Legal Question in Employment Law in California

Speak to your supervisor and the people in HR to develop a common approach. You need to thoroughly document the persons job performance, including the non-negative, offer written and oral suggestions on improvement, etc., follow the Skelley procedures. I used to handle the legal side of the City of Oakland in Civil Service punishment cases and if the paper work is properly done you can get the person fired. Much of the time, the City did a poor job in documenting the shortcomings of the employee, but if handled correctly, including by counsel at the hearing, yo can get even someone who is "protected" fired.

The only way you're going to get any meaningful and informed opinion/advice, upon which you can rely with some sense of safety, is to sit down with experienced counsel, who will be able to provide it to you only after reviewing all the facts with you. You can not get 'legal advice' here; that would be against the professional ethics rules for an attorney to provide it to non-clients. At best, you are getting only 'helpful hints and tips', based on insufficient scraps of information. Are you willing to make business decisions that way, that could get you sued? Unless you are the decision maker in the company, you should not be taking any action without consulting with the company management, and possibly with the attorneys. That discussion will involve 'at will' employment rules, retaliation considerations, etc. If you conclude you are serious about getting your own legal counsel, feel free to contact me.