Organizations can protect themselves and help the terminations process go smoothly by developing a clear termination policy. It should be included with all offer of employment letters.
(Originally published in the August 2014 issue of the Nova Scotia Business Journal)
Businesses and organizations could be doing more to reduce their litigation risk related to terminations of employment, according to a recent release from the Canadian Payroll Association.
Legislation related to payroll and terminations is extensive, but the association says there are three basic payroll-related steps one can take to reduce the likelihood of being sued.
1) Have a termination policy: Organizations can protect themselves and help the terminations process go smoothly by developing a clear termination policy. It should be included with all offer of employment letters. Even better, organizations should adopt current best practices and create a termination policy document that is accessible to employees at any time. An informal poll conducted at a Canadian Payroll Association webinar last year found that one-quarter of the 160 organizations questioned do not have a termination policy in place. This is a significant gap in safeguarding against termination challenges and one that would be relatively easy for organizations to close.
2) Develop a terminations checklist: One of the key steps in ensuring employers can confidently rely on their payroll practices to help minimize the likelihood of litigation is to lay the groundwork for the termination process. A termination checklist is one of the simplest tools for helping the organization implement a standard process. Developing a checklist that includes necessary steps and timeframes reduces the likelihood that steps will be delayed, missed or handled inappropriately. A terminations checklist can be found under “Resources” at payroll.ca.
3) Ensure the record of employment is correct: The ROE form must be filed accurately and on time. There are numerous scenarios that add to the complexity of completing this form accurately, so building your compliance knowledge saves time in the long run and helps protect your organization. Paper ROEs must be filed within five calendar days from the interruption of earnings, causing administrative and financial burden for employers. Today, employers can also choose to file the ROE electronically, within five calendar days after the end of the pay period. Filing ROEs electronically is a best practice, reducing employer costs, improving the accuracy of the data and speeding up EI claims for recipients.
