Getting Employees to Quit when You Want to Fire Them

When I was young and just starting my flower selling business, I worried about the unpleasantness of firing bad employees. But in today's market, the realities of firing an employee have greater ramifications than a disagreeable altercation. A fired employee may file a wrongful termination action against you. Your unemployment insurance premium may rise. Or you may be required to pay a large severance package to protect yourself. For these reasons, getting an employee to quit is the better option. Here are different approaches I observed over the years.

Micromanaging Is not for Me

A bad employee will naturally cause you to start looking over his shoulder. This approach of micromanaging your employee will introduce new stress into his role. At every turn he will need to confirm with you that he may proceed to the next step. He will be open to criticism and required to correct his mistakes before they escalate. If his income is performance-based he will see his pay cut as well. Some bad employees will learn and improve. But bad employees that were enjoying a free ride before are likely to quit under such scrutiny.

Cold as a Cucumber Mentality

In my flower delivery business I encouraged the atmosphere of a small family. Each employee's personal life was as important as his performance at work. Tying my business interests with the employee's happiness yielded high employee loyalty and performance. The reverse approach of treating employees in a cold, detached manner can encourage a bad employee to take his unhappy circumstances to an employer who will care to listen.

It's Up to You

When an employee is adequate at his job but feels that he is under-appreciated, friction over raises and promotion may arise. In such a case, I found it more useful to speak to the employee from his perspective rather than mine. Instead of explaining that he is simply not good enough to be promoted, I explained that he had reached a glass ceiling and will never be promoted or get a raise in this business. Disgruntled, an overly-ambitious employee is likely to decide to quit and pursue his greatness elsewhere.

Quitting Is Right for You

When a smart ambitious employee slowly foundered in her position, I took over mentoring her with the idea of turning her into a successful employee. Yet through our conversations I came to realize that the employee had lost her passion for the work because she was in the wrong job. Rather than work on logistically challenging shipments, she had a dream of opening a restaurant. Though without a formal education as a chef, she had twenty years of catering experience as a side business. Through our talks she was encourage quitting a job she was badly suited to and pursue her dream of becoming a full-time small business owner herself.

You Can't Fire Me, I Quit

In his early twenties my husband worked for a small business that provided technical support to IBM. I was astonished by the treatment the employees received. The work hours were bad and the schedules were not fixed, making it difficult for employees to have a life outside of work. Pay was low and was based, not on hourly labor, but on the minutes the employee spent on customer support calls. This approach of bad hours, low pay and over-work led to high employee attrition. By the same token, an employer may encourage a bad employee to quit by subtly employing these tactics.

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