Termination letter due to poor performance during probationary period

The probation period is a very common word employee comes through whenever they take a new job. Every company has a probation period of at least 3 to 6 months. The probation period is discussed beforehand and is mutually agreed by both the parties.

An interview is a verbal representation of your skills but the probation period is the time when you present your skills and put them into practice. If an employee under performs or does not performs as per the standards, the employer has the right to dismiss them. An employee cannot challenge this termination as an unfair termination due to the probation period.

The employer should provide the employee with a written termination letter. The reasons for termination can be discussed in person as well. The termination letter should include the expected standards of work and the weaknesses. Probation can be terminated due to poor performance as well as poor conduct. The same employee might not be employed the company after the end of probation period. Meeting the employee is not necessary. But it is a good practice for any company.

Sample letter -1

As discussed in the meeting on (date), we shared with you our concerns regarding your pre-decided KPIS’s and your performance against them. We have been offering you support and guiding you to achieve your goals. We even organized a training program for you to plan your work and improve your skills.

Unfortunately, your performance did not improve with time and it does not meet our required standards. We issued you a letter for your poor performance and subsequently, a final warning letter was issued recently. Although you were still in your probation period, we tried to help you as much as we could. I have been advising you personally on areas to improve and referring you techniques to manage your work load.

The management has conducted a preliminary review of your performance. Your performance is not up to the mark and the management has decided to terminate you.

We have arranged a meeting with you to discuss your preliminary performance review. The meeting will be accompanied by your line manager, myself and the HOD. You can make your own pointers to discuss during the meeting. Please confirm if you will be able to attend the meeting or if you would like to schedule a meeting on a different time.

During the meeting, you will be having an opportunity to discuss our work place policies, ethics, conduct and any suggestions for improvement. We are very disappointed to reach to this stage where the company is not happy to retain you. We understand that it will be a challenging time for you and the company is ready to offer you support in this hard time. We will issue your final paycheck and your experience letter within one week of your termination. You can contact the HR directly for any questions you might have.

Good luck!

Regards,