Devjani Mishra Quoted in Thomson West’s Employee Termination Law Bulletin

“You Can Fire a Poor Performer Who’s Pregnant, It Just Takes Good Documentation”

Devjani Mishra was quoted in the article, “You Can Fire a Poor Performer Who’s Pregnant, It Just Takes Good Documentation,” in the July 2007 issue of Employee Termination Law Bulletin. Devjani notes that, “The fact that a person is pregnant isn’t a barrier to action.” For employees whose performance problems arise after they announce that they are pregnant, Devjani suggests employers engage the employee by asking for her perspective on her performance. Devjani points out that although an employer shouldn’t directly ask whether a performance issue is performance related, “You can say to an employee, ‘I’ve noticed you’ve been consistently late’ or ‘I’ve noticed your performance is slipping, can you tell me what’s going on?’” If the employee gives a response that is pregnancy-related, accommodations could be in order; otherwise, disciplinary actions or warnings may be appropriate. Devjani also notes that employers “need to ask if the rules are enforced for everybody or just the person who is pregnant.”