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ABSTRACT
This case is about a professional woman nearing retirement age who was put on a performance improvement plan (PIP) and eventually was offered a severance package to leave her company. The reader explores the issues facing the employee and the employer as they navigate this difficult terrain. Was this a forced or voluntary separation? How did Jill go from her dream job to her demise? Did Jill deserve to be separated based on performance? The Teaching Note (TN) provides expert opinions from the legal and human resource perspectives on the topics of discrimination, employment law, and unjust dismissal. A series of case questions and answers, three suggested teaching activities, and additional resources are included in the teaching note.
Walking Into a Mess
It was my dream job and I loved every minute of the workday. I was in an interface role between the Information Technology department and the accounting department of a major insurance company that employed thousands of employees worldwide, with hundreds of employees at our headquarters in Hartford, CT. As a result, I had access to important company information such as sales, financial results, payroll information, and our clients' and customers' insurance claims. I am a hard worker and a very conscientious employee. At age 58, I've been in the workforce over forty years and I have high expectations for myself and others. Therefore when I observed my coworker Janice throwing away client claims or simply ignoring them in order to reduce her workload in order to meet her numerical targets for the month, it really bothered me. I blew the whistle on Janice, and since the company had a policy that claimed no retaliation, I knew I would be protected. They fired Janice after investigating her claims' log. Luckily the company was able to reestablish those claims that she had physically destroyed.
There's One in Every Company and I Found Her
I was promoted after I blew the whistle and was noticed for my commitment to the company and attention to detail. I really wanted to get ahead in the company so I went back to school to earn a bachelor's degree in Business Administration. My boss in my new job, Carole, only had a GED. After working for her...
