# Letting someone go, done right: documentation, final pay and unemployment notices

*Guides · Mays Team · November 10, 2026*

![Mays cover card: Letting someone go, done right: documentation, final pay and unemployment notices — Warnings, final pay deadlines and unemployment notices](https://mays-uploads.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com/site/blog__letting-an-employee-go-restaurant__cover.7de27e4570.png)

Letting someone go is the part of running a restaurant most owners dread. It's often someone you hired yourself, trained yourself and worked next to for months. So it gets put off, the problem gets worse, the rest of the team notices, and when it finally happens it's in a hurry, on a bad day, with nothing written down.

Done right, it's rarely a surprise to the person, it's consistent with how you've treated everyone else, and they leave with their final pay on time and their dignity intact.

This is the last post in our series on leading your first team. It leans on the earlier ones: [monthly check-ins](https://www.mays.app/blog/performance-check-ins-hourly-restaurant-staff) give you the record, and [handling conflict between staff](https://www.mays.app/blog/handling-conflict-between-restaurant-staff) covers what to do before a conflict becomes a firing.

*This is general information, not legal advice. Employment law varies by state and city; if you're unsure, talk to an employment lawyer before you act. Updated October 5, 2026: the federal and state pages cited below were re-checked.*

## Before: make sure it's not a surprise

Except for serious misconduct (theft, violence, coming in drunk, harassment), most firings should come after the person has been told clearly, more than once, what has to change. A simple three-step path:

| Step | What happens | What you write down |
| --- | --- | --- |
| **1. Conversation** | In a check-in or the same week: what you saw, what good looks like, by when | A dated note: the issue and the expectation |
| **2. Written warning** | If it continues: a short letter saying what happened, what must change, and what happens if it doesn't | The letter, signed by both of you (or a note that they declined to sign) |
| **3. Final warning** | If it still continues: the same, saying that the next time ends the job | The letter, signed |

You don't have to follow this path for every problem, and you shouldn't promise in your handbook that you always will. But using it for the usual problems (lateness, no-shows, skipped closing tasks) makes your decisions consistent and easy to explain. Our post on [call-outs and no-shows](https://www.mays.app/blog/restaurant-call-outs-no-shows) covers keeping fair attendance records.

Before you decide, check three things:

- **Consistency.** Have others done the same and kept their jobs? If so, why is this different?
- **Timing.** Has this person recently complained about harassment, pay or safety, asked for an accommodation, or taken protected leave? Firing soon after can look like retaliation, even when it isn't. Talk to a lawyer first.
- **Your own records.** Is the problem written down, with dates? If it's only in your head, it'll be your word against theirs.

## At-will basics

Most US employment is "at will": either side can end it at any time, for any lawful reason or none, without notice. The Department of Labor puts the limits this way: "In general, if the reason for termination is not because of discrimination on these bases, or because of the employee's protected status as a whistleblower, or because they were involved in a complaint filed under one of the laws enforced by the Department of Labor (see Whistleblower and Non-Retaliation Protections), then the termination is subject only to any private contract between the employer and employee or a labor contract between the employer and those covered by the labor contract" ([DOL, termination](https://www.dol.gov/general/topic/termination)).

So the exceptions that matter for a restaurant:

- **Discrimination.** You can't fire someone because of race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, disability or other protected traits. Federal law covers employers above certain sizes, and many state laws reach smaller ones.
- **Retaliation.** You can't fire someone for complaining about discrimination or harassment, a wage problem or a safety issue.
- **Contracts and your own promises.** A written contract, or a handbook that promises a specific process, can limit you. Say in your handbook that it isn't a contract, and don't promise a process you won't follow.
- **Montana.** Montana is the exception to at-will. Its wrongful discharge law says a discharge is wrongful if "the discharge was not for good cause and the employee had completed the employer's probationary period of employment," and that during a probationary period, "the employment may be terminated at the will of either the employer or the employee on notice to the other for any reason or for no reason" ([MCA 39-2-904](https://archive.legmt.gov/bills/mca/title_0390/chapter_0020/part_0090/section_0040/0390-0020-0090-0040.html)). If you're in Montana, read the law before you set a probationary period.

## The conversation

Keep it short, private and decided. It isn't a negotiation and it isn't another warning.

