In today’s world, lawsuits are just a part of doing business. But, as one of the leading staffing agencies in Northern California, Pacific Staffing knows that one particular kind of legal claim – the wrongful termination claim – has been on the rise dramatically and in fact, has become the most common kind of labor-related claim. There are a variety of reasons for this increase, including:

• A poor economy with more laid-off workers than average.
• Wrongful termination laws have been expanding for many years.
• Many of these laws are somewhat vague and open to interpretation as a result.
• More and more workers know they have rights under the law.

So is there anything you can do to avoid being one of the many employers who will face a wrongful termination claim?

One of the most important things you and your managers can do is to be honest with an employee. Many lawsuits result from an employee being blind-sided by termination; but if there are performance issues involved, they need to be documented and discussed, along with potential consequences. If there continues to be an issue, you then have the paper trail you need to back up your claim in the court of law.

With that said, here are some questions you should ask to ensure you’re following proper protocol and protecting your company from a lawsuit:

• Does your employee know what’s expected of them? If you’re not sure, ask them.
• Do they know they’re not meeting those expectations? If they don’t, tell them.
• Have you documented these conversations with your employee? If not, start now.
• Have other employees had similar performance problems? Are you handling the current issue in the same way you’ve handled past performance issues? If not, then why?
• Has your employee performed well in the past? If so, what’s changed?
• Is there anything you can do to help them improve their performance? If so, have they taken your suggestions and feedback?

Asking these kinds of questions is certainly no guarantee you won’t get slapped with a legal claim. But if you do, at least you know you have the processes and documentation in place to support your side of the story in court.

Need to Fill a Recent Vacancy?

If you do, give us a call. As one of the leading staffing agencies in Northern California, Pacific Staffing takes the time to get to know our clients and our candidates. We have the experience to ask the right questions and pay attention to the details. As a result, we can help find the perfect match between employer and job seeker. Contact Pacific Staffing today to learn more.