Performance Evaluations: 9 Tips for Avoiding Legal Liability

Employee performance reviews are an effective way to gauge job performance and workplace satisfaction. Unfortunately, they also expose employers to a variety of legal risks. As such, many employers choose to use performance management software to give employees feedback while controlling potential legal risks. Here are nine tips for avoiding legal liability when conducting employee performance evaluations.

1. Be Consistent

Every day, employers get themselves into trouble because they treat different classes of employees differently. To combat this risk, smart employers often strive to be consistent when conducting employee performance evaluations. An easy way to ensure consistency is to work with employee engagement software.

2. Be Honest

While kind employers might not want to hurt their employees’ feelings, honesty is the best policy when it comes to performance evaluations. If you sugar coat bad performance, you might have trouble disciplining an employee down the road. Similarly, if you don’t tell the truth on the job evaluation, your employee might be able to prove you treated him or her unfairly.

3. Be Objective

Subjectivity has no place in performance evaluations. Thus, be sure you create an objective rubric for judging job performance and follow it. Often, utilizing performance management software is the best way to take subjectivity out of the performance review.

4. Be Impersonal

When evaluating an employee, it can be difficult to separate the person form the job performance. Regardless, to stay out of legal hot water, it is critical to evaluate the job, not the person. In situations where an employee’s personality is affecting his or her job performance, be sure you tie the review tightly back to the job description.

5. Be Fair

Few things can frustrate and aggravate an employee faster than an appraisal ambush. When you are reviewing the job performance of a subordinate, try to be fair. Don’t let bad behaviors and performance build up to the point it feels like an ambush. If you have always indicated to your employee that he or she is doing a great job, you don’t want to use the review for an all-out, negative attack.

6. Be Critical

Performance evaluations are meaningless if they only serve as a rubber stamp. Instead, try to analyze your subordinate’s job performance critically. If you are having trouble doing so, consider switching to performance appraisal software. Most available options require more than rubber stamping.

7. Be Cumulative

Most employers conduct performance appraisals annually. Even if you conduct yours in shorter intervals, you must keep in mind that many days, weeks, and months may have passed. Don’t rush to judgement based on employee performance in the past week. Instead, consider the entire performance period prior to conducting your evaluation.

8. Be Openminded

Employees might satisfy their job duties in unconventional ways. Thus, when you are conducting your evaluation, try to keep an open mind. Instead of looking at the way your employee performs, consider overall productivity and attitude.

9. Be Available

After the performance appraisal is over, your employee might want to discuss his or her performance. Thus, try to be available to meet with your employees to address any post-review concerns.

Employers can mitigate legal exposure when conducting performance evaluations by utilizing performance management software. Even better, by following a few simple suggestions, employers can control legal risk during employee review season.

Weston Barnes is a write and an avid reader. He's writing about Crane mats for sale, its business and marketing aspects. When Weston was little, he would have to sneak a book light into his room so he could read until the wee hours of the night.