You discriminated — and I have the e-mail to prove it
Do your managers know how to avoid writing e-mails that lead to huge legal trouble? Here’s an example of some supervisors who learned the hard way.
A 62-year-old employee was fired and believed it was because of her age.
According to the company, she was fired for poor performance. The woman had been placed on a performance improvement plan (PIP), and her manager kept a record of her weaknesses dating back several months before the termination.
But when the employee took the company to court, the judge ruled in her favor. Why?
The decision hinged on one piece of evidence: e-mails sent between two of the company’s managers before the employee was placed on the PIP.
According to the judge, the e-mails made it clear the bosses wanted to fire her before there were any documented problems. First, one manager suggested letting her go in a reduction-in-force. The second felt that would open the door to a lawsuit and recommended making it a “performance issue.”
Once that evidence came up in court, the judge ruled age was the real reason she was fired.
E-mail creates permanent evidence
The lesson in this case for your managers: Everything they say in an e-mail is recorded — permanently.
Sensitive issues like terminations should never be discussed over e-mail. If an employee sues, those messages will end up in court — and there’s no telling how judges will interpret what they read.
Cite: Parks v. Lebhar-Friedman, Inc.
Comments
4 Comments on You discriminated — and I have the e-mail to prove it
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Mike on
Tue, 21st Oct 2008 3:46 pm
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Judith on
Tue, 21st Oct 2008 4:50 pm
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RHH on
Tue, 21st Oct 2008 5:31 pm
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R. B. on
Wed, 22nd Oct 2008 3:31 pm
Sounds like the judge in this case interpreted it correctly. Rather than stating that the lesson is to refrain from using email for issues like termination, perhaps you should state that the lesson is to refrain from illegal discrimination.
Mike is Right On!! Dicrimination is discrimination, whether it’s in an email, over the phone or beside the water cooler. We all know the rules & expect others to follow them.
I couldn’t agree more with the comments. Documentation is a good thing, but only if it is compliant with the laws. Otherwise, it does more harm than good. An additional note: with today’s economic woes, the number of resumes I receive have quadrupled; and I’m sad to say that I estimate that 90% of those are people not just over 40, but over 50 as well (I can tell because so many of them include historical information and letters of reference dating back to the 70s and 80s). Most are “laid off.” I have to wonder if their age played a role in their termination.
Mike, you said it so well! Discrimination SHOULD be illegal and companies who do it SHOULD have to pay. It sounds like this one turned out right and that justice was served. I’m glad they got caught. So many times, this isn’t the case.
