A 90-day Probationary Period for New Hires.

A 90-day Probationary Period for New Hires. Whenever I hire a new employee, I always use the 90-day probationary period policy. The 90-days gives you the chance to watch the employee and decide if you made the right hiring decision. With the probation period policy, you may fire the person with little exposure for a wrongful termination lawsuit.

The best way to protect your business is to use a 90-day probationary period policy.

Procedures for A 90-day probationary period for new hires.

Create a company policy documenting all the terms and conditions of the 90-day probationary period.
The hiring supervisor should provide two copies of the written policy to the employee at the date of hire.
Have the employee and the manager sign both copies, one for the employee and one for the employee’s personnel file. The policy should note the probation period starts on the date of hire ending in three months.
The employee’s supervisor will meet with the employee to provide performance feedback on a regular basis (weekly, bi-weekly, etc.)
The employee’s boss will offer performance expectations to the employee.
A written performance review form is filled out after each weekly or bi-weekly meetings during the probation period.

The manager should complete the form at each meeting with the employee present. Then, both parties should sign and date the document. If the supervisor determines there are performance problems with the employee, the review form must list the issues. The supervisor should note how the employee may resolve the issues such as mentoring or additional training. All review reports are then given to HR and filed in the employee’s personnel file.

Procedures for A 90-day Probationary Period Policy continued:

The manager provides coaching/mentoring for the employee to help the new hire to be successful in the position. The manager should add the training documents to the employee’s personnel file.

The employee’s manager should keep HR updated concerning the employee’s progress. HR must support the manager and the new employee to be successful during the probation period. HR should ensure that the employee’s manager is treating the employee reasonably and consistent with other recently hired employees. The goal is to help the new hire to be a successful long-term employee.

Both the manager and HR should set a reminder in Outlook when the employee’s probationary period is ending in five days. The manager then decides if the employee is coming off the probation or terminate the employee before the probation period ends.

Complete all the documents noted above, then both parties sign, date them, and reviewed by HR. Be sure to file All documents in the employee’s personnel file. If the new hire is “a square peg in a round hole,” terminate the employee before the 90-day period expires.

There are benefits of A 90-day probationary period.

This policy has two benefits. It helps the company get rid of a “bad hire” plus you can do it without paying legal fees. If you follow the procedures above, you have an excellent chance of avoiding any legal fees for this transaction. I know that the above policy may seem to be paper-intense. When comparing following this procedure to the cost of defending a wrongful termination lawsuit, the price is much less.

My name is Robert Curry, and I am an Author, CEO Coach, Keynote Speaker, and Turnaround Specialist. Over the past 20 years, I have worked with more than 70 companies taking their businesses from Loses to Profits.

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Recently, I published two books about turnarounds: “From Red to Black – A Business Turnaround” and “The Turnaround.” Both books are true stories about turnarounds of real companies that I have turned around during my career. In both books, I have shared all my Profit Improvement Recommendations (“PIR’s”). PIR’s helped to grow sales, reduce expenses, improve cash flow, and most importantly, strengthen the management teams.

If the information in this article A 90-day Probationary Period for New Hires. helps you, your family or a business associate, please email me at bob@ceorsc.com and please share the story with me.

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