Firing

Fired HR pro faces prison for sabotaging resume database

09/07/2021

A fired HR director from Florida has been convicted of illegally accessing and damaging her former employer’s computer files after she deleted tens of thousands of HR records.

Investigate before firing alleged FMLA ‘liar’

09/02/2021

Generally, employers are allowed to fire employees they believe lied about their need for FMLA leave. But there is an important proviso: The employer must act in good faith, showing it conducted an investigation into whether the employee was entitled to leave or not.

PIP: Offer chance to improve before firing

08/05/2021

Smart employers make it a standard practice to establish performance improvement plans before terminating employees who can’t do their jobs properly. PIPs can help turn around an underperforming worker. They also demonstrate your good faith to courts, assuring them that a subsequent firing was because of a performance problem, not discrimination.

Can you fire worker for being a public jerk?

06/17/2021

When an employee’s bad behavior outside of the workplace draws negative attention on your organization online, is it legal to terminate that person?

4 smart things to do when hiring and firing remotely

05/14/2021

Leaders know that bringing new people on board and handling terminations properly are two activities too important to perform haphazardly. While remote hiring and firing pose challenges, managers cannot use location as an excuse to slack.

Firing after FMLA leave: How soon is ‘too soon’ to trigger retaliation?

03/18/2021

When it comes to the FMLA, courts will always pull out their calendars to see how closely the employee’s protected activity (requesting or taking FMLA leave) coincides with the adverse action handed down by the employer (discipline, termination, etc.). The smaller the time, the bigger your risk of losing an FMLA-retaliation lawsuit.

#1 reason you can’t fire worker for going #2 on office floor

03/18/2021

You’d think it would be easy to fire a worker who defecates on the workplace floor and tells his manager he left a “present” for him. The problem: The employee is a member of a labor union.

Fired Jan. 6 protestor sues for $10 million

02/11/2021

Consult your attorney before firing an employee who may have been present at a protest where rioting occurred. There’s a risk you might be sued.

Beware firing employee during medical testing

11/19/2020

Remind supervisors: Firing an employee while she is undergoing medical testing could easily trigger a lawsuit. Reason: It’s illegal to discriminate against an employee based on suspicions she might become ill or disabled in the future. That would amount to regarding her as disabled, which violates the ADA.

Last-chance agreements protect your firing rights

10/22/2020

It makes sense to give a second chance to good employees whose performance is slipping because of personal challenges. You can protect against future lawsuits by imposing a formal last-chance agreement that says any subsequent transgression will result in termination.