Lawyers for Employee Termination
The majority of Employment litigation occurs upon termination due to employers not understanding all of the obligations they owe to employees. Just because you may believe your employee’s actions constitute “cause” for termination, it does not mean the Courts will agree with you. Employers can save a significant amount of money and stress by consulting with an employment lawyer before taking steps to terminate an employee’s position.
Threshold of Just Cause For Termination
The first issue will be whether or not an employer has cause to terminate the employment relationship. There are numerous issues which employers often feel meet the threshold of “just cause” for termination, including issues surrounding:
- Poor work performance
- Poor work attendance
- Poor workplace conduct
- Poor behaviour outside of the workplace
- Theft or other illegal behaviour
- Conflict of personalities
The reality is that in order to determine what reaches the threshold of “just cause” usually is fact dependent and each situation differs from another. It is important to get legal advice before taking any steps to terminate an employee for “just cause”.
There are also situations where employers terminate an employee without cause. The issue then becomes what notice is the employee entitled to or whether or not “working notice” is another option to consider.
If an employer chooses to not provide working notice, they need to consider what is appropriate severance. This turns on numerous factors, including the employment contract, their position, rate of remuneration, seniority, length of service, age of employee, and other considerations.
Legal Advice to Avoid Employment Litigation
One of the prudent moves an employer can make is getting legal advice before they terminate an employee so they properly understand what steps they should take and what exposure might be. This can end up saving employers large amounts of money by avoiding unnecessary litigation.
The lawyers at Taylor & Blair LLP can help limit the exposure of employers when terminating employees. Contact us today.