It is an important part of the overall termination program. As a manager or small business owner, you must consider putting the following items on an employee separation checklist. Here's your response, "I would be happy for you to talk to my manager, but only after this separation meeting is over. In the military, service employees are not obligated to follow improper orders and the same holds true in the civilian personnel as well. During your discussion, you must inform the at will worker what he or she did wrong, inform him or her the actions you will take, and warn her or him of the consequences if the action reoccurs. A book about how to go about separating workers for misconduct appropriately can be a helpful tool to have. Finally, a letter of separation sample should include a brief statement about the nature of the dismissal. If I lay off my difficult worker, I can count on losing a legal action. He improves his bad performance or behavior long enough to get through the warning period and then "backslides" 3 months later to his old ways.

During this time, you may forget to ask the jobholder to return important business property. If your rules are legally sound, you can sack employees on the spot for employment misbehavior. If the problems do not increase, separating the worker may be your only choice. A jobholder that is incompetent, whether real or feigned, may present problems down the road. A low risk then becomes a medium risk. If you offer a better dismissal package in exchange for a release, the notice should state this. Just thinking of sacking that person and placing an extra load on her or him can be bothersome, even if you know the jobholder should be dismissed.