How to Terminate an Employee in Workday

Learn the step-by-step process for executing an employee termination within the Workday platform. This guide covers selecting the appropriate termination reasons, entering final dates, and uploading required documentation to ensure compliance. Security Roles: Manager, Department Admin, Student Employment Partner, Faculty Partner

Workday

Employee Search

Go to the employee's summary page and click on "Actions."

Termination Reason and Dates

Click the green checkmark to open the fields for editing, then click in the Search bar to select a reason. Most terminations will be voluntary. If this is voluntary, then click voluntary and select the most appropriate reason. (please note that if this is a state agency transfer, the last date at W&M and the first date at the new agency should be back-to-back dates, even if the dates are on a weekend or holiday.) If this termination is involuntary, please select the most accurate reason.

For this example, the reason is "Voluntary > New Job (Not a State Agency Transfer)"

Note: secondary reason is not necessary, and can be left blank.

Click the edit icon for the Details section

Dates: The **Termination Date** and the **Pay Through Date** should be the same. This is the employee's last day on payroll, and also the last day they will have access to Workday, email, and other systems (excepting faculty and students). Ideally, the Termination Date and the Pay Through Date should be the last day of a pay period (the 24th or 9th). However, employee's can terminate in the middle of a pay period. For salaried employees, this means the last paycheck will be prorated. The **Last Day of Work** can sometimes be earlier than the other two dates, especially if the employee is using any leave hours during the last pay period. Think of this as the last day in the office.\ \ It is not unusual for all three dates to be the same, and this is fine.\ \ The resignation date is an optional field. This represents the date the letter of resignation was provided to the Manager or department. If you know this date, please enter it in.

In this example the last date for all three is 7/9/26. When date entry is complete, click the green check mark to close the fields.

Set "Regrettable" to yes and close the field to save.

Attachments and Submission

Use this area to upload a letter of resignation. Once uploaded, please title it, and then enter "Termination" for the category.

Enter a comment if needed. Please do not enter any confidential information into this field. Once all necessary fields have been completed, click "Submit" and your task is completed.