DISMISSAL - 09.02.2006

He goes or we go…

Never a problem before

For the most part, things run smoothly in your workplace. There’s been the occasional niggle between staff but nothing of any significance. Until now. One employee, a highly valued and able team leader, has recently become difficult to work with. His colleagues claim he’s rude and unhelpful, barely communicates and has an attitude problem. That’s as maybe, but as far as you can see, his work is still of a high standard. This morning, several employees came into your office and said they’d had enough. Either you deal with the problem or they’ll down tools. What can/should you do? It seems much easier to sack one employee than have to deal with an entire workforce. But how far can you go?

Legally, it can be OK

Situations like this are remarkably common. The bottom line is that it can be safe to dismiss one employee at the behest of others (the more the better) but care is required. Obviously, you always have to consider the question of whether a tribunal would regard it as fair and reasonable plus you have to be seen to have followed the correct procedure. If the employee brings an unfair dismissal claim, you’d defend it on the basis of “some other substantial reason”, i.e. you were effectively left with no choice.

It’s bad!

You’ll stand a much better chance of defending a claim if the employee concerned is generally causing unrest and disquiet amongst colleagues. For example, the atmosphere becomes so bad that productivity is affected or his manager is bombarded with complaints about the individual concerned. However, you also need to exercise caution - an employee who was hitherto not a problem and who is still doing an OK job, probably has a reason for this sudden change of behaviour.

How to play it

It’s vital to make sure that you get to the real reason for the “he goes or we go” ultimatum.

Tip 1. Never blindly accept the assertions of the complainants. Always check the real motivation - it might involve race or sex discrimination and you know how dangerous that might be.

Tip 2. Meet with the employee concerned. See if you can get to the bottom of the problem. Perhaps it’s a simple personality clash. Explain that for whatever reason he or she is causing a problem. If behaviour/attitude cannot be modified then dismissal may be the only alternative. Give a deadline for improvement and record everything in writing.

Tip 3. Consider whether the employee can be redeployed elsewhere or given other duties. If this isn’t practicable you could consider a short period of paid suspension or annual leave to help de-fuse the situation.

Tip 4. Try to calculate what the effect has been on the business already and what it will be if the situation is allowed to continue unchecked. This will be vital evidence before a tribunal.

Ultimately, if the situation becomes untenable the employee will have to go. The dismissal will be potentially fair provided you’ve followed a fair procedure and acted reasonably.