Employers must use proper employment termination letters, so here are some sample employee termination letters to get you started.

Before you use these free employee termination letters, you must be aware that you must use proper dismissal procedures to ensure that you are fair, consistent, and legally proper. Employment law must be followed, otherwise you and your company is at real risk of disputes from disgruntled ex-employees and ensuing penalties. In all cases, refer to your local expert on employment law to ensure you are compliant and compassionate.

Employee termination is usually for one of three reasons; redundancy, gross mis-conduct and poor performance. Each "path" to dismissal is different, and again, must comply with local employment legislation. If at any point in the process you are unclear about what to do next, consult with your local expert. For example, it is important that you involve all interested parties such as trade unions, outline clearly the employee's rights to appeal against the dismissal, and provide at least the minimum statutory notice periods and re-numeration.

At all points during the dismissal, be factual and keep good, honest records which others can understand and use. It is easy to get sucked into an emotional black hole when dealing with dismissal, either compassion overload for redundancies or extreme irritation with poor performers, so it is important to remain objective at all times.

Again, it's important to state that employment termination letters should only come at the end of a structured process, so it is assumed that all appropriate steps have been taken before this point.

Sample Employee Termination Letter

Dear Mr/Mrs/Ms etc

Further to our meeting of (date), I confirm that your employment with (Company) is terminated with effect from (date).

As stated at our meeting on (date), the reason for termination your employment is as follows;

Reason 1 - e.g. summary of redundancy reasons.
Reason 2 - summary of gross misconduct or poor performance and what steps had been taken, and when, to enable the employee to rectify the situation.
Reason 3 - etc

Clearly state individual requirements such as return of company car, equipment, submission of expense claims etc and any other administrative details.

Clearly state actual leaving date, and details of notice period, holiday pay, general pay and pension or other benefits, plus redundancy settlement if appropriate.

Clearly state how the employee can appeal to the decision - the employee's rights, the appeal process and appeal timeframes.

Please sign, date and return this letter as confirmation of receipt of this letter and any attachments/enclosures.

Yours truly,

Name, position
Attachments/enclosures include copies of all relevant company policies, plus any supporting material related to the reasons for dismissal.

Further guidance on employment matters in the UK can be found at governments Department of Trade and Industry site

Further Free Sample Employment Termination Letters can be found here

Download 'Sample Employment Termination Letter' in pdf format

Citation Information: Swinton, Lyndsay. "Sample Employee Termination Letter." Mftrou.com. 12 October 2006. < http://www.mftrou.com/sample-employment-termination-letter.html >.