Pre-Termination Notification Guideline

In accordance with U.S. Supreme Court decisions, this is the procedure which must be followed before you terminate a staff employee, whether the termination is for disciplinary reasons or other work-related reasons.

If, after consultation with appropriate individuals in your area and the Office of Labor Relations, you decide to terminate a staff employee, you must attempt to hold a pre-termination conference before taking action. You should call the Office Of Labor Relations concerning the termination of union employees and your HR Consultant for the termination of Managerial, Professional, Supervisory, and Confidential (MPSC) employees. The purpose of this conference is to give the employee an informal opportunity to state his or her side of the case.

This pre-termination process is initiated by giving a letter to the employee which follows the format of the sample "Pre-termination Conference Notification Letter" (below) along with a DRAFT copy of the termination letter. If the employee is at work, deliver the letter there; if he or she is not, send it to the last known home address.

The conference should be held in a private setting. An employee who is represented by a union may bring a union representative to the conference; however, the union representative may not act as an advocate or interfere with the process in any way. The person considering the termination may wish to have a colleague present for the purpose of taking notes.

At the conference:

In a point-by-point fashion, review with the employee your reasons for considering termination. If the employee requires an interpreter, arrange to have one there.
Give the employee the opportunity to respond to each point.
At the conclusion of the conference, ask the employee whether he/she wishes to make any further statements or has any questions.
Tell the employee that you will let him/her know your decision promptly.

After the conference:

After reviewing the information presented at this conference, determine whether you still wish to terminate the individual's employment or impose some lesser discipline, or investigate the matter further.
If you decide to terminate or to issue lesser disciplinary action, follow through promptly. If you plan to investigate further, advise the employee in writing of the outcome of such investigation and your final decision promptly.

If you have questions about any aspect of this procedure, please call the Office of Labor Relations at 732-932-3020, ext. 4040 or your HR Consultant at 732-932-3020, ext. 4040.

Please see the templates below for pre-termination letters for union and non-union employees.

Sample letter for union employees
Sample letter for non-union employees

Letter for Union Employees

FORM LETTER: Pre-termination Conference Notification
(When an employee is being laid off for lack of funds or
lack of work, follow the normal procedure; that is, meet
with the employee first to advise that he/she is being laid
off and then follow up with the usual layoff letter.)

Date

Dear Employee:

I write to inform you that I am considering the termination of your employment with Rutgers University for the reasons set forth on the attached letter.

I have scheduled a conference with you on __________(date, time, place). At that time
I will review the reasons for the possible termination of your employment and give you an opportunity to respond to these reasons. After the conference, I will decide whether to terminate your employment or to take other disciplinary action.

Your attendance at the conference is voluntary, but this will be your only opportunity to be heard before disciplinary action is taken against you. If you decide not to attend the conference, then you will have waived your right to a pre-termination conference. You may choose to bring a union representative to this conference; however, the representative may not act as an advocate during the conference, and inability of a representative to attend will not be cause to postpone it.

Please confirm to me whether or not you will attend the conference.

Sincerely,

Supervisor

att.

cc: Union
Office of Labor Relations
Whoever the chain-of-command requires

SI NO PUEDE COMPRENDER INGLES, PIDA LE A SU JEFE AYUDA
PARA TRADUCIR ESTA CARTA AL ESPANOL. (Add this sentence if you believe the employee is unable to read English.)

Letter for Non-union Employees