Do not be emotionally attached to your job

ONE of the things that most employers struggle with, is the art of parting ways with an employee regardless of the level of that particular employee. I come from a very interesting background. I am a lawyer by training, and law is what I actually do between 8am – 5pm. I also enjoy Human Capital Development, and I have had the privilege of working with quite a number of organisations. The two parts of me have allowed me to see a lot of things in particular about how people get so emotionally attached to their jobs. This week I want to address an issue that has seen many cases flood labour officers, and eventually the Labour Court with complaints of unfair dismissal. This article is meant for both the employer and the employees.

For the record, I do not support any unfair labour practices that may be perpetrated by any party. I want to see the parties respecting the law and ensuring that the fundamental rights enshrined in terms of the law are protected. I have noticed, however, from experience that many people are too invested in their jobs, and get emotionally attached to their jobs. I want to help you release emotions from your job. You may also want to read my latest book, “Toys for Adults”.

This will prove to be useful in the near future. Some people even get emotionally attached to their physical offices, such that they will never smile at an idea that someone wants to move into that particular space or they are being requested to move to another office. There are several cases where I even heard of some people who were using juju to stay in a particular office. Whilst I do not intend to impeach your beliefs, but going to these extents, speaks of the serious level of help that you need.

The Contract will be terminated

one day

This is the reality that employees need to bear in mind. A contract of employment is the foundational document for the relationship between an employer and an employee. This very same contract of employment regardless of its duration can actually be terminated. The termination is for a variety of reasons depending with of course the facts for the particular case. I have seen permanent contracts being terminated after someone has worked for an organisation for over a decade or more. I have seen people’s contracts being terminated weeks into employment after leaving a well-paying job elsewhere hoping that the grass will be greener elsewhere. What ensues the majority of times is that there will be strings of fights between the employer, and the employees and some of these fights will stretch for decades. In this hyper inflationary environment, even what the employee will be claiming as back pay will not make economic sense.

What is my point? When you get a formal job, always bear in mind that one day that job is going to end whether fairly or unfairly. This is life! Get used to it. This is the reality of life as well.

Politics at work

is real!

The average person only looks at the law that governs contracts of employment, but fails to pay attention to workplace politics. This may be difficult to appreciate until you have experienced this. But, politics is very real. People are hired and fired on golf-courses. People are framed, charged and fired over baseless allegations. There are employers who are prepared to pay lawyers than to pay you. Once you begin to understand these things, you will begin to appreciate and understand that it is very important to be smart about the fights that you decide to pick.

At the golf-course when decisions are made we need to be clear about why the contract is to be terminated. The why often determines the how the contract is to be terminated. One of the things that employees often miss out is that with a change of management, in one way or the other there will be change in terms of the players that they want to play with. This is normal, and it happens for a variety of reasons which are beyond the scope of this particular article. You may have seen this by now. People who were perceived to be loyal to the previous CEO or Managing Director are often purged through disciplinary hearings often to pave way for a new team of people. In some instances, your replacement will actually be in the vicinity waiting on you to replace you.

If you are not able to read the politics you may walk into a set up that is already complete with a predictable result. You need to be wise if you are an employee. Below, I have a piece of advice for the employers.

Do not abuse disciplinary

hearings

The employer has the right to discipline employees, but it has no right to abuse employees disguised as a disciplinary hearing. Employers should not abuse disciplinary hearings simply as a way to part ways with an employee. There are better ways of parting ways with an employee. There are instances where the evidence is really overwhelming and there is a clear cut case of misconduct. A hearing is warranted, and not instances where management is no longer interested in working with a particular employee. This also requires employees to be aware of the point I am making here that you should not be emotionally attached to your job or an office, because one day you will have to leave that particular job and office not because you are dead, but because you are dead in someone’s mind. They are no longer interested in you. The reality is that people, fall in favour, and they do also fall out of favour. There is a season for everything. At one point in time you can be the darling of the management and, another you will be a persona non-grata. Once you appreciate this as an employee, you also need to weigh your available options in terms of the law which can see the contract being terminated in a less antagonistic way possible, and recover any terminal benefits you can get as a package. Life has to continue.

Normalise a culture of mutual

terminations

If you no longer like a particular employee for a reason other than misconduct, let us normalise a culture of mutual termination. It is better to terminate a contract on mutually agreeable terms. This way there is certainty for everyone. This requires a great deal of objectivity between the employer and employee concerned. Most employers will go through the hearing because they simply want to set a “precedent”. Have you ever imagined if you end up setting an expensive precedent.

Mutual terminations are even better when you are dealing with senior management staff. Some of the litigation that you find will end bordering on either ignorance or arrogance but either of them is neither excusable but definitely expensive.