Letter confirming no further steps after a performance warning

What’s a letter confirming no further steps about an employee’s performance (after a warning) and when should you use it?

This letter forms part of our suite of materials to support you where you’ve invoked your performance improvement policy and its process because of your concerns relating to the quality of performance that an employee is achieving, which may include concerns about whether they are in fact capable of performing the role that they currently hold in your business.

It’s not the same as a disciplinary process.

This letter confirms that the employee has successfully addressed the performance or capability concerns that you’ve raised and warned them about earlier and therefore you are closing your performance process for now.

It also warns them that if they do not maintain expected standards of performance, you have the right to reopen the process and, potentially, to issue further warnings that could lead to their dismissal.

Your employment contract with the employee and your performance improvement policy within your staff handbook should make clear what constitutes poor performance and therefore justifies you issuing a first, and any subsequent, written warnings.

Our guide to employee performance management can also help you to assess the seriousness of an employee’s lack of performance and your rights in response to it.

Finally, you should only use this suite of materials in relation to employees.

If you were to apply your performance improvement proceedings to someone who’s not an employee, or to treat them in an equivalent manner, this could lead inadvertently to an employment tribunal concluding that that individual does in fact have employment status – with the enhanced rights attaching to such status.

It would be better to seek specific advice on how to handle anyone whose performance is a problem but who is not an employee.