- **Choose the time.** At the start or end of a shift they're on, not in the middle of service, and not by text.
- **Have a witness:** a manager or shift lead, who stays quiet and takes notes.
- **Say it in the first minute.** "I've decided to end your employment, effective today." Then the reason, in a sentence or two, consistent with your warnings. Don't reargue each incident.
- **Cover the practical things:** when and how they'll get their final pay, what happens with tips owed, returning keys and uniforms, and collecting their things.
- **Be kind.** Thank them for what they did well, if you mean it, and let them leave without walking past the whole team.

Write a short note afterwards: date, time, who was there, what was said.

## Final pay: the deadline depends on your state

Federal law doesn't set a deadline for the last paycheck. The Department of Labor says: "Employers are not required by federal law to give former employees their final paycheck immediately. Some states, however, may require immediate payment" ([DOL, last paycheck](https://www.dol.gov/general/topic/wages/lastpaycheck)).

State rules range from "on the spot" to "the next payday," and some depend on whether the person was fired or quit. A few examples for someone you let go, from the official sources:

| State | When final pay is due after you let someone go | Source |
| --- | --- | --- |
| California | "immediately at the time of termination," including accrued vacation | [DLSE, paydays FAQ](https://www.dir.ca.gov/dlse/faq_paydays.htm) |
| Oregon | "not later than the end of the first business day after the discharge or termination" | [ORS 652.140](https://www.oregonlegislature.gov/bills_laws/ors/ors652.html) |
| Missouri | "on the day of the discharge" | [RSMo 290.110](https://revisor.mo.gov/main/OneSection.aspx?section=290.110) |
| Kentucky | the next normal pay period or 14 days after, "whichever last occurs" | [KRS 337.055](https://apps.legislature.ky.gov/law/statutes/statute.aspx?id=32050) |
| Tennessee | the next regular payday or 21 days after, "whichever occurs last" | [TDLWD, wages and breaks](https://www.tn.gov/workforce/employees/labor-laws/labor-laws-redirect/wages-breaks.html) |
| North Carolina | "on or before the next regular payday" | [G.S. 95-25.7](https://www.ncleg.gov/EnactedLegislation/Statutes/HTML/BySection/Chapter_95/GS_95-25.7.html) |

For other states, our state pay pages include a final pay section with the source where the state has a rule, for example [Oregon](https://www.mays.app/blog/oregon-restaurant-pay-rules-2026), [Colorado](https://www.mays.app/blog/colorado-restaurant-pay-rules-2026), [Utah](https://www.mays.app/blog/utah-restaurant-pay-rules-2026), [Kentucky](https://www.mays.app/blog/kentucky-restaurant-pay-rules-2026) and [Tennessee](https://www.mays.app/blog/tennessee-restaurant-pay-rules-2026). Some states also require unused vacation to be paid out, or add penalties for paying late. Check your state's labor department before the conversation, not after.

Practical points:

- **Fix the timesheet first.** Close out their punches, fix missed clock-outs and check their breaks so the final check is right the first time.
- **Include everything owed:** hours up to the last minute worked, overtime, and tips owed to them from the pool.
- **Don't deduct for unreturned keys or uniforms, or for shortages,** without checking the rules first. Federal law limits deductions that take pay below the minimum wage, and many states limit them further; our [cash handling guide](https://www.mays.app/blog/restaurant-cash-handling-till-reconciliation) quotes the federal rule.

## Unemployment: notices where required

Someone you let go may be able to claim unemployment. The Department of Labor explains that "Workers who are unemployed through no fault of their own (as determined under state law), and meet other eligibility requirements, may be eligible to receive unemployment benefits," and that "each state administers a separate unemployment insurance program within guidelines established by federal law" ([DOL, termination](https://www.dol.gov/general/topic/termination)).

Some states require you to give a written notice when someone leaves. California is one: the Employment Development Department says employers "must immediately give written notice to employees if they are fired, laid off, taking a leave of absence, or if their job status changes," and lists the *For Your Benefit* pamphlet (DE 2320) among the materials to give employees ([EDD, required notices and pamphlets](https://edd.ca.gov/en/payroll_taxes/Required_Notices_and_Pamphlets/)). Other states have their own forms and rules, so check your state's unemployment agency for what you must hand over or mail on the last day.

When the state asks you about the claim, answer promptly and truthfully, with your records. Whether the person qualifies is the state's decision, not yours.

