5 ways to handle demotions effectively

Generally speaking, every employee seeks promotion. If workers are productive, come in on time and show consistent effort at improving, business owners are happy to oblige. But every now and then, promotions fail to pay off, forcing managers into unenviable positions: relinquishing their workers' sometimes short-lived advancements.

Demotions are fairly common, according to newly released polling. At 46 percent, almost half of respondents in a recent OfficeTeam poll said they've witnessed someone at their workplace be demoted. In the lion's share of these instances, workers losing a rung on the upward mobility ladder stemmed from underwhelming performance, slightly more common than simply not living up to expectations in their new positions.

Brandi Britton, a district president for the staffing services and recruitment firm, said demotion rationales run the gamut and may not always be related to productivity, or lack thereof.

"A demotion may happen for a variety of reasons, including performance issues, organizational changes, and an employee requesting fewer responsibilities due to personal or career priorities," Britton explained.

Perhaps unsurprisingly, workers don't take the unseating well, particularly when they don't feel it's justified. The same poll found that in response to demotions, 52 percent of workers decided to quit altogether, with 47 percent so discouraged by the move that they lost their enthusiasm for work.

Occasionally when workers get demoted, signs existed in the vetting process that suggested they should never have been hired in the first place. This may explain why nearly 60 percent of employers who use social media to finding out more about candidates decide not to hire workers based on questionable content they observed on candidates' profiles.

Whether demotions result from performance, behavior, company cutbacks or workloads simply being too overwhelming for employees to assume, they have to be handled tactfully to ensure feelings aren't hurt and something positive can result from it. Here are a few recommendations for how to go about it from the Society for Human Resource Management:

1. Be sensitive to worker's feelings
The fact that an employee gets demoted is an indication that they're valuable enough to be retained. As such, it's important to be respectful of the individual so he or she recognizes that the move is for his or her own good.

2. Be clear
There shouldn't be any confusion as to why the person is being demoted. He or she may not necessarily agree with the decision, but if the move is entirely due to performance or a combination of factors, state a few examples so that everyone is on the same page.

3. Lay out the transition plan
Before speaking to the staff member about the company's decision, a transition plan should already be in place so that it can occur as smoothly as possible. This ensures that productivity keeps moving forward and shows the worker that time and effort was put into the restructuring.

4. Be prepared for pushback
How the worker takes the promotion is a big question, which may be influenced by how you present the case and the individual's temperament. Try to put yourself into his or her situation and come up with some answers to likely questions. They may ask if the demotion is a definite, if they can be given time to think it over or what the alternative is should they refuse to take the different position.

5. Address salary
Promotions don't always result in higher pay, nor do demotions uniformly lead to reduced income. That said, in instances where what they make is impacted, don't avoid the topic. It's important to mention to be respectful of the employee and maintain a clear channel of communication.

Employment law can be a complicated minefield, as workers have their rights that businesses are required to uphold when contracts are signed. The business lawyers at Hudspeth Law Firm can direct your path so you avoid any missteps.

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