Written Counseling is Critical
Written counseling is important. I have advised and represented small business owners. The best protection from a false claim is written counseling made at the time of the alleged infraction. Russell Cawyer describes in good detail what written counseling should include. Even the most basic workplace will have scratch paper somewhere. You as a manager need to include the basics: what the employee did wrong, when s/he did it, and what you as the manager expect in the future. This written documentation will help tremendously when/if the employee later seeks unemployment benefits or files suit for alleged discrimination.
