Selection Criteria for Employee Layoffs

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Industry or global shut downs, cost cutting, and spin offs are just a few reasons why employees are laid off. Fallon and McConnell (2007) argue that companies conduct layoffs primarily due to economic issues. Today, many organizations are being forced to reduce their workforce due to these factors. However, before layoffs occur in organizations, there are numerous steps that have to be taken to ensure effectiveness in the process. The selection criteria are the most important aspects of organizations’ initial decision to conduct workforce reduction. Decisions regarding to which employees leave or stay would need to be established before conducting layoffs. Personnel Policy Service Inc (n.d) states that employers should use discretion in determining which employees to layoff. In choosing employees for termination, they suggest that companies use criteria, such as length of service (seniority), performance rating and merit, job status, and job skills.

Seniority is a common selection criterion used by many companies in determining which employees remain.”Of all the criteria, seniority is the most objective” (Segal, 2001, p.199). Under seniority-based layoffs, the most recently hired employees are the first to be laid off. Both Fallon and McConnell (2007) and Personnel Policy Service Inc (n.d) state that using seniority is advantageous because it is a fair and safe means of determining who to layoff. Personnel Policy Service Inc (n.d) argues that it is also very easy to implement seniority as a selection criterion. However, using seniority as the sole selection criterion has it disadvantages. Companies that use seniority as their sole selection criterion run the risk of losing employees that have expertise, initiative, and leader...

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...g layoffs, it is important that selection criteria be established. A hybrid approach that applies selection criteria seniority and performance should be used in regards to layoff decisions. As, McConnell (2006) states, it is extremely important that these selection criteria be applied consistently in all layoff decisions to avoid employee claims of discrimination.

Works Cited

Fallon, L.F, & McConnell, C.R. (2007). Human resource management in health care. Sudbury, MA: Jones and Bartlett publishers.

McConnell, C, R. (2006). Umiker management skills for the new health care supervisor (4th ed.). Sudbury, MA: Jones and Bartlett publishers.

Personnel policy services inc (n.d).Common questions in layoffs. Retrieved from http://www.ppspublishers.com/articles/layoffs.htm

Segal, J. A. (2001). Workplace tribal councils. Hrmagazine, 46(6), 197. Retrieved from EBSCOhost

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