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Layoffs

When terminations are required, always proceed with dignity

02/09/2024
Sometimes, managers must terminate employees even during good economic times. The reasons are many. An employer may choose to move in a different direction, requiring it to shed workers with skills no longer needed now that the mission has changed. Then there’s the case of the underperforming employees you finally decide to let go. Whatever the reason, managers must understand how to fire with dignity. Here are some guidelines to follow.

Stealth layoff: Beware using return-to-office mandates to encourage resignations

10/10/2023
Perhaps seeing an opportunity to avoid legal peril, some employers have reportedly started requiring employees to return to the office as a back-door way to implement stealth layoffs. The apparent hope: Some workers will refuse to abandon remote work and will quit voluntarily instead of returning to in-person work.

Before laying off 100 or more, consider whether WARN Act notification is required

06/21/2023
The federal Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act requires employers with 100 or more full-time employees to provide written notice of impending plant closings and mass layoffs at least 60 calendar days in advance. The WARN Act defines a plant closing as the “permanent or temporary shutdown of a single site of employment, or one or more facilities or operating units within a single site of employment.”

Remote termination: Consider these 3 factors

04/17/2023
Now that many employees telework at least some of the time, terminations have gotten more complicated. Do you wait to deliver the bad news when employees come into work? Do you order all affected employees into the office for a mass firing? If you’re considering remote terminations even for employees who sometimes work onsite, here are some factors you should consider.

Layoffs on the horizon? Check for disparate impact before you cut jobs

03/27/2023
Before finalizing your list of employees to lay off, analyze the potential impact on newly hired workers. Will the terminated employees disproportionally belong to a particular protected class?

You may have to WARN workers layoffs are coming

03/24/2023
Having to lay off workers is painful. Laying off workers the wrong way can be even more painful. In most cases, there are strict laws employers must follow when cutting lots of jobs.

New danger: Huge fines for gagging departing workers

03/20/2023
Chances are, you conduct routine exit interviews for most terminations, whether employees are quitting or have lost their jobs in a layoff. You might also commonly offer severance pay in exchange for employees signing an agreement not to sue or making some other promise about their future conduct. But beware! If you make employees promise to tell you about future investigations, expect a fine from the SEC.

Case of the Week: No nondisparagement and confidentiality clauses in separation agreements

02/24/2023
The National Labor Relations Board on Feb. 21 said it’s unlawful to include nondisparagement and confidentiality provisions in the severance agreements employers often ask laid-off employees to sign.

Keep it Legal: 5 tips for firing employees the right way

01/27/2023
Firing employees is one of the most challenging parts of being a manager, but it is also often unavoidable. If you need some help building up this essential skill, don’t worry. BambooHR published a recent blog offering five helpful tips on how to fire an employee the right way.

Factor workers’ immigration status into layoff decisions

01/24/2023
Fears of a looming recession have some employers making contingency plans for laying off workers. Before you follow suit, think carefully about how you’d bring back employees if the economy rebounds quickly. That’s especially important if you wind up having to lay off employees who are legally working in the United States on immigrant visas that require remaining employed.