Here's how being 'nice' can get you sued

Optometric Management, Sep 2000 by Tibbetts, Cathy

Recently, the U.S. Supreme Court unanimously held that if an employer lies about why he fired an employee, and the employee brings a lawsuit alleging discrimination, the jury can infer that the allegation is true. The plaintiff doesn't have to show direct evidence of discrimination.

You may think that this will never happen to you, but within the past 25 years, we've seen a 2200% increase in discrimination suits, according to the American Mediation Institute. And that number is sure to rise.

How do you protect yourself? According to Craig Steinberg, O.D., J.D., you have two choices when firing an employee: Give him no reason or the real reason. Don't lie, even to be "nice."

If you decide to tell the real reason, be careful of what you say and how you say it. If you're convinced an employee is stealing, don't say: "I'm letting you go because you're stealing." If anyone else hears you say this, the employee can sue you for slander. Instead, say something like: "I'm letting you go because I have personal doubts about whether I can trust you or not, and I can't have an employee that I don't trust 100%." There's nothing actionable there.

An even better approach is: "I'm letting you go because I believe it's the proper thing for me to do and that it will be best for both of us." This covers you from both angles - there's no case for slander or room for discrimination implications.