Owing to the situation's gravity, the jobholder will see your humor as patronizing and unsympathetic. An employee can still sue you for unlawful termination. It is true that "employment at will" suggests an employer doesn't own an employee an explanation for losing her or his job. And when you separate an employee, you have the legal right to not let that employee return to her or his work area to recover personal belongings. * The jobholder will regard all items in the workplace as property of the firm. The manager should mail the sample employee discipline notification to a jobholder or hand it to them directly. If anything, these forms will provide your legal department or your business's legal adviser with enough substantiation against the worker should legal problems arise from the layoff. If a company does give a reference, it's only the most basic facts such as positions held, job titles and dates of employment. Decide on an acceptable reason to give the employee for the separation. It should also include whether the at will employee is eligible for rehire and any benefits that he or she may or may not still receive after termination.

Alternatively, you can fire them over the phone and send the supporting papers through e-mail. Live with the bad employee or "sack" yourself. And, if you're dimissing for an illegal reason, you'll at least know you're inviting a legal action. As a supervisor, you may hope to never have to write an employee dismissal memorandum. Because they live in an "at will" state, they think they can layoff anyone whenever they choose.