商務禮節美語第191期:You are fired 你被解僱了(上)

部門經理Paul Chen和他的上司Sue Krammer要開除一名僱員。

P: Sue, I really need your help with this one.

S: Oh? What's the problem?

P: I've been asked to fire Tom Smith.

S: ng someone is hard. I've had to do it many times.

P: I hate it. It's probably the worst part of my job as a manager.

S: has to be done and somebody's got to do it. In this .

Peter要解僱Tom Smith, 問Sue該怎麼做。 Sue說，開除手下確實是一件頭痛的事情，但Somebody's got to do it. 總要有人去做。

P: I know...I just want some advice on how to do this properly.

S: Well, let's review Tom's case, shall we? First question: Have you given him fair warning?

P: I believe so. I spoke to Tom in March and in May. I informed him he was on probation.

S: he knows he's on thin ice. So this action isn't going to be a complete surprise to him, right?

P: No. He should understand by now that the company is not really happy with his performance.

Paul說，他事先警告過Tom. I informed him he was on probation. On probation意思是留職查看。換句話說，He knows he's on thin ice. On thin ice如履薄冰，在這的意思就是他知道公司對他的表現不滿意，知道自己可能會丟飯碗。

S: I think you should simply give Tom a list of behaviors the company has found unacceptable and then fire him. You can't allow him to drag you into an argument or debate. In this case you are merely the messenger and it's really not personal.

P: And if he promises to change and do better?

S: You have to firmly but politely let him know that the time for improvement has passed.

Sue建議，可以列舉Tom種種令人不滿的表現，然後告訴他被解僱了，不給他爭辯的機會。You can't allow him to drag you into an argument or debate。因爲Paul只是傳達上級的決定，you are merely the messenger。你只不過是個傳信的，It's not personal. 不是針對個人，只是公事公辦而已。如果Tom保證改過自新呢？ Sue建議，要 firmly but politely既堅定又客氣地告訴他，沒有機會了。

S: Are you planning on asking him to sign a release form?

P: Yes. The policy is if you voluntarily sign a paper accepting your termination, you get 6 weeks of severance pay. Otherwise, if you wish to challenge the decision, you get just two weeks.

S: . So go ahead and call him in. Remember: keep it simple. Inform him of the decision and tell him why, then explain the severance deal.

P: goes. (Picks up phone) Kathy, please ask Tom to come ks.

Sue最後提醒Paul, 要keep it simple. 越簡潔越好。