UNIT 9.

SEPARATING & RETAINING EMPLOYEES

Introduction
Employee turnover

the total number of workers who leave a company over a certain time period

Org must try to ensure that:

● good performers want to stay
● employees whose performance is low are encouraged, or forced to leave
Org with low turnover & satisfied employees tend to perform better

Managing Voluntary and Involuntary Turnover

Involuntary Turnover Voluntary Turnover

- Turnover initiated by an employer - Turnover initiated by employees

- Often with employees who would - Often when the org would prefer to
prefer to stay keep them

Typically, the employees who leave voluntarily are either:

● worst performers, quit before they are fired
● best performers, can most easily find attractive new opportunities

Org try to:

- avoid the need for involuntary turnover
- minimize voluntary turnover, esp among top performers

Costs Associated with Turnover

both kinds of turnover are costly

Discharging employees can be very difficult:

 ● The decision has legal aspects that can affect org -> lawsuit cost
● Personal safety: some employees may react to a termination decision with
violence (“nothing-to-lose" aspect -> dangerous)
● The moral aspect & company image

Employee Separation
● Org must develop a standardized, systematic approach to discipline & discharge
● These decisions should NOT be left solely to the discretion of individual managers
or supervisors
● Policies should
+ be based on principles of justice and law
+ allow for various ways to intervene

Principles of Justice
Outcome Fairness
A judgment that the consequences given to employees are just
(one employee’s consequences should be consistent with other employees’ consequences)

Procedural Justice
A judgment that fair methods were used to determine the consequences an employee
receives.

Interactional Justice
A judgment that the organization carried out its actions in a way that took the
employee’s feelings into account.
Legal Requirements
The law gives employers wide latitude in hiring and firing, but employers must meet
certain requirements. They must avoid wrongful discharge & illegal discrimination

Wrongful Discharge Discrimination

Discharge may not violate - Employers must make discipline decisions without
+ an implied regard to a person’s age, sex, race, or other
agreement protected status.
+ public policy - Evenhanded, carefully documented discipline can
avoid such claims.

Avoid Wrongful Discharge

● organizations should establish and communicate policies for handling misbehavior.
● They should define unacceptable behaviors & identify how the organization will
respond to them.

Employees' Privacy
● Employers need to ensure that the information they gather and use for discipline
is relevant.
● Privacy issues also concern the employer’s wish to search or monitor employees.
● Employers must be prudent in deciding who will see the information.
● The use of social media is another area where employers have considered
employees’ personal activities

Notification of Layoffs
Organizations that plan broad-scale layoffs may be subject to the Workers Adjustment,
Retraining and Notification Act (WARN).
● Employers covered by the law are required to give notice before any
closing/layoff.
 ● requires that organizations with > 100 employees give 60 days notice before any
closing or layoff

Progressive Discipline
Organizations look for methods of handling problem behavior that are fair, legal, and
effective. A popular principle for responding effectively is the hot-stove rule

Hot-stove Rule

Principle of discipline that says discipline should be like a hot stove:

● giving clear warning
● following up with consistent, objective, and immediate consequences.

Progressive Discipline

A formal discipline process in which the consequences become more serious if the
employee repeats the offense.

For each infraction, the HR professional would identify a series of responses

Rules of behavior should cover disciplinary problems such as:

● Tardiness (late)
● Absenteeism
● Unsafe work practices
● Poor quantity/quality of work
● Sexual harassment
● Coming to work impaired by alcohol or drugs
● Theft of company property
● Cyberslacking

Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADS)

Methods of solving a problem by bringing in an impartial outsider but not using the
court system.

Open-door Policy Peer Review

making managers available to hear taking them to a panel composed of

complaints. representatives from the org at the
● first open door: immediate supervisor same levels as the ppl in the dispute.
● if not -> managers at higher level

Meditation Arbitration

● Nonbinding process ● Binding process

● a neutral party from outside ● a professional arbitrator from outside
hears the case & tries to help (usually a lawyer or judge) hears the
the people in a conflict arrive case and resolves it by making a
at a settlement. decision.

