Managing underperformance is not as simple as on TV. It requires
preparation and understanding and the legal consequences of
skipping those steps can be severe. Yelling "You're
fired!" makes for a good dramatic scene. But in the real
world, if those words are uttered, an employer can quickly find
themselves stuck in a court-room saga, cast as the bad guy.
Take the case of fashion designer Danae Moumtzis. She got the
surprise of her working life in August 2012, receiving a letter
from her employer stating she was unfit to keep her job and telling
her she was fired.
But her employer, Dolina Fashion Group, had failed to follow
proper process, an omission that ended up being very costly when
the courts finally ruled. "The evidence does not establish
that Ms Moumtzis had been warned about the unsatisfactory
performance," noted the decision by Fair Work Commission Vice
President Watson, made in 2013. "I find that the dismissal was
harsh, unjust and unreasonable."
