Fired one of my assistants
Whatever
1,945 Posts
I don't know where else to put this though it is not a question. Today, I had to fire one my assistants. She has worked for me for over 6 six years. An employee went to her to discuss a confidential matter. After the meeting, she went outside to smoke a cigarette and proceded to not only talk about the meeting with others, but she made fun of the problem. I heard about it immediately. She didn't know what got into her. As far as I know, she has never done this before. And while I know I had no choice (anyone who works for me knows that rule #1 is "keep your mouth shut.")and I even consulted with company president, right now I feel like going home and having a good cry. I haven't felt this bad for a long time. Anyhow, thanx for letting me vent.
Comments
What a wonderful reply. I don't know if it helped the original poster but I know it helped me. Thanks.
to:Lee 2 - I have to disagree. It is absolutely essential that the people who work in HR keep a confidence. The employees have to know that if we learn anything of a confidential nature we will keep it to ourselves. When, I have to reveal anything, I always let the employee know who and why. If the employees have no faith in the discretion of HR, then, we cannot do our job. This ee, who should have known better, revealed a confidence to a few people who had no need to know. Then, to add insult to injury, she made fun of the ee.
This is not a minor indiscretion. This did damage to the HR department and could not be tolerated.
I agree with you. As hard as it was to fire her, you have made the right decision. Now that she is gone, you will probably find out that this wasn't the first time something like this happened.
Go home, have a good cry and don't feel guilty. It was her decision to open her mouth - with six years in HR she should have known better. If she needed to talk to someone, she should have come to you.
LFernandes
>painful than most.
>
>to:Lee 2 - I have to disagree. It is absolutely essential that the
>people who work in HR keep a confidence. The employees have to know
>that if we learn anything of a confidential nature we will keep it to
>ourselves. When, I have to reveal anything, I always let the employee
>know who and why. If the employees have no faith in the discretion of
>HR, then, we cannot do our job. This ee, who should have known better,
>revealed a confidence to a few people who had no need to know. Then,
>to add insult to injury, she made fun of the ee.
>This is not a minor indiscretion. This did damage to the HR
>department and could not be tolerated.
Whatever:
I can just about guarantee you that this is NOT the first time this happened. Once you lose trust in your assistant, especially in the confidential arena we work in, the work relationship is damaged beyond repair As painful as it was, you did the right thing.
Whatever:
I deeply empathize with you. A good cry is often therapeutic.
Eva
LFernandes
xhugs
She gave me her notice and very quickly found a job in an attorney's office making much better money. I told her I was happy for her, but wanted to offer one piece of advice. Take her first paycheck and buy a top quality alarm clock! She laughed and we parted on good terms.
You did the right thing. She couldn't remain in HR after there was a confidentiality problem. You should be glad that it really bothers you. If you can fire anyone without it bothering you, it's time to change careers. So many HR people become so hard after a few years of seeing what we see that they need to find something else to do that will restore their humanity. It's a fine line that we walk between representing the employer's interests and the employees' interests - sort of like the fine line between genius and maddness!
Margaret Morford
theHRedge
615-371-8200
[email]mmorford@mleesmith.com[/email]
[url]http://www.thehredge.net[/url]