An problem employee is one of two types. In most lay offs, the risk is low because you have satisfactory papers why the firing is occurring and most terminated employees are unlikely to sue. An difficult employee can ruin moral and cause various other problems in the workplace. In these cases, do lots of papers. Worker gross misconduct causes many problems in the workplace, but doesn't have to hurt a company. Finally if you feel the need to sack the employee because of many small incidents, you should attempt to isolate the underlying reason behind these reoccurring problems. Don't e-mail (or fax her) the termination documents until you have told her she's terminated. ANSWER TO PART A: "Yes." It's unlikely she'll make the effort to sue because a suit would be too much effort for her. Don't' hesitate to take action, especially when dealing with separation for cause.

If the worker is harassing other employees, for example, a court can find you guilty of failing to discipline the worker for his or her actions. Sacking an employee is a big headache on the account of the potential legal problems and workplace disruption it can cause. Here you can separate the employee quickly because you have a responsibility to the well-being of the other employees and the business. Because the employee may try to come back with legalities or claims of unfair separation, you should collect enough evidence on your layoff case. Also, don't be too surprised if the worker's lawyer calls you to negotiate on the behalf of his client. If this had been a memorandum of dismissal because of a reduction in force then this section would be replaced by economic information that led up to management's decision to reduce the force. Finally, you should provide proof that your decision to sack the jobholder happened before finding out that she was pregnant.