Restaurant Employee Termination Dos and Don’ts

Restaurant Employee Termination

Restaurant employee termination is never easy. When terminating an employee, it is important to make the process as smooth as possible. This helps maintain a professional environment in which all parties leave the table with a clear path forward. Here, we will investigate some of the dos and don’ts of restaurant employee termination.

DO: Have Clear Company Standards in Place

Take a look at your employee handbook and verify whether or not your employee’s behavior or performance is in violation of the standards you’ve set. You cannot simply fire someone on a whim—you must clearly outline the conduct you expect at your establishment. Then point to the employee’s specific transgressions when taking appropriate action. Are you firing someone for poor job performance? Then you should first hold meetings with this person to make them aware of how they are failing to meet your expectations. If these violations keep occurring, even after multiple meetings, be sure to document that you’ve met with them on several occasions before you move to terminate.

DON’T: Send Someone Else in to Do the Dirty Work

No one wants to be the bearer of bad news. However, having a random staff member deliver a message as important as “you’re fired” isn’t the best course of action. Only the person/people directly responsible for the employee should be tasked with letting him or her go. Why? Asking someone with no direct involvement in the employee’s day-to-day can cause bad feelings amongst your remaining staff and the person you’re letting go.  It’s also less likely for the person doing the firing to have any personal stake in handling the restaurant employee termination professionally. Prepare your thoughts before entering the room, and remain calm, professional, and firm when delivering the message.

DO: Have Someone Else in the Room

There’s no question that emotions can run high when it comes to terminations. Arguments may be likely to ensue over why you’re firing the employee. This is why you should have your ducks in a row, as mentioned above, as they are likely to feel hurt, angry, or frustrated. If your establishment has an HR department, a member of that team should be present to act as a witness when you deliver the news. They should take notes and possibly record the meeting in the event courts have to get involved. Please note that if you are recording the meeting, you need to tell the employee about this recording.

If you don’t have someone from HR, at least another member of the management team should be present. If you have security staff and feel as though you might need their assistance, make sure they are close at hand as well. You want to prepare for the worst while hoping for the best.

DON’T: Do it Over the Phone

That’s the easy way out. Restaurant employee terminations should always be conducted face-to-face. They should never in front of other employees—even if the firing offense was done publicly and needs to be addressed immediately.

Another thing to take into account is timing. If you’re firing someone who is on shift work, make sure you chose the right time to deliver the news, whether that’s before or after their shift. If you’re letting your employee go at the beginning of their shift, consider bringing in a replacement. This will be needed to cover for your newly terminated staff member.

If you go through the proper steps to make restaurant employee terminations as painless as possible for everyone involved, your business will be all the better for it. The last thing you want is for employee morale to take a hit after a coworker is fired, and ensuring minimal stress and discomfort for your team is important for everyone’s ultimate job satisfaction.

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