Layoffs - A Primer, Pt. 1

Planning and Decision Making

A Layoff, or Reduction-in-Force (RIF) will change the course of a company forever. This event will never be forgotten and some anxiety will always remain.

This Primer has three sections: (1) Planning and Decision Making, (2) Notification, and (3) Recovery Retention and Future Planning.  The next two parts will follow soon. 

Planning

Planning should have begun well before you discuss the possibility of a RIF. Hopefully, (1) You have not over hired. (2) You have communicated regularly with your employees about their performance and put the results in writing. (3) You have distinguished between high, medium, and low performers. And (4) most important, the low performers understand their status.

If you have been careful of all these things you probably have a balance of full time, part time and as-needed staff, with a balance of skills/talents. Otherwise, the rest of the process will be even more daunting.

Decision Making

A RIF decision is about positions first, people second. You are looking for the positions your company can best do without. 

However, absent the necessary documentation, you may have to use the old last-in-first-out method. While this approach is clearly the easiest, it has the least to offer the company and likely will lead to selecting the wrong people. Anyone who is on a final warning for disciplinary/performance issues should be considered early in the procedure. 

Once you have your initial list formalized, analyze it very carefully. Carefully consider protected classes under EEO law. Also consider the ADEA, ADA, the Civil Rights Act, and any employees currently covered under the FMLA or Worker’s Compensation. When considering an employee who has a current complaint filed, tread lightly, and then only with complete documentation. If you are unionized, union contracts will have a big impact on your decisions.

Be honest:  Have you consistently utilized your existing policies and procedures? Are you subject to the WARN Statute?

No doubt all these considerations are a heavy burden, so be sure you have a qualified authority aiding your analysis. Doing so can make all the difference in the event of legal challenges to your decisions.

And how much might this help cost you? Far less than the consequences of hasty or ill-prepared decisions.

Quick do-it-yourself references include the DOL and EEOC websites. Check with your benefits carriers, fiduciaries, attorneys and human resource professionals. Leave no stone unturned—the goal is to be successful in the future.

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Or call me at 770-726-9130.

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Patricia Justice, SPHR                                                                          Next column