Employee Dismissal - Perceptions of Organizational Downsizing - Research Paper Example

Dismissal Meeting Dismissal Meeting Introduction Employee dismissal is the process through which a firm terminates and individual’s employment against his or her will. Termination or dismissal results “for cause” such as poor job performance, lack of “fit” with the firm. In addition, inability to perform job responsibilities, conflict with top management and/or colleagues as well as misconduct. On the other hand, various circumstance of employee termination are beyond the employee control such as downsizing, relocation, restructuring as well as acquisition (reduction in force). Employees termination or dismissal is inevitability despite how strong the firms’ recruiting, performance management, management practices as well as hiring effectively be. Dismissal of the employees results from behavioral misconduct such as theft, violation of standards of conduct and/ or policies, changes in business such as lack of work, new markets and contract ending as well as performance issues. It is importance to note that, before settling down to conduct a dismissal meeting, a firm should first consult with a counsel from an employment attorney to ascertain non-exposure to litigation. As noted by Martin Yate’s “Keeping the Best”, a firm that fails to strip-off chronic poor performers, is viewed by the best performers employees as having condoned lackluster performance and/or it fails to recognize the difference as the best performers will always long for associating themselves to the best (Yate, 1991, p. 65). It is therefore key for both small and large firms to dismiss employees when it is called for. This is because small business may not afford to retain unproductive employees since poor performance negatively affect the Company’s outcomes through demotivating best performers. However, firing of employee calls for proper handling of the dismissal process to curb the looming pitfalls such as reduction in morale and productivity with respect to retained employees. In addition, the image of the Company and recruitment of new staff are embedded on how dismissal process is handled. As noted by Richard S. Deems in his book ‘How to Fire Your Friends’, “Do it the right way, and there’s no lasting negative effect on the company or the person who is existing. Do it the wrong way, and the fired employee may have a very difficult time finding a new job and you and your company may end up in court (Deems, 1989, p. 16).” Ways that a Manager Can Cope With Any Negative Emotions That May Accompany an Employee Layoff Calm, Realistic and Positive Attitude from Management The manager needs to set the tone as how the work group will react to the challenge or stress arising from the unwelcome change. The manager should realize that he is both the pilot and flight attendant for the staff. Therefore the manager’s attitude and behavior are key elements in gearing the team successfully through a particular transition (Clair, Dufresne, Jackson & Ladge, 2006, p. 78). Showcasing positive attitude by managers does not mean his denial during the daunting and unfortunate aspects of whatever might be occurring but reflects reassuring the staff that he is all up to the challenge based on the transition. Communication! Communication! Communication! During the state of anxiety of employees following retrenchment process resulting from stress of job security, the manager should understand the employees will reject some of his policies or information based on whatever is happening in the organization. The manager therefore should properly understand that he cannot communicate enough and in several ways based on the ongoing especially, during challenging situations. Employees that possess useful information tend to feel less out of control and more empowered. In addition, employees will be greatly equipped to attend to daily tasks at the expense of worrying unnecessarily. For example, when the manager is sick, and tired of listening to himself, this should be communicated repeatedly and through this he manages to gather the information across the staff. Understanding the Change Process and Common Reactions to Change A responsible manager with respect to offering guidance to the staff must understand properly the common steps and reactions experienced by staff during the transitional period. The manager must understand the following common reactional terms; resistance, exploration, denial as well as commitments. The reaction stage must be understood by the manager in order to control the reactions after layoffs. The following stages might help the manager in his bid to reassure the staff that he is in control and that everything is as framed; Denial- The employees will always deny the proposed lay and the common phases used are, “This will never really happen- if I just do not think figure out it, it will go away’ Resistance- An employee that is about to be retrenched, “I will find a way to reverse this layoff decision” and on the other the remaining workforce always comments, “There is no way that I am going to consider taking on any more responsibility or work (Sronce & McKinley, 2006, p. 18)” Exploration-For those employees that are just about to be retrenched, they will always lament, “I think I will go to that meeting to find out about the retrenchment process, benefits and support services”. In addition the non-retrenched cohort, “I guess I can find a way to take this on and be more efficient in how I do things.” Commitment-about the employees that are to be dismissed, they always assert the following, “I am working on a good plan with my outplacement counselor for finding a new job”, For the remaining group, they always reassure themselves by saying that,” I can see some good challenge with the new way we will be doing things” Describe a step-by-step process of conducting the dismissal meeting Dismissal meetings tend to be stressful for the person delivering the massage (manager) as well as employees. After the dismissal meeting, questions from remaining employees and other stakeholders are inevitable but the manager should be keen to keep the reason for dismissal as confidential based on being courteous and private and inform your employees that the dismissed member is no longer with the company and tell them that you wish him well in his endeavor. Despite the daunting challenges the process faces, the following steps are key for a rational and successful dismissal meeting process. Step One Treat the Employee with respect and Kindness and remain calm despite the reaction of the particular employee. During the dismissal meeting the manager should never argue with the employee and to try as much as possible to remain compassionate. The manager should also showcase a higher degree of respect to the employee to ensure a harmonious dismissal