As part of a training session I led recently with some federal government managers, one of them confided his agency fired an employ
ee, but had paid a steep price.
After everything was added up, the lawyers, the investigation, airfare & lodging for meetings and hearings, it cost over a million dollars to terminate that employee.
One of the managers involved wondered if he should have just stuck that employee in a corner with busy work until he resigned or retired. It would have been easier and cheaper.
But that agency and those managers should be commended for doing the right thing – not the easy thing.