## Health coverage

If you offer group health insurance, the person may be able to keep it for a time. The Department of Labor notes that employers "may be required to provide certain notices to their employees", and lists the Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act (COBRA) and the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) ([DOL, termination](https://www.dol.gov/general/topic/termination)). Ask your insurance broker or plan administrator what applies to your plan, and send the notices on time.

## The same day: access, keys and the schedule

- **Remove access** to the POS, the alarm, the scheduling app and any shared logins before or during the conversation.
- **Collect keys,** and change the safe combination or alarm codes they knew.
- **Take them off future shifts** and fill the gaps.
- **Remove them from group chats.**
- **Tell the team briefly,** without details: "Alex no longer works here. Here's how we're covering the shifts." Gossip fills any silence, so say something.

## Afterwards

Note what you'd do differently: a hiring signal you missed, a warning that came too late. Keep the records (warnings, the termination note, final pay, any notices) together and private.

## Where Mays fits

- **Remove access the same day.** On the web, the **⋮** menu on a person under **Locations & Users → Users** has **Deactivate**; in the app it's in the person's **Danger zone**. They're signed out everywhere and can't sign in on the web, in the app or on a shared kiosk, their phone stops getting notifications from your business, and recurring checklists stop giving them tasks. Managers can deactivate employees at their own locations.
- **Reassign their shifts.** Shifts already assigned to them stay assigned, marked **Inactive**, so give them to someone else or make them open shifts.
- **Take them out of group chats.** Deactivating stops their messages and notifications, but they're still listed as a member of their group chats until a group admin removes them.
- **Get the final hours right.** Under **Scheduling → Time Clock**, open the pay period, filter **Employee Punches** by the person, and check the **Warnings** tab for a missing punch-out before you pay. The **Cards** layout splits their hours into **Regular**, **OT** and **Total**. The **Standard CSV** and **Gusto timesheet** exports cover the whole location for the period, so for a final check outside the normal payroll run, read the person's hours from the punches, or export **Scheduling → Reports → Employee Timesheet** and filter it in a spreadsheet.
- **History is kept.** Deactivating deletes nothing. Their punches, timesheets and exports stay as they were, and you can reactivate them if they come back.

Mays doesn't track warnings, store termination letters or signed documents, remind you of your state's final pay deadline, or produce unemployment notices. Keep those in your own records. Don't use the **Notes** box on a person's profile for discipline: it has no dates or history, and anyone who can open their profile can read it.

## Your letting-go checklist

- Problems raised early, with dated notes and written warnings
- Consistency, timing and records checked before deciding
- A short, private conversation with a witness, and a note afterwards
- Your state's final pay deadline checked, and the timesheet fixed first
- Unemployment and health coverage notices given where your state or plan requires them
- Access removed, keys collected, codes changed and shifts reassigned the same day
- The team told briefly, and records kept together and private

## Run your team with Mays

Keep the schedule, the time clock and the team list in one place, from the first hire to the last day.

[**Start your free trial**](https://go.mays.app/register): 30 days, every module, no card needed. That's the end of our series on leading your first team. Start from the beginning with [delegating as a new owner](https://www.mays.app/blog/delegating-as-a-new-restaurant-owner).

## Related help articles

- Team & roles: [Deactivating team members and deleting accounts](https://www.mays.app/help/team-roles/deactivate-and-delete-users) — When someone leaves, deactivate them. They can't sign in, but their hours and history stay. Staff can delete their own account in the app; an admin can restore it for 30 days, then its contact and sign-in details are removed.
- Time clock: [Timesheets and pay periods](https://www.mays.app/help/time-clock/timesheets-and-pay-periods) — Review every punch in a pay period on the Time Clock page — fix, add or delete punches, approve them, check warnings and hours, then close the period for payroll.
- Time clock: [Exporting payroll (CSV and Gusto)](https://www.mays.app/help/time-clock/payroll-export-and-gusto) — Download a pay period's hours as a Standard CSV or a Gusto timesheet, and add your Gusto employee IDs so the Gusto file imports cleanly.
- Scheduling: [Scheduling reports](https://www.mays.app/help/scheduling/scheduling-reports) — Ten ready-made reports on sales, labor, hours, overtime, time off, attendance, the shift pool and tips — for any date range, one location at a time, with CSV export.
- Team chat: [Group chats](https://www.mays.app/help/team-chat/group-chats) — Chat with several coworkers at once. Anyone can start a group, its admins decide who's in it, and managers and admins can rename or delete it.

Canonical: https://www.mays.app/blog/letting-an-employee-go-restaurant