Reuters - U.S. consumer confidence rose slightly in December, with marginal improvement in the outlook for business conditions, employment and inflation, according to a private report on Thursday. Continue

AP - U.S. factories saw orders for costly manufactured goods rise only marginally in November falling short of expectations for a much bigger gain and underscoring the strains on the economy from housing and credit problems. Continue
You also should document all the corrective actions you took to help him or her improve job performance. I recommend you send a hard copy of the firing documents (lay off notice, separation settlement, COBRA notice, final paycheck and severance check) to the employee's home address by certified mail, return-receipt requested. Most importantly, your employee dismissal agreement should specify the jobholder can't hold your business liable for any debt or to bring a legal action against the company.

Notification #3: "Low Risk" Layoff Notice - Layoff On the account of Business Desires. If you don't pay a severance, you may face a law suit under one of 3 circumstances. The answer is "absolutely not." This worker in his or her current state is a liability for your business. Ignoring such a request is gross misconduct. Before bringing in the worker to your office, jot down a few notes to think about why you should lay off the jobholder. Document Your Grounds for Terminating a jobholder. Due to the jobholder's actions, we have no choice but to sever ties with [worker name] beginning 00/00/0000. For whatever reason, a bad employee is not producing the quantity or quality of work they must to remain a part of the organization. Giving notice allows the employee time to steal confidential information, stir-up the remaining personnel and commit sabotage. However, if you're going to terminate 500 or more workforce at any one location, you also should give a 60 days notice. Make clear the reasons why you must dismiss him or her. Feel free to call the Personnel Boss at 555-1212 if there are any further questions.