Evaluations Can Be a Defense in Your Employment Lawsuit
Employers, who have been very stringent and thorough with conducting performance evaluations and have clearly documented the results of these performance evaluations, are much better equipped to defend an employment lawsuit.
Performance evaluations are a very strong motivation tool for employers, and a great opportunity to encourage employees and commend them for their work. Your office may have employees, who may not be performing to the level that you have set for all employees, and a performance evaluation gives them the chance to work on problem areas. More importantly, if the employee’s performance is so bad that you have to let him go, the performance evaluation record is your proof that you gave the employee several chances to better his performance.
Say, for instance, an employee who has been fired turns around and files a wrongful retaliation lawsuit against your company. California employment law firms find that this does happen often, and it is unfair on employers. If you are an employer who has not bothered with regular performance evaluations, you could be in deep trouble.
Take performance evaluations very seriously. Be honest with your evaluations. Don’t beat around the bush. Don’t try to be gentle with the employee. The point is to make the employee aware that there are things that he’s doing in his job that could be done better, and you cannot make that clear to him unless you are honest.
Go to the performance evaluation meeting being perfectly clear about what you’re going to say. Don’t make up things as you go along. Be specific and focused. If there are problems that you have noticed about the employee’s performance, then these must be put down in black and white, so that they are very clear to the employee.
Sometimes, performance evaluations can go bad, and employees may get upset. Handle these situations coolly.
Lastly, and most importantly, document your performance evaluations properly. Any warnings, criticisms, disciplinary actions, or any other actions that have been taken against the employee over the course of his employment with your company, should be clearly recorded in writing. These steps will help a California employment law firm defend your company much more effectively if a lawsuit is filed against you.
