How long staff inactive before firing?

[ClicketyKat]

How long do you let your staff remain inactive before you fire them? I've given a staff member 2 months to return because I thought he was valuable and then I was fed up after that. If the person doesn't respect me enough to even let me know he'd be gone, I should look for someone who does respect me.

 

[Cory]

I usually give them about half a year and if I hear no word from them during that time, I generally demote them. I'm not sure why I allow such a long time span, but I suppose it's because I know people can often get busy with other things or lose interest and maybe want to come back later on and continue their original position. I know I've taken various long breaks from forums before and I generally always come back right where I left off.

 

[Shortie]

When I hire staff members for my forum I usually ask that they be active daily even if it's just for a little while or let me know if they are going to be inactive for a while to let me know so that I am aware. If a staff member of mine leaves and doesn't come back for a while I will contact them asking if everything is okay but if I get no response I will demote them. I feel that if you wish to be a staff member on a forum you have to let the owner know if you will be away for a while so they know.

 

[haywhy1]

Normally you should not allow too much time to elapse. It's your workplace, replace them as soon as possible so as to avoid setbacks.

 

[Cedric]

When I used to administrate forums in my teenager days, I would be fed up if a staff member did not sign in for a few days. Especially if you see said staff member active on other forums. Nowadays I don't mind any amount of time as I know we as an adult have busy lives.

 

[MisterBobbyPin]

I would try to be patient with them but some people never actually cared about the job and merely got it for the title. The sooner you get rid of those people the better it will be.

 

[Reverie]

Kind of like Cedric - when I was younger my time span for this was much shorter - perhaps 2 weeks - 3 weeks. Now a days I think I would wait at least 1 month - 2 months depending if I know for a fact they have something going on. After a month I would likely try to reach out to them and see if they are doing okay and if I could support them in any way.

 

[Ravenfreak]

I'd wait about a month to see if they return. I understand that life can get in the way at times, and people need to tend to things offline. I will send them a message or a email after a month just to see if everything is okay and if they need more time. If they don't respond, then I will demote them.

 

[Heatman]

For a staff, there's no way I would give you more than 1 month to come back or give me a feedback on why you can't get back for the time being. If the staff goes missing for 1 month without telling me, he's getting off the staff team!

 

[Starforce]

This is a tough question, because it really depends on the reason for the inactivity and what the expectations are for team member engagement within the community. No two situations are alike, from my experience.

I don't generally terminate a team member from their position solely based on their inactivity. If we can't come to terms on their return to activity, I may consider temporarily restricting their privileges until such time they're comfortable with coming back. Typically, I'll start reaching out around the 90 day mark.

If we cannot come to terms on a return date together, and only when the decision is mutual (i.e. a resignation), will I irrevocably remove anyone from my team.