Managing Performance: Corrective Actions 135

absenteeism

A pattern of habitual absence by an employee. Absenteeism is costly to employers, negatively impacts productivity, and stresses employees who do show up to work.

COBRA

The Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act. COBRA enables people to buy health insurance through their employers for a minimum of 18 months after the employment relationship has been terminated.

conflict

A disagreement between two people or groups. Conflicts can be disruptive to the workplace if they are not addressed.

disciplinary procedure

An action taken by an employer to correct serious performance issues. Disciplinary procedures are necessary in cases where the actions of the employee are habitual, dangerous, costly, or illegal.

employee assistance program

A service for assisting employees with various problems such as mental illness, financial difficulty, gambling, chemical dependency, and other issues. EAPs typically are outsourced to separate companies that specialize in this type of work.

employment law

The area of law that covers all aspects of employer and employee relationships except the negotiation process covered by labor law and collective bargaining. Most employment laws were established to protect the rights of employees.

formal discipline

A series of steps taken to correct serious performance issues. Typical formal discipline includes verbal warnings, written warnings, suspension without pay, and termination.

harassment

Unwelcome conduct that unreasonably interferes with work performance or creates an environment that is intimidating, hostile, or offensive to the employee.

hostile environment

A type of sexual harassment in which a person is made uncomfortable by posters, photography, cartoons, or drawings in the workplace.

human resources

The department in a company that is responsible for recruiting talent, establishing workplace policies, tracking employee performance, managing employee compensation and benefits, and taking corrective action on performance issues.

legal action

The act of filing a lawsuit or taking another party to court to settle a dispute.

long term leave

An approved leave of absence granted to an employee so that he or she may take care of personal issues.

on notice

The act of notifying an employee that his or her performance is unacceptable and that the performance must change to ensure continued employment.

performance standard

The level of performance required by an employer for its employees.

progressive disciplinary approach

A series of disciplinary procedures that starts with a verbal warning and escalates to one or more written warnings, then a suspension without pay, and finally termination.

quid pro quo

A type of sexual harassment in which the harasser uses submission to or rejection of sexual requests as a basis for decisions such as hiring, firing, pay, performance evaluations, and promotions.

reasonable person standard

A standard for determining whether conduct can be considered sexual harassment. Conduct and behavior may not be considered harassment if a reasonable person would not find the actions offensive.

sexual harassment

A type of discrimination in which a person is subjected to unwelcome conduct or a hostile environment on the basis of his or her gender.

suspension without pay

A disciplinary measure that prevents an employee from coming to work for 1 to 10 days and docking the employee's pay accordingly.

termination

A final disciplinary measure in which the employer ends the employment relationship with the employee. Termination should be a last resort and conducted in a manner that does not leave the employer vulnerable to a wrongful termination lawsuit.

termination letter

A letter that informs an employee that his or her employment has been terminated.

termination meeting

A meeting between an employee and a manager in which the employee is informed that his or her employment has been terminated. For legal protection, a third person should attend the termination meeting as a witness.

verbal warning

A disciplinary measure in which a manager or supervisor tells an employee that his or her performance is unacceptable. Written warnings should be noted on a calendar or some other tracking system for future reference.

written warning

A letter written to an employee as a disciplinary measure. A written warning describes the performance problems or work violations of the employee in specific detail and explains the consequences to the employee if his or her performance does not improve within a specified period of time.