Reaching An Amicable Solution For Unfair Dismissal
Mediation can help employers and employees to reach a mutually acceptable resolution in face of disputes.
Disclaimer: The case study is based on an actual case handled by TADM. The names and identifying details in this case have been changed to protect the privacy of individuals.
Learning insights
- Employers should put in place a proper framework to assess employees’ performance and provide regular feedback on areas of improvement.
- In a situation of a poor job fit, employers may wish to consider providing training and a longer period of adjustment for the employees.
Background
A local employee was recruited as a chef to helm the kitchen of a nursing home. Unfortunately, things did not go as planned. One week prior to the end of his probation period, Mr Tay was informed that he was going to be dismissed shortly. Aggrieved, Mr Tay approached TADM for help.
How TADM helped
During mediation, Mr Tay said that as the job expectations were not communicated clearly, he was not aware that he had to take charge of the kitchen operations. His employment contract did not state his scope of work responsibilities as well. This was only made known to him after a counselling session with his supervisor, during which he was also informed that he was going to be dismissed.
As the employer could not substantiate the allegations regarding Mr Tay’s poor performance, the mediator felt that it was only right for the employer to provide a longer monitoring period instead of terminating his service, leaving him with barely one month to improve.
The employer admitted that there was no formal performance improvement process to objectively measure employee’s performance and agreed that they would review the current process for improvement.
On the other hand, Mr Tay reassessed his case and agreed that he was not suited for kitchen operations and the employment relationship should end.
TADM’s mediator helped both parties reach a mutually acceptable resolution where the company offered an additional ex-gratia payment of two weeks’ salary to the employee.
TADM also linked up Mr Tay with a job placement agency to help him find a more suitable job.
Outcome
This case is an unfortunate one where there was no good job fit. Such disputes could be avoided if both parties had tried to seek clarity on the job roles and responsibilities during the interview process.
To prevent disputes over performance management, employers should put in place a proper framework to assess employees’ performance and provide regular feedback on areas of improvement to improve work performance and employee commitment to the job. In the event of poor job fit, employers may wish to consider providing training and a longer period of adjustment to the employees.
