of time and state that after the period of time expires and the problems still exist then step four will happen. Usually two to four weeks is sufficient.
4. Termination- now you can fire this person knowing you gave them every opportunity to correct the issues and the ball was in their court.
The key is documenting the whole process and keep it on file. In fact you should document all firings for the file in case a question arises later on what happened. I would document resignations and firings and keep good HR files on every employee. Try the process above to see if that does not work better for you and give you peace of mind you did the best you could.
Please give me feedback on what process you use and how it worked for you. Comments on this process are welcomed!
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