An employee separation is the termination of their membership in an organization. There are two basic types of employee separations: voluntary separation – when an employee decides, for personal or professional reasons, to end the relationship with the employer, and involuntary separation – when an employer decides to terminate its relationship with an employee, often due to economic necessity or a poor fit between the employee and the organization. In the current poor economic climate there has been a substantial increase in the number of involuntary separations (i.e. layoffs). Here are some tips for managing the process:

• In a layoff you may permanently loose employees with valuable skills and knowledge so think about alternatives to layoffs such as:
  • Attrition – can you reduce the size of the workforce by not refilling job vacancies that are created by turnover?
  • Hiring freeze – i.e. not hiring any new employees into the company.
  • Shorter working week – can you hold onto your workforce and keep them ready for the eventual upturn by reducing the number of hours worked per week for a period of time?
  • Forced unpaid vacation – here is another approach that some companies are taking as an alternative to a permanent layoff. Again, it is a way to retain the skills and knowledge within the organization ready for the eventual upturn.
• If the decision is to go ahead and implement a layoff then you must put an employee notification plan in place. If covered, make sure you are in compliance with the Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act – (WARN). WARN requires employers to provide notice 60 days in advance of covered plant closings and covered mass layoffs. In general, employers are covered by WARN if they have 100 or more employees.
• Develop layoff criteria – you need to think through the “who, why, when, where, and how” of the layoff process.
• Think about coordinating media relations – how will you manage the public image of the organization through the layoff process?
• Think about maintaining security through the process. Emotions are likely to run high and tempers will be frayed. This can lead to conflict or perhaps instances of workplace violence.
• Finally, think about communicating with and reassuring the survivors of the layoffs. You need them to remain productive and focused on keeping the organization going.

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