Poor Performance and Due Process

An employee with habitually poor performance can drive a supervisor to the brink and drain an organization of valuable resources. Even though highly motivated professional managers and supervisors have the capacity to deal with a chronic poor performer, management energy would be better used to increase organizational efficiencies.

Sometimes, it's tempting to quickly just rid an organization of a poor performer. However, everyone has a right to due process. The employee I employer relationship rests on the notion that due process and fairness will be the cornerstone of all workplace interactions.

Being afforded due process in union and nonunion work environments means that the employee is provided a procedural fair hearing when being evaluated or disciplined for shortcomings. Within this context, organizations must make sure every employee is treated fairly.

In collective bargaining agreements, due process is included contractually for the purpose of affording employees a fair hearing. In nonunion work environments, organizations that have a commitment to professionalism will also be equitable in dealing with employees. Needless to say, employees in employment-at-will situations lack the protection of due process contractually. But, all employees expect to be treated fairly. The litigious nature of all workplace relationships requires that supervisors and managers treat each employee with respect and afford each and every employee due process and a just hearing.

In order to make sure that organizations are being fair to everyone, reasonable standards of performance will be established by supervisors and managers. Then, the standards of performance will be administrated in a fair-minded fashion. Being fair-minded means that supervisors and managers must demonstrate integrity beyond reproach when dealing with all aspects of employee performance.

There is no room in employee relations for a subjective application of standards of performance. The standards of performance should be applied in such a way that every employee is treated fairly. High quality supervisors and managers will purge all signs of favoritism. Unfortunately, misunderstandings and poor communications between a supervisor and a subordinate can happen. In extreme cases, a heated personality conflict can develop. Regardless, high quality supervisors and managers will make sure that fact-based objectivity overrides opinion-driven subjectivity.