Calgary Employment Lawyers Helping Employers Manage Employee Performance

Managing employee performance effectively means setting clear expectations, addressing concerns early and giving employees a fair opportunity to succeed while protecting your business from unnecessary legal risk.

What Is Employee Performance Management?

Employee performance management is the ongoing process of setting expectations, reviewing an employee’s work, providing feedback and addressing performance concerns when they arise.

Good performance management is not limited to situations where an employee is struggling.

It should be part of the entire employment relationship and can include:

• Setting clear job duties and responsibilities;
• Establishing reasonable performance standards;
• Providing regular feedback;
• Recognizing strong performance;
• Identifying performance gaps;
• Providing coaching, training or support;
• Documenting significant concerns;
• Using a Performance Improvement Plan where appropriate; and
• Taking disciplinary or other employment action when problems are not resolved.

A consistent approach can help employees understand what is expected of them and can help employers address problems before they become more serious.

When Is Employee Performance Management Appropriate?

Employers generally have the right to establish reasonable workplace expectations and manage employee performance.

Performance management may be appropriate where an employee:

• Is not meeting reasonable productivity expectations;
• Repeatedly misses deadlines;
• Produces work that does not meet required quality standards;
• Makes recurring errors;
• Fails to complete important duties;
• Requires an unreasonable level of supervision for their role;
• Does not follow established workplace procedures; or
• Continues to experience performance problems after receiving feedback or coaching.

Performance management can also be used proactively. Employers should not wait until an employee is failing before discussing goals, expectations and areas for development.

Does Performance Management Apply to Probationary Employees?

Yes.

Employers should manage the performance of probationary employees just as carefully as longer-service employees.

Does Performance Management Apply to Long-Service Employees?

Yes.

An employee’s length of service does not prevent an employer from addressing legitimate performance concerns.

However, length of service and an employee’s previous performance history can be important when deciding how to respond.

For example, a long-service employee with many years of strong performance who suddenly begins struggling may warrant a different approach than an employee with a lengthy history of documented performance concerns.

A sudden decline can also be a reason to consider whether there is an underlying medical, personal or workplace issue affecting performance.

What Rights Do Employees Have During Performance Management?

Employees do not have a general right to perform their jobs without criticism, feedback or reasonable performance expectations.

Employers are entitled to manage their businesses and require employees to perform the duties of their positions.

However, employees retain important legal rights throughout the performance management process.

Employees Have the Right to Be Free From Discrimination

Performance standards and performance management decisions must comply with the Alberta Human Rights Act. See our page on Workplace Human Rights & Accommodation [link to page] for more information.

An employer cannot avoid its human rights obligations by describing a discriminatory decision as a performance issue.

Employees May Have a Right to Accommodation

Sometimes an apparent performance problem is connected to a disability or another protected ground.

For example, an employee experiencing a medical condition may:

• Work more slowly than usual;
• Make unexpected errors;
• Have difficulty concentrating;
• Experience attendance problems; or
• Have difficulty completing particular duties.

Where an employer knows—or reasonably should know—that a disability may be affecting an employee’s performance, the employer may have a duty to inquire [link to page on Duty to Inquire].

Employers must accommodate employees based on protected grounds to the point of undue hardship [link to page on Accommodation under Workplace Human Rights & Accommodation].

Performance expectations should take any required accommodation into account.

Employees Should Know What Is Expected of Them

Employers are in a much stronger position when employees clearly understand:

• Their job duties;
• The expected standard of performance;
• How their performance will be evaluated;
• Where their performance is deficient; and
• What improvement is required.

This is particularly important where an employer may eventually rely on repeated poor performance to justify more serious discipline or termination for cause.

What Are an Employer’s Obligations When Managing Performance?

Employers should approach performance management as a process rather than a single conversation. 

The appropriate process will depend on the employee, the workplace and the nature of the problem.

Set Clear and Reasonable Expectations

Employees cannot reliably meet expectations they do not understand.

Employers should establish expectations through:

• Job descriptions;
• Employment agreements;
• Workplace policies;
• Training;
• Written procedures;
• Performance goals; and
• Regular discussions with supervisors.

Expectations should be reasonable, job-related and sufficiently specific that the employee can understand what successful performance looks like.

Avoid relying entirely on vague expectations such as:

• “Show more initiative.”
• “Improve your attitude.”
• “Be more professional.”
• “You need to do better.”

Instead, describe the behaviour or result that needs to change.

Address Performance Problems Early

Allowing a performance issue to continue for months without discussion can make the problem harder to resolve.

Early feedback gives an employee an opportunity to correct the problem before it becomes entrenched.

