Last week we asked:

1. Have you ever been involved in an "ambush firing"?

75.0% Yes--I was on the receiving end

25.0% Yes--I was on the delivering end

>It happened to my father and a co-worker

2.  Does your employer practice "ambush firings"?

25.0% No, never

12.5% Yes, rarely

12.5% Yes, sometimes

25.0% Yes, often

12.5% Yes, most of the time

12.5% Other: Don't know, everything is kept secret

3. If you have to fire someone, how do you think doing it with dignity would occur?

>They should see it coming and reason that there is no alternative

>Be forthright and open about the reason(s) for termination, even if it is with cause. If it is not termination with cause, offer a proper severance package and assistance in the search for a new position including references.

>You must be able to articulate the real reason for the firing; probably the real reason will not be usable in the process, but you have to be honest with yourself (and HR) at least. Then a legally acceptable reason for the firing must be developed. Keep in mind that you want the employee to leave feeling that you actually did him a favor. Saul Sherzer is the best I've ever seen at doing this. (He sucks as an outplacement counselor, but he's a magician at completing the termination process w/o legal consequences. Be professional. Place yourself in the fired employee's place and treat him accordingly for you just might be there one day yourself----I was. I learned more in my own termination than in the several I had done before.

>Give enough notice to let them find something else.

>Be honest. If the employer/employee relationship has gone stale, or even sour, just say so. Allow for transition time. Offer to give an outgoing employee a favorable letter of reference if his/her performance file has been stellar over the years, and it is just now that either a shift in company mission or management no longer works with this employee.

This week's quiz is here.

Want to get a jump on the surveys? Follow me on twitter, where they are posted early. You can do this here. (note: all respondents are confidential; the software is programmed in such a way that neither we nor anyone else can determine who responded)

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Want to be heard on other subjects? Be sure to watch for "Paperitalo Second Tuesday Surveys."