4 Questions To Ask Before You Fire An Employee

Are you wondering whether it’s time to fire an employee and freshen up your business team? This can be necessary if an employee is not pulling their weight and could, ultimately, be holding your business back. Here are some of

Have you tried training?

First, you should consider whether you have tried training your team members. It’s possible that you haven’t and that’s a step worth taking. Training can help a team member elevate or enhance their skills to the point that they become far more valuable to you as a business owner. 

Training may also be more cost effective compared to replacing a team member which can be an expensive process. Particularly, if you need to go through an extensive recruitment process to ensure you are filling a top position with the right candidate. 

Did you support their needs?

Do be aware that you have a duty of care as an employer which you must take seriously. If you don’t then it’s just one of the ways that you can end up on the wrong side of the legal line when you decide to let a member of your team go. There are lots of ways that you might need to think about supporting the needs of your employees. For instance, they could be stressed. It’s worth thinking about what you can do to help them with this. Managing employee stress levels is one of the best ways to ensure that they are more productive on a daily basis. 

Are you prepared for the costs?

There are definite costs that you must be aware of when you fire and replace an employee. For instance, you need to think about how much churn costs your business on an annual basis. One employee every so often isn’t going to cause the costs to build too much. But you might need to be careful that you’re not constantly replacing employees and causing the costs to climb through the roof. There are other costs to think about too. For instance, you might need to pay termination payments. Settlement agreement solicitors can help you with this type of possibility. 

Do you have a valid reason to replace them? 

Finally, you need to make sure that you have a valid reason to replace a member of your team. If you don’t then you will be exposing your business to lawsuits which could be quite expensive. You might also find that you have to manage issues with discrimination claims which could damage your business reputation. This is why it’s always important to ensure that you do speak to a legal advisor or your HR team. They can tell you whether you are making the right decision. 

We hope this helps you understand some of the key questions that you should ask and answer before you commit to the idea of firing an employee. Remember, if you can it’s always best to help them grow in their role instead of immediately replacing them.