Employees are protected from wrongful termination if they have reported sexual harassment, discrimination or unethical or unsafe workplace activities. However, it is not unheard of for an employer to attempt to protect the reputation of their business by “quiet firing” that employee.
Quiet firing refers to the act of making a work environment hostile and toxic for an employee — with the hopes that they will ultimately just quit. While the term “quiet firing” is new, it is not a new experience for many employees. Employees should be aware of the signs of quiet firing to protect their rights. Some common signs of quiet firing include:
1. Exclusion from meetings
Employee meetings are a normal part of many workplaces and help employees to understand their role in projects, discuss updates and communicate about work activities. An employer may attempt to exclude an employee from meetings to isolate them and keep them off-balance and uninformed. This can make it harder for an employee to perform their job duties.
2. Job responsibility changes
An employer may suddenly change an employee’s job title and responsibilities. This sudden change could impact an employee’s performance and isolate them from their co-workers or put them in unfamiliar situations without adequate training, which can lead to frustration and discontentment.
3. Poor performance review
An employee may notice that they scored poorly on a performance review. However, the poor performance review may have been fabricated to punish the employee. When a review seems out of step with past performance reviews or punitive, it should be considered suspect.
4. Removal from projects
Sometimes, the projects an employee is on are directly tied to their success in a workplace. When an employer wants to punish an employee, they may find reason to remove them from key or prestigious projects.
5. Overwhelming tasks
Sometimes, an employer may task an employee with tons of work. If that work has unreasonable deadlines and is impossible for one person to complete, that’s a signal that something deliberate is happening.
Professional legal guidance can help employees fight wrongful termination, including in situations when it isn’t obvious.