Can we please discuss the employee termination experience?

The way we terminate employees deserves attention too.  And respect.  Even though an employee is leaving, they’re still a person and they should be treated as such. 

After nearly 20 years in HR, I’ve learned a few important points on how employee terminations should be handled:

1. Terminations are not solely HR’s responsibility – I presented at a state HR conference recently and had an interesting conversation with a fellow practitioner.  During the session, she heard me say that HR is not the principal’s office, not a dumping ground, and that managers should be held accountable to their people.  (I say these things often and I feel strongly about them.)  She shared with me that in her current organization, any employee terminations are placed squarely on her shoulders.  I urged her to ask her leadership to consider the employee termination experience – would any of them want to be terminated by someone who was not their direct supervisor? 

2. The actual termination conversation should take about 5 minutes – if a manager has done their due diligence, a termination truly should not be of great surprise to an employee.  So the discussion to let someone know the employment is being separated should not be lengthy.  A past employer of mine insisted on a long, drawn-out process that included a reading of the employee’s entire history of employment.  It was like having charges read in court.  Completely unnecessary.  Not to mention the fact that the more that is said, the greater the risk to the employer of saying the wrong thing. 

Note: please do not follow a terminated employee around while they say goodbye to former co-workers and/or pack up their personal items.  It is embarrassing and poses a potential safety risk to the other employees.  Escort the person out and send their items to them directly.  Treat the situation with dignity. 

3. Terminations do not have to be dramatic or contentious – if an employment relationship is not working out, cut it off and move on.  Have the tough conversations.  Not every person is a fit for every position or organization.  If you identify that an employee is not going to make it and you’ve done the due diligence, you can have an open dialogue and assist the employee to make a graceful exit.  Perhaps offer a 2 – 4-week transition period where the employee is allowed time to go on interviews and/or seek career counseling.  It is our job as HR professionals to help employees find their ideal situation, even if it’s not in our own organization. 

There is a lot of focus on the candidate experience right now, which is hugely important.  But we can’t forget our current employees and we really need to consider how terminated employees are treated.  At some point, they were a sought-after candidate and then a valued new hire.  At the point of termination, let’s thank them for their service and treat the situation with respect.