Employee Assistance Programs (EAP)

a referral service that employees can use to seek professional treatment for emotional
problems or substance abuse.

Many EAPs are fully integrated into employers’ overall health benefits plans.

Outplacement Counseling

a service in which professionals try to help dismissed employees manage the transition
from one job to another.
Goal: help former employees address psychological issues associated with losing a job
while helping them find a new job.

Employee Engagement

the degree to which employees are fully involved in their work and the strength of their
commitment to their job and company.

-> Employees who are engaged and provide a clear competitive advantage to that firm:
+ higher productivity
+ better customer service
+ lower turnover.

Job Withdrawal

a set of behaviors with which employees try to avoid the work situation physically,
mentally, or emotionally

Job withdrawal results when

circumstances such as the nature of the
job, supervisors and coworkers, pay
levels, or the employee’s own disposition
cause the employee to become
dissatisfied with the job.

Job Dissatisfaction

when employees’ expectations for their job are not met

Managers should catch and correct job dissatisfaction early because there is evidence
linking changes in satisfaction levels to turnover

Personal Dispositions
- Negative affectivity: low levels of satisfaction with all aspects of life, compared
with other people’s feelings -> ppl tend to be dissatisfied w job
 - Core self-evaluations: bottom-line opinions individuals have of themselves and
may be positive or negative.
+ positive core self-evaluation -> job satisfaction
+ negative core self-evaluation -> job dissatisfaction (tend to blame other
people for their problems)

Tasks & Roles

- Role: The set of behaviors that people expect of a person in a particular job
- Role ambiguity: Uncertainty about what the organization expects from the
employee in terms of what to do or how to do it.
- Role Conflict: An employee’s recognition that demands of the job are incompatible
or contradictory.
- Role Overload: A state in which too many expectations or demands are placed on
a person.

Many aspects of a task have been linked to dissatisfaction:

● the complexity of the task
● the degree of physical strain and exertion required
● the value the employee places on the task

Supervisors & Coworkers Pay & Benefits

- Negative behavior by managers - Pay is an indicator of status
- Conflicts between employees - Contribute to self-worth

Behavior Change
● Change the condition
● Whistle-blowing: going outside the organization to authorities or regulatory
agencies describing the actions of their employer
● Lawsuits: filing suit against an employer for unfair treatment or discrimination

Physical Job Withdrawal Psychological Withdrawal

- Arrive late - Decrease in job involvement: the degree to which
- Call in sick people identify themselves with their jobs.
- Request a transfer - Decrease in org commitment: the degree to which an
- Leave the org employee identifies with the organization and is willing
to put forth effort on its behalf.
Job Satisfaction
a pleasant feeling resulting from the perception that one’s job fulfills or allows for the
fulfillment of one’s important job values.

3 components:
1. Values
2. Perceptions
3. Ideas of what is important
-> In sum, people will be satisfied with their jobs as long as they perceive that their jobs
meet their important values.

Increasing Job Satisfaction

Supervisors & Co-workers

A person may be satisfied with them because they:
- share the same values, attitudes, and philosophies.
- provide social support, meaning they are sympathetic and caring.
- help the person attain some valued outcome.
Co-worker relationships can contribute to job satisfaction, and organizations therefore
try to provide opportunities to build positive relationships.

Monitoring Job Satisfaction

● Employers can better retain employees if they are aware of satisfaction levels, so
they can make changes if employees are dissatisfied
 ● Usual way to measure job satisfaction is to survey.
● A systematic, ongoing program of employee surveys should be part of the
organization’s HR strategy to monitor trends and prevent voluntary turnover.

Exit Interview

a meeting of a departing employee with the employee’s supervisor and/or a human

resource specialist to discuss the employee’s reasons for leaving.

● A well-conducted exit interview can uncover reasons why employees leave.

● When several exiting employees give similar reasons for leaving, management
should consider whether this indicates a need for change.

Summary