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Don't be too nice....

  1. #9
    elle is offline Registered User
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    Quote Originally Posted by sniffer View Post


    Also I asked her to train the new helper, and she just sabotaged the new helper and I ended up training the new helper (after she left). The new helper is way much better!

    A week after she left, I got a letter from labour deparment stating that she is claiming 3 months' salary against me as I have terminated her contract without valid reason. I don't know what is the basis of 3 months' salary.

    After being so nice - I could have not given her notice, not given her a chance to find a job, etc - this is what I get.

    I also called the agency - and they were also shocked. They are now trying to reach her, but she wouldn't talk to them.

    So this is just a warning to others out there. Don't be too nice. And yes, sometimes it is stupid to be nice.
    A few points about the quoted bit. I think your warning should be about doing things by the book, rather than not being "too nice". You can be nice and accommodating if you choose and still protect yourself by following the correct procedures if you terminate a helper. For example, you can give a helper one month's written notice of termination, for cause (generally the explanation given is that performance is/ remains poor after attempts to correct), and let them stay in your home to look for another job or whatever for that time.

    It actually seems that you made a few mistakes in the termination procedure, likely because you didn't know what the law required. Also, your former helper doesn't have any obligation to speak with the agency (and likely has been advised not to as there is a current labour dispute).

    Additionally, regarding the training of your new helper, there are a host of reasons why this often does not work out - sometimes the new helper doesn't want to listen to the outgoing employee as they view them as not an authority figure, sometimes there are communication issues, sometimes the outgoing helper simply doesn't know how to or is not comfortable training another person/ her replacement and in some cases I am sure the outgoing helper just does not want to do it. Unless employer and employee are departing on excellent terms (except perhaps in the case of certain professionals who have obligations arising from contract, law or membership in a professional body), rarely would any institution or employer trust a former or terminated employee to train a replacement, particularly at lower levels.
    Last edited by elle; 09-06-2012 at 01:15 PM.
    carang likes this.

  2. #10
    carang's Avatar
    carang is offline Registered User
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    if you fired an employee for not doing a good job, then why would you want that same employee to train your next one?

    shwetakhanna, thanka2 and z754103 like this.

  3. #11
    thanka2 is offline Registered User
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    Quote Originally Posted by nicolejoy View Post
    I think it depends entirely on what is written on the contract. If you wrote on the contract that you would pay her $4000 for example, no matter how poorly she performs, it would be illegal to pay her less than that (ie, YOU would be breaking the contract). If you wrote that you were paying her $3700 and actually gave her $4000 each month, then that would be considered a "bonus" and you legally could forego the extra $300 for underperformance. It all depends on what is written in the contract.
    Yes, this is exactly what I was thinking. We pay our helper a few hundred dollars more a month than what is in her contract but we are not required to pay this amount.
    carang likes this.
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