How to Document Employee Performance Issues: From Hire to Fire or Retire

HR professionals often complain about how managers want to move forward to terminate an employee, but when asked what documentation they have, the answer is usually, "Nothing, but I’ve talked with her about the issue".(Recorded Date: Jan 30, 2024)

Managers typically fail to document behavior or performance issues that led up to the need to terminate, because they "don’t have time" or simply do not know or understand how to document. Sometimes, when managers are asked for documentation of employee issues, some even say, "But we’re an At-Will employer - we don’t need a reason to fire him!".

The problem is that without documentation, employers take a great risk of inviting EEOC charges, expensive settlements, and even litigation. Why? Because "if it's not documented, it never happened!" 

Learning objectives: 

Attend this training session to learn the best practices for documentation to help you more effectively manage employee performance and minimize legal risks. You will learn:

  •  How to document performance expectations right from the beginning
  •  Steps for creating and documenting an applicant screening process comparing candidates 'apples to apples'
  •  Properly documenting employee behavior and performance issues to create a paper trail minimizing organizational risk
  •  Creating an easy-to-implement progressive discipline documentation process and learning critical sample verbiage
  •  Identifying gaps between organizational policies and discipline documents
  •  Understanding compliance when letting older workers go and the need of a 'waiver' document
  •  Evaluating best practices in maintaining clear and concise documentation. For instance, how to prepare discipline documents to minimize the risk of 
     Title VII and potential violation of other anti-discrimination laws, or how to prepare termination documents to minimize the risk of an EEOC charge

Who Should Attend

   •  HR Generalists
   •  Managers
   •  Directors
   •  VP’s
   • Employee Relations Managers
   • Business Owners