Employee Termination Letter Templates and Samples
What Is an Employee Termination Letter?
When you have decided to fire an employee, you will need to create an Employee Termination Letter that lists the details of the termination process. This letter is important for both the employee that will be terminated as well as for your company’s record-keeping and legal obligations.
A Letter of Employee Termination can be handed to the employee during a face-to-face termination meeting or mailed if this person does not regularly work in your office or is a remote worker. Check out our library below to download printable Employee Termination Letter templates and samples.
Employee Termination Letter Types
Two of the most popular types of Employee Termination Letter templates include:
- At-Will Termination Letter. At-will employment allows the business owner to fire an employee without cause or notice. When writing the employee termination letter you will not be required to state why the employee is losing their job and you can make the termination effective immediately.
- Employment Contract Termination Letter. If an employee is a contract worker, you will need to review the contractor’s terms of agreement to comply with the steps for termination, such as length of time before a final date worked, returning any company property, and how they will receive their final paycheck. If the contract was for a set time period, you will need to include that in your letter.
How to Write a Termination Letter for an Employee?
The proper Employee Termination Letter format should include the following information:
-
The company’s or business’ letterhead at the top of the page.
-
The current date. The name and address of the employee. An opening salutation.
-
Begin the letter by stating that this letter is serving as notice to the employee (mention them by name) that will no longer be an employee at your organization.
- If your employee lives in an at-will employment state, you will need to include language that you are not required by state law to list why the employee is being terminated, and that you reserve the right to terminate the employee without notice;
- If you will need to include reasoning for the employee’s termination, you can include the reasons in this space and offer to provide copies of employee write-ups to support your decision and to avoid future legal disputes;
- If the employee worked as a contractor, you will want to list the termination terms from their contract to ensure that you are following the rules listed in their contract.
-
List any office equipment (such as a company computer, credit card, cell phone, car, etc) the employee was given during the course of their employment in the letter, and how and when the employee will be expected to return the items. You can also include a statement that if the items returned are damaged beyond normal wear and tear you reserve the right to charge the employee the cost of repairing the items.
-
Mention the time or regulatory rules of a Non-Compete Agreement or Non-Disclosure Agreement (if the employee had signed one during their employment) and list the date the agreement will expire.
-
Final payout information for any benefits such as vacation pay, overtime, sick pay, or any other additional pay due to the employee on their final date of employment and include the final payments for these with the letter. Be aware that some states will fine an employer if these benefits are not paid out to a terminated employee within a specific time frame.
Related Letter Templates and Tags:
Documents:
9
PDF 
Word
This Form is used for documenting the right of way parcels in the state of California. It serves as a diary to keep track of the parcels and their corresponding information.
This document serves as a notification to inform the recipient that an employee in Arkansas has been terminated.
This type of letter allows an employer to fire their employees at any time during their employment without giving any particular reasons or explanations.
Use this template if you need to cut down on staff, whether due to a merger, buyout, economic downturn, or decrease in business.
This document is used to formally terminate an employee's employment in the state of Mississippi. It outlines the reasons for termination and provides important details regarding the employee's final paycheck and any benefits they may be entitled to.
This is a document that can be used as a reference when an employer would like to let an employee go without indicating the particular reason for it.
An employer may prepare a letter such as this to send to an employee when the latter could not take advantage of the opportunity to improve their performance and their employment is about to end.
This is a written statement drafted by the human resources department for an employee to inform the latter they are dismissed from their employed position.
