A study some years ago by the Michigan Bar Association
noted that only 3% of lawyers felt that a performance
appraisal benefited an employer during litigation.  In
this same study, 44% of lawyers felt that the performance
evaluation benefited the employee during a lawsuit.

In my previous blog post, I noted that research on
employee lawsuits identified that from 2006 to 2007 the
number of cases won by employees rose 13% and the median
verdict award to employees rose by over 70%.

I’d be willing to bet that in each one of those cases won
by employees, the employees entered their performance
evaluations into evidence in each case.

HR CONTRARIAN POINTER: Traditional performance evaluations
do more harm than good, not only as it relates to your
ongoing employee relations efforts, but also if you are
involved in employment litigation.

Take a look at my white paper, Terminate Performance
Evaluations & Implement Process Evaluations
(http://www.hrcontrarian.com/white_papers/), for a 100%
objective approach to evaluating employee performance.

I read a report last week that quoted 2 statistics from an
organization called Jury Verdict Research regarding
employment lawsuits.

Stat #1: The median jury verdict of $147,500 in 2006 rose
in 2007 to $252,000, which is an increase of over 70%.

Stat #2: Cases won by employees rose by over 13% from 2006
to 2007.

As such, not only are employees winning more cases, but
juries are awarding employees more money.  That sounds
like a double whammy to me.

HR CONTRARIAN POINTER: You have heard the old saying in
the retail industry that the 3 secrets to success are
location, location, location.  Well, in the employment law
arena, the 3 secrets are process, process, process.

In my FREE white paper, Open-Heart Conversations
(http://www.hrcontrarian.com/white_papers/), I have
outlined a process for disciplinary action as well as
noted an opinion as to cause of most employment
litigation.

If your responsibilities include counseling employees
relative to behavior change, performance improvement, or
disciplinary action, I’d recommend reviewing the
guidelines outlined in this white paper.