New-year resolution: Follow up employees who do not work well!
We are often contacted by employers who have employees who do not work well. It may be that the person in question does not deliver according to expectations, delivers too late or that there are cooperation problems. To optimize the business, it is important that employers address the situation, even if it may be uncomfortable. Here you get a brief overview of how you as an employer should proceed.
1 Why follow up employees who do not work well?
The follow-up process can be time consuming, but the possible upside is great. The benefit of following up an employee who does not work well is that the employee begins to perform, or that the employer receives sufficient grounds and documentation to give a dismissal.
In cases where we are requested to assist a client, it is not necessarily the basis for dismissal that is so uncertain, but the documentation of it. It is also often the case that the employer has not confronted the employee with the challenges and given him or her the opportunity to improve.
If the company has good routines for following up on challenging employees, you do not have to request assistance from lawyers because the follow-up leads to a positive change. You can also start the termination process faster if you have such good routines.
2 How to follow up the employee?
The first thing an employer should do is to enter a dialogue with the employee and try to find the reason why the employee does not meet expectations. Talking to the employee can often be very helpful. Address the issues directly, clarify what expectations and requirements are set, and give the employee the opportunity to express his/her opinions and input, and to improve.
Make a plan for the follow-up of the employee with regular conversations about specific goals / tasks with clear deadlines and evaluation of the previous period's work. Here it is important that the employer is clear and to the point in the communication.
If the employee points to a lack of aids or equipment, the need for further training or guidance, the employer should effectuate the necessary remedial measures.
It is very important that the employer documents each step in the follow-up work. This can be done, for example, by the employer sending notices of follow-up interviews by e-mail and writing a short summary / summary afterwards. Remember that minutes and summaries should be sent to the employee so that he / she could correct any errors.
If the employee has received sufficient time and follow-up, but still does not work well, the employer may consider giving a written warning. Before a warning is given, a meeting should be held between the employer and the employee where the employer explains why it is relevant to give a warning and what the consequences may be if the employee does not improve.
The employee should be allowed to bring a counselor to the meeting and be given the opportunity to give his / her input in the meeting. The notice of the meeting should be sent in writing. Minutes from the meeting should also be taken. The decision to issue a written warning should only be made after such a meeting has taken place.
It is important to remember that if a warning is given, then the employer has given a final reaction to the conditions to which the warning applies. This means that if the warning is given because the employee has arrived late for work three times, the employee cannot be dismissed due to the three times he or she has arrived late.
If the employee continues to arrive late after the warning is given, these are new conditions that the employer can respond to, for example by giving notice. Then the previous warning will strengthen the basis for dismissal because the employee makes the same mistake even after this has been pointed out. However, there is no requirement that a warning must be given before a dismissal, but it will be good documentation in a possible dismissal case.
3 What do you do if the follow-up does not help?
If the follow-up does not lead to improvements, it may be relevant to consider dismissal. This must be considered concretely. One should normally request legal expertise to assess the grounds for dismissal, the documentation and the risks involved in possibly giving notice.
The threshold for dismissing an employee after the probationary period is high, and it is the employer who must document the basis for the dismissal. The employer should also consider whether there are alternatives to dismissal and how they can be implemented, i.e., change of work tasks or whether the employee can work in another position.
If you are going for dismissal, it is important to keep in mind the case processing rules in the Working Environment Act, such as individual discussion meeting with the employee before a possible dismissal is given and the balancing of interests where the employer's need for dismissal must be weighed against the disadvantages that the dismissal has for the employee.
The work that the employer does in the follow-up process is of great importance for the risk one is exposed to in a dismissal process. Therefore, use the new year to put in place good routines for following up employees who do not work well.