process. Step Two The meeting should be conducted in a private and kept very brief. This makes it possible for the managers to convey the dismissal information to the employee about to be laid off and hence minimizes the cases of arguing with the employee. Besides, it remains confidential when undertaken in a private rooms hence can help the dismissed employee to rebuild himself and face the challenge. Step three The dismissal meeting should incorporate other witness particular someone from the management or the Human Resource Department. Step 4 During the Dismissal Meeting Process, the manager should discuss the termination meeting, benefits as well as reference. The manager should focus his meeting on real reason for dismissal as vagueness creates opportunities for employees to generate their own conclusion based on vague reasons. The purpose of the meeting is to convey the message and not discussing reasons or rights and wrongs against the decision. Only focus on issues relevant to employee’s conduct and dismissal reason. In addition, showcase the termination compensations such as severance, insurance continuation or conversion and vacation pay. Should any of the dismissal benefit deemed applicable, the manager should review the separation and release agreement in conjunction to severance. The manger should also let the employee know whether he is issued with the reference and also give the employee the dismissal letter based on the company practice and/or state requirement. Step Five After the dismissal meeting, allow the employee to retrieve his personal belongings at the workplace while staying with him. This is key and also respectful as it curbs future complains by the employee of not having been given an opportunity to take their items besides helping the employee get the personal items. Step six The manager should gather the company items such as employee handbook, badges keys, uniforms, phones, credit cards and laptops from the dismissed employee. Step Seven Immediately give the employee his paycheck as promptly as possible within the next pay day and consider being in compliance with state law regarding the payment based on a review of state’s wage and hour website for final pay rules. In addition, ensure to pay the dismissed staff in full for the last day of work regardless of the time of the day he leaves besides paying him the accrued vacation and/or paid time off based on state’s requirement as well as the company policy. Step Eight The manger should ensure the dismissed employ vacate the firm’s premises immediately after the dismissal meeting after collecting his personal items. Step Nine The manager should finally document the dismissal meeting noting any commenting resulting from the dismissed employee. Determine the Compensation that the Fictitious Company May Provide to the Separated Employee Severance This is a package besides the regular payment to an employee achieved when a particular employee is dismissed. It may include, medical, life or dental insurance, payment based on required notice for dismissal, payment for unspent vacation time or sick leave as well as assistance for helping the dismissed employee look for new employment. Insurance continuation or conversion The dismissed employee should benefit from his insurance premiums accumulated through conversion or continuation despite being dismissed. Accrued Vacation Pay This is cash owed to an employee at specific time for the amount of vacation that has been earned but has not been spent. A Chart Depicting the Timeline of the Disbursement of the Compensation The timelines are based on specific state statute law. The paper uses Arizona statute which requires that the employee be compensated within seven working days of dismissal or next pay day. Assuming the employee is dismissed on Monday, his paycheck should be ready by next Tuesday. Day Event Monday Dismissal Tuesday Disbursement Wednesday // Thursday // Friday // Saturday // Sunday // Monday // Tuesday Matured Paycheck Three (3) Ways That This Layoff May Affect the Company Loss of Morale by Remaining Employees The dismissal of a particular employee leads to loss of morale by the remaining employees who may be stressed based on fear of job security. This negatively affects the company based reduced employees’ productivity which is passed on to the general firms’ productivity. This leads to loss of income for the company as some placed orders may be unmet and hence negatively branding the company. Negatively tags the Image of the Company Laying off or termination meeting process should be carried effectively. The firm’s image or reputation stands negatively affected if it is wrongly done as the manager and the company may be sued. Court battles may harm the company based on chasing away of loyal customers. If this is the case, then the firm’s brand image will be shuttered and hence less sales which is reflected on reduced sales volume. Difficulty in Recruitment of New Staff A wrongly executed employee dismissal meeting has a negative impacts on the ability of the Company to attract new staffs. This is based on the fact that the employees may fear loss of their job based on lack of job security. In this case, if the dismissed employee had an expertise power, the production of the firm may be derailed based on the prolonged duration to convince new staff to replace the dismissed staff. Conclusion Employee’s dismissal is an inevitability in the business. It is both positive and negative based on how it is carried out. Downsizing and dismissal on the basis of conduct should all be executed based on a properly framed dismissal meetings. The dismissed employ may pin the company name positively or negatively based on how his dismissal was executed. Besides, the company manager should showcase higher degree of respect to the dismissed employ and ensure payment of all his compensation and duties, including issuance of reference. This will present a win-win scenario as the dismissed employ will be able to seek new employment as the firm carries on with its operations harmoniously. Reference Clair, J.A., Dufresne, R., Jackson, N., and Ladge, J. (2006). "Being the Bearer of Bad News: Challenges Facing Downsizing Agents in Organizations." Organizational Dynamics, 35, no. (2, 131-44. DOI:10.1016/j.orgdyn.2006.03.001. Deems, Richard S. (1989). How to Fire Your Friends: A Win-Win Approach to Effective Termination. Media Publishing. http://www.referenceforbusiness.com/small/Di-Eq/Employee-Termination.html#ixzz3JE2ONU6m Sronce, R., and McKinley, W. (2006). "Perceptions of Organizational Downsizing." Journal of Leadership & Organizational Studies, 12, no. (4), 89-108. Yate, Martin. (1991). Keeping the Best: And Other Thoughts on Building a Super Competitive Workforce. Adams. http://www.referenceforbusiness.com/small/Di-Eq/Employee-Termination.html#ixzz3JE2iMif1 Read More