When a concern arises, promptly:

1. Identify the specific issue.
2. Confirm the facts.
3. Discuss it with the employee.
4. Listen to the employee’s explanation.
5. Clarify the required standard.
6. Identify what needs to change.
7. Determine what support is appropriate.
8. Set a reasonable time to review progress.

Give Employees Meaningful Feedback

Effective feedback should be timely, specific and focused on conduct or results rather than personal characteristics.

For example, instead of saying:

“You are careless.”

an employer might say:

“Four invoices submitted this month contained incorrect billing information and required correction before they could be sent to clients.”

The second approach identifies the concern without making an unnecessary personal judgment.

Whenever possible, explain:

• What happened;
• Why it is a problem;
• What standard applies;
• What needs to change; and
• When improvement will be reviewed.

Provide Appropriate Training and Support

An employer should consider whether reasonable support may resolve the problem.

That support could include:

• Additional training;
• Coaching or Mentorship;
• More frequent supervision;
• Written procedures;
• Checklists;
• Technology or other tools;
• Clarification of responsibilities; or
• Regular review meetings.

Employers do not have to indefinitely coach an employee who cannot meet reasonable job expectations. However, providing appropriate support can improve performance and demonstrate that the employee was given a genuine opportunity to succeed.

Document Significant Performance Concerns

Good documentation can become critical if a performance issue escalates.

Employers should maintain clear records of:

• The performance concern;
• Specific examples;
• Relevant dates;
• Discussions with the employee, including any explanation provided by the employee;
• Coaching or training provided;
• Expectations communicated;
• Warnings issued;
• Accommodation considerations, if any;
• Follow-up meetings; and
• Improvement or continued deficiencies.

Documentation should be accurate, factual and objective. Avoid unnecessarily emotional, exaggerated or accusatory language.

The goal is to create an accurate record of what occurred—not to manufacture evidence for a future termination.

When Should an Employer Use a Performance Improvement Plan?

Where informal coaching has not resolved ongoing performance concerns, an employer may consider a Performance Improvement Plan (PIP) [link to our Performance Improvement Plan page here].

Performance Management and Progressive Discipline

Employers sometimes use progressive discipline where performance or conduct problems continue. See our page on Discipline [link to page] for more information.

Employers should also distinguish poor performance from deliberate misconduct. Different considerations can apply. See our page on Performance Improvement Plans [link to page] for more information.

Can Poor Performance Lead to Termination?

Yes.

An employer may ultimately decide to terminate an employee whose performance does not meet the requirements of the position.

However, an important distinction exists between termination without cause [link to Wrongful Dismissal/Termination Without Cause page] and termination for just cause [link to Just Cause page].

Poor performance does not automatically amount to just cause.

The employer bears the burden of establishing just cause. Because that threshold can be difficult to meet, employers should obtain legal advice before terminating an employee for cause based on poor performance.

What to Do Next When an Employee Is Underperforming

When a performance problem develops, Alberta employers should:

• Define the problem. Identify specific examples rather than relying on general impressions.
• Check the expectations. Make sure the employee knew what standard applied.
• Talk to the employee. Ask for their explanation before deciding what the problem means.
• Consider accommodation. Determine whether a disability or another protected ground could be affecting performance.
• Provide support. Offer reasonable training, coaching or resources where appropriate.
• Set measurable expectations. Tell the employee exactly what improvement is required.
• Document the process. Keep accurate records of important discussions, warnings and progress.
• Follow up. Review performance rather than allowing the issue to drift.
• Escalate proportionately. Consider a PIP or progressive discipline where appropriate.
• Get legal advice before termination. In particular, obtain advice before alleging just cause or making substantial changes to the employee’s employment.

Getz Collins and Associates: Helping Alberta Employers Manage Employee Performance

Employee performance problems can affect productivity, workplace morale and client service. They can also create significant legal risk when concerns are allowed to continue or are handled inconsistently.

The employment lawyers at Getz Collins and Associates help Alberta employers develop practical performance management strategies that address workplace problems while reducing legal exposure.

We can assist employers with:

• Performance management strategies;
• Employee coaching and discipline processes;
• Performance Improvement Plans;
• Written warnings;
• Workplace policies and procedures;
• Disability and accommodation issues;
• Difficult employee meetings;
• Assessing potential just cause;
• Employment agreement reviews; and
• Termination planning.

Getting advice before a performance issue escalates can help an employer identify the right approach and avoid decisions that may lead to wrongful dismissal or human rights claims.

From our Calgary office, Getz Collins and Associates advises employers throughout Alberta, including Calgary, Airdrie, Cochrane, Okotoks, Drumheller, Chestermere and surrounding communities.

Call 587-391-5600 or contact us online to schedule a consultation with an employment lawyer.