How to Terminate an Employee: 4 Steps

Terminating an employee is not something anyone wants to do, but sometimes there is no other choice. As a small business owner, it is important that you take the appropriate steps when doing so, in order to protect yourself and your business.

Here is a brief outline of the steps that you should be taking.

1. Keep a record of issues

It is a good idea to note down all issues as they arise. You can address these issues as they come up and set in place a plan for improvement. Having a record of all issues and how they were addressed will provide you with justification for termination if there is no improvement from the employee. It will also help the employee understandwhy they are being terminated.

Termination without Cause – Know your rights?

Termination with cause is reserved for serious workplace misconduct. In such a case, as an employee you are not entitled to notice of termination or severance pay. Almost every other scenario is classified as termination without cause. As an employer under the BC Employment Standards Act, you have the right to terminate an employee at any time for any reason as long as it is not discriminatory and you provide appropriate notice and/or severance pay. It must be noted however, that as an employee you are only entitled to notice and/or severance pay if you have been employed by that company for a minimum of 3 consecutive months. Additionally, as an employer you are not required to provide any supporting documents for a termination without cause.