Industry or global closures, cost cutting and spin-offs are just some of the reasons why employees are laid off. Fallon and McConnell (2007) argue that companies make layoffs mainly due to economic problems. Today, many organizations are forced to reduce their workforce due to these factors. However, before layoffs occur in organizations, numerous measures must be taken to ensure the effectiveness of the process. Selection criteria represent the most important aspects of organizations' initial decision to reduce their workforce. Decisions regarding which employees leave or stay should be made before making layoffs. Personnel Policy Service Inc (nd) states that employers should use discretion in determining which employees to fire. When choosing which employees to fire, they suggest that companies use criteria such as length of service (seniority), performance ratings and merit, employment status and job skills. Seniority is a common selection criterion used by many companies to determine which employees stay. “Of all the criteria, seniority is the most objective” (Segal, 2001, p.199). In the case of seniority-based layoffs, the most recently hired employees are the first to be fired. Both Fallon and McConnell (2007) and Personnel Policy Service Inc (n.d.) state that using seniority is advantageous because it is a fair and safe means of determining who to fire. Personnel Policy Service Inc (nd) argues that it is also very simple to implement seniority as a selection criterion. However, using seniority as the sole selection criterion has disadvantages. Companies that use seniority as the sole selection criterion run the risk of losing employees who have competence, initiative and leadership... middle of paper... g layoffs, it is important to establish selection criteria. Regarding dismissal decisions, a hybrid approach applying selection criteria related to seniority and performance should be used. As McConnell (2006) states, it is extremely important that these selection criteria are applied consistently in all dismissal decisions to avoid employee claims of discrimination. Works Cited Fallon, L. F., & McConnell, C. R. (2007). Human resources management in healthcare. Sudbury, MA: Jones and Bartlett Publishers. McConnell, C, R. (2006). Umiker management skills for the new healthcare supervisor (4th ed.). Sudbury, MA: Jones and Bartlett Publishers.Personnel Policy Services inc (nd).Common questions about layoffs. Retrieved from http://www.ppspublishers.com/articles/layoffs.htmSegal, J. A. (2001). Tribal councils in the workplace. Hrmagazine, 46(6), 197. Retrieved from EBSCOhost