Termination Letter

Termination letter is a serious issue which is decided after a series of discussions and counseling. This letter should be given only after there is no effect in the period of improvement of performance of the concerned employee. Whether you are an employee who wants to quit the job or an employer firing an employee, both requires a tread of reasons around the job termination letters. Writing such kind of letters is not simple, as according to the employment law which protects the right of employees and carries stipulations. Make sure you consult the labor experts and fully abide by the rules and regulations of the employment law.

Otherwise, the employer may be at the receiving end, if the terminated employee creates disputes which may bear penalty in the employment law. Hence it is necessary that the process should be carried out with fair means. Moreover, it should be compassionate, professional and the legally correct.

Writing termination letters is an unpleasant thing to do but is an inescapable aspect of some effective management. You need to be a little sensitive while writing one.

Firing an employee can be a difficult task and in true sense no one enjoys doing it. However, there is ways as how to make the issue go smoothly. Letters for termination should be polite and should not hurt the sentiments of your employee. A good way of giving this letter should be given at the end of the day so that the employee does not linger around and brood in the office and give negative feedbacks to other employees.

Any termination letter should state the reason clearly and exactly for termination. You should also document any measures that have been taken to resolve the problem before you plan to terminate the employee. For instance, if the employee produced poor quality work and also mention the employee counseling sessions and the written warnings that were given to the employee. Hence, termination letters are all unique. To make your job easy, include the basic template and adjust it to fit to each termination. Including all this will lessen the mistakes and ensure that the letter contains all the relevant details.

Instructions for writing termination letters :

These letters can be difficult when it comes to what to include and what not to include. This may be due to cutbacks, poor performance and some other reasons. Before you have to write one, know what to include in the professional termination letter.

Firstly you need to address the letter professionally and never open the letter with a relaxed greeting, or terms such as "hello", "how are you," or "what's up." These types of letters are purely business letters and therefore the opening should not contain any unnecessary information.
Your first paragraph should start stating the employee's time in the company and how long he is been there and his current job responsibilities. This will help soften the blow and you can further write something like, "we have enjoyed having you here during your time at the company"
The next paragraph should let the employee know that they are being let go. You can further add some sort of sentiments or else, you can stick to the phrase "We regret to inform you that due to" and then the reason as to why he or she is terminated. You can also list further actions that have taken that caused the terminations.
While reasoning as to why he or she is terminated you have to be clear and see to it that you do not leave anything out. This will prevent any kind of lawsuit or a challenge that may arise in the future. You may like to sound a little polite but you should worry more about sounding firm to the reasons you have stated in the letter.
The next thing, you can write, is about the employee's future. You can also wish them all success for it. In the letter you can also include protocol for using for reference or what information you can and possibly share for the future employment prospects of the employee.
You can end the letter with a well wishing phrase like, "best regards" or "best wishes for future endeavor". Such lines will help you avoid any kind of harsh or antagonistic word and tone in the letter.

The employee termination letters should always be given with corporate letterhead. I hope that, with these above guidelines, writing a termination letter will not be difficult.