Employment Law Attorney in San Francisco, California
What should I do if I receive a write-up that is not true?
What should I do if I receive a write-up that is not true?
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Well, the first thing you should do is
you read it and make sure you read it
thoroughly because some of these can be
quite long. You know, if you’re put on
what’s called a PIP, a performance
improvement plan, they can be pages
long. You want to look at the specifics
or the lack thereof. A lot of people
come to me and say, I was put on this
performance improvement plan and there’s
no specificity to it. you know, it says
that I’m either slow with my work, you
know, as an example, or I’m not kind to
my co-workers, but there’s absolutely no
story or anything to tell me when I may
have done these things. So, you want to
look at that first. And if you have the
time, you want to sit down and write out
a response to it. They may not give you
that moment right then and there, and
honestly, it might be too shocking of
the conscious for you to sit down and
write it right away. The one thing I
tell my clients is, you know, they’re
going to tell you you have to sign it as
received. So, you can say that signed as
received, but I disagree. And then take
the time, ask for a copy of it, and take
the time to go through each line and
write a response.
Once you have done that, you’ve done
that time, you want to submit it to
human resources and your manager, if
that’s who gave it to you and their
manager if it’s if it’s untrue because
it’s the old additive of, you know, if
someone’s accused of like a crime, for
example, first thing if they didn’t do
it, they’re going to go, I didn’t do
this. Well, it’s the same thing. And it
could come back to haunt you later if
you don’t deny it or you just say, I
just I’m done fighting and I can’t do
this anymore. and then you want to come
to someone like me later because you’re
terminated and it’s like, well, you
didn’t respond to this write up. It’s
not a fatal error, but it does make your
case much harder.
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San Francisco, CA employment attorney Traci M. Hinden talks about what you should if you receive a write-up that is not true. She advises employees who receive a performance improvement plan (PIP) to read the document thoroughly, as these plans can be lengthy and may contain numerous allegations or expectations. She encourages employees to pay close attention to whether the PIP provides specific details supporting the employer’s concerns, noting that some employees are placed on plans that make vague claims, such as being slow with their work or unkind to coworkers, without identifying when or how the alleged issues occurred. She emphasizes that employees should carefully review the document and, if possible, take time to prepare a written response addressing the allegations.
She acknowledges that receiving a PIP can be surprising or overwhelming, and employees may not be in the right frame of mind to respond immediately. She notes that employees are often asked to sign the document simply to acknowledge receipt and explains that they can indicate that they are signing only as received while stating that they disagree with the contents. She recommends requesting a copy of the PIP and taking the necessary time to review it line by line and prepare a detailed response.
She further advises employees to submit their written response to human resources and to the manager who issued the PIP, as well as to that manager’s supervisor when appropriate, particularly when the allegations are untrue. She compares this to responding to an accusation of wrongdoing: if an individual did not commit the alleged conduct, they should clearly state that they did not do it rather than remain silent. She cautions that failing to respond to inaccurate allegations can create problems later if the employee is terminated, because an employer may point to the unchallenged performance issues as justification for the termination.
She notes that failing to respond to a PIP is not necessarily fatal to a potential employment claim, but it can make the case more difficult to establish later. She encourages employees to address inaccurate allegations when they have the opportunity rather than giving up and only seeking legal assistance after termination has already occurred.
