Is Employment at Will a Good Thing?

Employment at will sounds like a good thing. Right? It sounds like you have a choice. Well over the last several weeks I have heard cases from both sides of the fence. A group of girlfriends living in LA struggle will the "at will" law everyday. Their hotel chain employers (as they are waitresses and hostess) fire them at the drop of a dime and without reason. Making it difficult to understand what they've done. On the other hand, a group of HR executives I work with still feel that there are several people (specifically older,minorities) that are low performers but even with the"at will" they can't let them go.

So is the Employment at will law helping enough or hurting employees too much already?

You’re loosing buddy!

We are all driven by different motivators (for example, affiliation, power, competition, recognition) but research illustrates that we all work all little harder when we think we are slightly behind. From the NBA to the manufacturing line people and teams that are slightly behind have boasts in their motivation and performance. Jonah Berger from Wharton School of Business suggests that managers should capitalize on this finding by using competitive feedback as an incentive tool. However, there is a caveat. Managers shouldn’t over use competitive feedback. There is a tipping point where employees who constantly hear that they are slightly behind become demotivated and give up trying.

*For more information on this entry see Harvard Business Review, October 2011 issue