313. Employers gave limits on what they can share

Firing an employee is never an easy decision, and it can lead to unexpected consequences if not handled with care. Join us as we share a personal story about the emotional toll and complexities involved in such decisions, along with a cautionary tale from a marketing agency where a slip in communication led to legal woes. This episode emphasizes the necessity of being intentional and discreet when discussing the reasons behind an employee's departure, especially in customer-facing roles where former staff may have left a significant impact.

We navigate the fine line between transparency and confidentiality, highlighting the nuances of employment law and the challenges of managing public perception. With the digital age amplifying scrutiny, we discuss ways to prepare for the potential backlash that accompanies leadership roles. Listen in as we provide insights into crafting mindful public statements and address the reality of facing one-sided narratives that can tarnish reputations. This episode is a must-hear for anyone in a position of leadership, offering valuable lessons on navigating the intricate dance of workplace communication and decision-making.

Transcript

Speaker 1: 0:33

All right, good morning. We're off to the studio to participate in morning sessions and be involved and help get the manager up to speed. I was catching up with a group of friends we do a weekly study together and I was telling them like, hey, it's been a rough week, I could really use some support, some prayer specifically. I was like, hey, it's been a rough week, I could really use some support, some prayer specifically. I ended up firing someone. That was a really hard decision. It was not easy. There were a lot of. I was going to come up with a lot of after effects and I knew that going in and I know it has to happen. And someone else in the group chimed in and said hey, no, don't, don't beat yourself up over it, don't stress about it, but also, like, be sure to remember, like you're an employer and you have to limit what you say because it could come back to get you.

Speaker 1: 1:31

And his example was years ago. Uh, he works for a marketing agency like a, like a branding and marketing agency here in the twin cities, and years ago they hired someone to do like the accounting and like the bookkeeping and expense tracking, the revenue shares, the commissions, everything. And the culture started to change. People were like more gossipy and the his hunch was that it was this one particular like accounting person because no one else had been hired or fired over the course of a year, which that alone is surprising that some there'd be no turnover in a year. But anyhow, as the year went on, there were some things happening. There's some oddities in the books, like funds were not locatable, like things were just off and, long story short, they ended up firing this person. I don't even remember what the guy said, the reasons were, but they fired her, they let her go and then the CEO ended up letting. I think he said it was the CEO Ended up letting it out the reason why the person was fired, and it was because I can't remember it was something like she was cooking the books, or I think he said she was cooking the books, but something that would make it difficult for her to find future employment, and I think it was a professional reason. It wasn't a personal reason, I can't remember, but anyhow, word got out. This employee then turned around and sued the CEO and the company, or one or the other, I don't know. Someone got sued, they won and now both the company suffered a year of losses working well. The company had to go through a year of working with someone that was rather difficult, that was stealing from the company, and then they had to pay them money for telling people that they stole money, and that was just surprising to me.

Speaker 1: 3:22

So, anyhow, I know this situation is completely different. It's not nothing even close to that, but just realizing, like as an employer, you have to be very intentional, and I don't know if cautious is the right word, but you have to be very, very limited in what you say about former employees. It could come back to get you. It could damage the business that they worked hard to advocate for, the customers that are fans of this employee, especially if it's like a customer facing business like like mine, is the members loved this person, the the person loved the members. And if it's just wild that that is the case and it's In my mind, it should be okay to say like, hey, this person was suspected of something. They're not a culture fit and wrap it up. I don't know. I have my two cents on what I think should be the case for like employment law, but I'm not nearly as well-versed in that space, so I'll abide by the rules. I won't make the rules.

Speaker 1: 4:33

So that's just surprising, but it's also a good reminder to to have your, your statements, your public statements available. So then people ask you know, why did it happen? They want to press for details, they want to know further. Better or worse, people are only going to get one side of the story, and that's the side that is not held accountable for their remarks and comments. People can say whatever they want. They can leave one-star reviews online, they can put something on Google reviews, they can tell all their friends and family and the whole metro area that they're a victim, and they could be right. They very well could be right. They could also be wrong, and if they're wrong, they're painting the picture of being a victim, and the employer has to just stand there, take it and then acknowledge that there's. It's just gonna be a one-sided account of the story, and so that's one reason, I imagine, why you need to have a witness when there is a firing, so that they can validate and back up the reason that was all stated.

Speaker 1: 5:43

So that was a surprising learning. I didn't never thought that that could be a thing, but it's also a good reason why you need to hire the right people too. The right people will probably not get hired and then if you ever have to let them go, they're not going to come back and retaliate against their employer. People that are not a good fit probably would be willing to do that and try to get extra something out of the situation. That's possible, I don't know. So, anyhow, that's my learnings.

Speaker 1: 6:15

I'm learning to be intentional. I'm learning to roll with the punches and acknowledge that, even if I wanted to tell people the story and the whole background and all of the reasons of why I'm making decisions for better or worse people, the public is not going to know. And that's tough because I like being a transparent, open person. I show the profit and loss to my staff. This person knows how the club has been doing and it hurts to not get that return of transparency and character protection. That's really tough to not know that it's going to be there. It might be there, it may not be there, but to realize that that's not a responsibility on the employee part like it is on the employer's part.

Speaker 1: 7:10

So today we're going to just crank out some good things in the studio. We got approved with corporate for our pilot program that we're rolling out. I need to craft the business plan for the next couple months. I need to get some security cameras installed. Today is the day off from my day job. I do have some program work for a marketing course that I'm taking and, yeah, never a dull moment. My spouse is amazing. She's holding the family down at home. Kids are wanting more time with dad. I'm trying to figure out how to do that well. So that's where we're at, that's where we're going. Let's rock and roll.