How To Avoid These Top 5 Employment Law Mistakes

If you take time to communicate, explain your actions, stay involved and make the workplace seem rational to employees, you will decrease your chances of landing in the courtroom.

1. Failing to document performance issues

• You should always document employee performance issues no matter how small they seem. Your documentation doesn’t have to be formal or perfectly written, but it does have to be understandable and dated.

• In a legal case, for example, judges and juries appreciate when the employer can show that they tried to help the employee improve their performance.

2. Failing to have effective policies

• The best way to limit your exposure to employment claims is to make sure you have policies on workplace harassment, FMLA leave, workplace violence, and standards of conduct.

• Job applications and employee handbooks also can be great tools to help avoid employment claims.

3. Failing to provide accurate, honest performance reviews

• If evaluations inaccurately reflect good performance, employees will often argue that their termination from a company was illegal or discriminatory.

• It’s important to hold supervisors accountable for the accuracy and timeliness of their performance evaluations. When writing performance reviews, it’s best to describe in detail how expectations were either met or not. In addition, use objective criteria and metrics to measure performance.

4. Failing to explain a termination decision

• Employers that are afraid to tell employees why they’re being terminated are opening themselves up to legal action.

• Tell the truth when you’re letting someone go. Don’t try to soften the blow by coming up with a reason for the termination, like implying that it’s not their fault, or that they’re simply being “laid off.” 

5. Creating a perception of favoritism

• When workers believe that favoritism is driving a manager’s decision-making, they might turn to legal counsel or a labor organization for protection.

• To avoid this, it’s critical to train front-line supervisors to maintain consistency and clarity in personnel actions. They must know how important it is to be clear about why they are doing things. Then, as the employer, you should monitor supervisors’ performance to make sure they’re not creating the perception of favoritism—or worse, discrimination.