Firing at Will: A Manager's Guide

Firing at Will shows managers and employers how to do the most difficult part of their jobs: firing employees. Written by a leading employment lawyer in a refreshingly unlawyerly style,this guide takes the reader through the always-risky process of letting an employee go. Many employers and managers are afraid to pull the trigger when the employment relationship has broken down, and will postpone the decision by using progressive discipline and performance-improvement plans. However, an employermust be able to unload employees who threaten to undermine the company and its prospects, regardless of the risks involved in a termination. This book explains how to do it, how not to do it, and how to minimize the danger of an expensive employee lawsuit.

No one said being an employer or amanager was easy. Fortunately, knowing how to fire employees will make your job much, much easier in the long run and save you heartache. Firing at Will teaches you what you need to know, without any legalese or boring recitations of statutes and case law. This book is filled with plain-English common sense, based on Jay Shepherds 17 years of protecting employers in court. The style is conversational and often irreverent, but the lessons and tips are battle-tested. If you want to be a successful manager or employerand sleep easieryou need to know how to fire at will.

• Gives employers and managers real-world advice on how to fire employees
• Teacheshow to keep your companyand yourselfout of expensive employee lawsuits
• Guides you toward building a workplace where youll need to fire fewer employees

• How to make the ultimate decision to fire an employee, and how to carry out that decision
• The 30 riskiest employees to fire
• The critical Retained Dignity factor, and why you need to keep it as high as possible
• Why progressive discipline and performance appraisals are ineffectual
• How your hiring methods and decisions can help you avoid firing employees later
• How to have gruntled employees who wouldnt dream of suing you

Firing at Will is a handbook for managers, employers, business owners, human resources professionals, and in-house counsel. Most of these readers will have had very little training in the hows and whens and whys of firing employees. Most people just follow their instincts, often leadingto disastrous consequences. For anyone who has the responsibility of hiring and supervising employees, Firing at Will gives guidance and direction to lower the risks of employee terminations.

Introduction: The Hardest Part of Your Job