Our Employee Ghosted Us. Now What?

In the spirit of Valentine’s Day, we are covering the concept of “ghosting”—a popular term in dating culture, which refers to suddenly ending all communication and contact with someone.

Ghosting also occurs in the workplace when the company has not heard from an employee in a while. Whether the employee has decided to leave the workplace or perhaps they are dealing with a personal issue, employers are often unsure of how to handle this tricky situation. When an employee ghosts you, when can you process a separation from employment, and how do you get the employee their final check?

If You are Ghosted by an "Unrequited Love" (i.e., Unreachable Employee) Here’s What to Do:

• Make Initial Attempts to Reach Out: First, employers should initiate contact using various forms of communication, such as a phone call, texting, email, and even mailing correspondence. If you have a reason to believe the employee may be dealing with a medical issue or emergency, you may also refer to their emergency contacts in their personnel file. Make sure to document all communication attempts. This shows a reasonableness and good faith effort on the part of the employer, especially in the event the employee was dealing with an emergency or unforeseen circumstance.
• Review Your No Call, No Show Policy: If your communication attempts are unsuccessful, it may be time to review your no call, no show and/or attendance policies. Many companies implement these policies to account for these circumstances, and such policies often indicate when the absence is considered a voluntary resignation (e.g., “if the employee is a no call, no show for three consecutive workdays, it will be considered a voluntary resignation on the close of the third day”). Remember that you may need to make exceptions to the policy in the event you find out the employee was dealing with a medical issue protected under mandatory paid sick leave, CFRA/FMLA, the ADA/FEHA, or another leave of absence. Thus, it is our recommendation to make initial communication attempts before immediately processing it as a voluntary resignation.
• Notify Employee of Next Steps: Although not required, it is also a best practice to send a final warning correspondence, often in the form of a written letter, providing a deadline that the employee must return by to avoid processing a voluntary resignation. If the employee has already exceeded the number of absences allowed in your no call, no show policy, be sure to inform them in the letter as well. Again, attempt to send the correspondence through various communication channels (e.g., email/mail).
• Consider Processing Separation from Employment: If all attempts are unsuccessful, it may be time to process the employee’s voluntary resignation. You can follow up with a letter to the employee letting them know the date of their separation from employment, who they can contact with questions, and instructions for processing final paperwork, picking up their check, and arranging to gather personal belongings. Refer to our digital termination packet, available on our store for purchase.

Hold the Final Check: One big mistake that employers make is that they mail the final check to the employee they have not heard from. However, the California Labor Commissioner does not explicitly authorize employers to mail the final check unless they have received advanced authorization from a resigning employee. As such, if you mail the check, you risk waiting time penalties because you arguably sent it improperly and/or because you did not send it to the employee’s current address.

Instead, it is best to hold the final check at the employee’s worksite and let them know in your correspondence that their check is immediately available for pick up. To avoid a potential waiting-time-penalty claim, make sure the final check is ready by their last day of employment.

In the event the employee never comes to pick up their final check, it is a best practice to hold on to the check for about a year. After that, the employer may send the unclaimed wages to the Labor Commissioner. Learn more about that process on the California Division of Industrial Relations website. This is also  a good reminder to ensure you update employee contact information at least annually to ensure you have their correct phone number, email, and mailing address.