What do you do when you have a frustrating employee who is constantly late for work, has a bad attitude, has difficulty working with others and knowingly violates company policy? An employee will often not be written up until the supervisor is ready to fire them. Do you want to terminate this employee or work with them by offering opportunities for improvement? Either way, you need supporting documentation.
Documentation is not just a justification for terminating an employee. In fact, it is ultimately best to try to avoid termination if possible and address performance problems and company expectations with your employees before termination becomes an issue. Unfortunately, this doesn't always help. Sometimes we must end our working relationships, and, hopefully, our documentation clearly represents our reasoning.
WHY DOCUMENT?
Documentation can:
reaffirm your position when the facts are called into question.
provide a precise accounting of events, even when a considerable amount of time has lapsed, or when some of the pertinent parties might no longer be with the company.
demonstrate to involved parties that the company acted appropriately and within the guidelines of its fair and equitable policies.
serve as a performance evaluation of company supervisors while providing a checks and balance to insure compliance with established company policies.
open the lines of communication between supervisors and the employees under their guidance, thereby encouraging greater cooperation and performance by both parties.
Although most states are Employment-At-Will states, it is always beneficial to have clear, concise documentation of an employee's successes and problems. This not only assures that an employee is being treated fairly during counseling and termination procedures, but is a definite benefit for performance reviews and when considering promotions and raises. It can also be beneficial in problematic unemployment situations and unfair discharge lawsuits.
Employee File vs Personnel File
Each supervisor should keep an "employee file" for each person that reports to him. This is different from the personnel file that is kept with the Human Resources Department. This file should be kept in a locked cabinet in the supervisor's office for the supervisor's eyes only.
These employee files are unofficial and extremely beneficial for keeping information chronologically up to date and for relationship-building. During times of necessary counseling and performance reviews, you will have information at your fingertips and need not rely on your past memory. It is easy for us to forget information about things that happened more than a month ago, which can arbitrarily keep us from giving fair, factual reviews.
Keep your own employee files on each person that reports to you. Your file should contain the following information:
Employee Name
Date of Hire - this is an important date to most employees and an opportunity for the supervisor to acknowledge employees on anniversary dates.
Birthday - only the month and date, NOT the year. Employees love to be recognized on their birthdays.
Basic family structure - significant partner, number and ages of children, elderly parent status. This is mainly a relationship-building tool, and none of this information can be used when considering employment changes or discipline.
List what you perceive the employee's strengths and weaknesses to be and keep the list current. Document any changes, including dates, on each notation. This can assist you in supporting the strengths you see in your employees and help you offer opportunities for improvement of weaknesses in order to enhance performance.
Strive to spend at least 1 - 5 minutes each day maintaining each employee file.
Things to include:
Specific problem areas and errors.
Verbal conversations held with employee.
Acknowledgement notes of accomplishments (small & large)
Contribution of ideas.
Participation during meetings and discussions.
Ability to understand and follow up on assignments
Goal information the employee has shared with you.
Employee's ambitions and aspirations.
These notes need to be unbiased, specific, reflecting no personal opinions. Stick to the facts.
Documenting Discipline
Documentation for discipline must be specific, descriptive and consist of substantive points. These points must be made in respect to the employee's violation, expectations for corrective action and consequences. Never should your documentation represent your personal or any negative opinions, but should address the behaviors and violations alone. The employee is being disciplined for these violations, not because he or she is a bad person.
Always:
Be specific with dates, words, and actions.
Make sure your notes are unbiased and without generalities, like "she has a
bad temper," or, "he is always late." Make sure dates of violations are
included, and there is no verbiage that could be mistaken for an attack
on the employee's character.
Write clearly and legibly.
Make sure your documentation is consistent with company policy.
Describe the incident causing this action.
Describe what will happen if the employee violates the rules.
Be clear with expectations, objectives, and timetables.
Discipline and document in a timely manner while details are fresh.
Be consistent and don't make exceptions to company policy. Each
employee should be treated with equal consideration.
Discipline after you have thoroughly investigated the situation.
Discuss any disciplinary action with your Human Resources Department.
Keep disciplinary procedures private. Do not share information with other
employees or others who do not need to know.
Have another member of the management staff or a HR representative
present when disciplining an employee.
Consistent discipline with appropriate documentation improves productivity and morale in the workplace. It is necessary to insist on high standards of conduct and productivity with all of your employees. If your employees view you as fair, firm, consistent and competent, they will take pride in their own accomplishments. If not, you will lose good employees and could be plagued with constant disciplinary problems.
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