Free Letter of Concern to Employee Templates
Free letter of concern to employee templates and examples for performance, attendance, and conduct. Informal, not a warning. Download as DOCX.
Letter of Concern to Employee Templates
6 free letter of concern examples for small business, covering performance, attendance, conduct, and confirming a conversation, each written as an informal step before any warning. Download all as DOCX files in one download.
The first time I had to raise a real problem with someone on my own team, I did the thing most founders do. I said something in passing, we both nodded, and I told myself it was handled. Three months later the same issue came back, and neither of us remembered the conversation the same way. That gap is what a letter of concern closes.
A letter of concern sits in the space between a quiet word and a formal warning. It is written, it is dated, and it is specific, but it is not discipline and it says so on its face. For a small business that is often the exact tool you need: enough weight that the message lands, not so much that a first mistake turns into a file entry the person carries for a year.
Below are six letter of concern examples covering the situations that actually come up: general, performance, attendance, conduct, a summary letter after a verbal conversation, and a short plain version for a small team. Each is free, fill in the blanks, and written to stay clearly on the informal side of the line.
What a Letter of Concern Is
A letter of concern is a short written note from a manager or owner that raises a performance, attendance, or conduct issue before any formal discipline starts. It records what was observed, the expectation going forward, and a date to check in, and it states plainly that it is not a warning.
You will see the same document called a counseling letter, a counseling memo, or a letter of caution. The names differ by industry; the function does not. Stanford's staff policy draws the line most clearly, splitting corrective action into informal non-disciplinary corrective action, such as verbal and written coaching, and formal disciplinary corrective action, such as written warnings that go in the personnel file. A letter of concern sits squarely in the first category.
That placement is the whole design. Because the letter carries no consequence, you can send it early, while the problem is one month old rather than one year old. Most concerns raised at that stage never need a second document, which is the outcome you actually want.
Letter of Concern vs Written Warning
A letter of concern is informal and carries no consequence; a written warning is a formal disciplinary step that goes in the personnel file and states what happens if the issue continues. Choosing between them comes down to how serious the issue is and whether you have raised it before.
| Letter of concern | Written warning | Improvement plan | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Status | Informal, not discipline | Formal disciplinary step | Formal, structured program |
| Typical trigger | A first, minor, correctable issue | A repeat issue, or a serious one | Sustained performance below standard |
| Consequence language | None | Further discipline up to termination | Termination if targets are missed |
| Usual filing | Manager or supervisor file | Personnel file | Personnel file |
| Length | One page | One to two pages | Multi-week plan with milestones |
| What closes it | A check-in with the issue resolved | A review date with the issue resolved | Meeting the plan targets in full |
The practical rule I use: if I would be uncomfortable saying out loud that the person's job is at risk, the document should not imply it. A letter of concern that borrows warning language is the worst of both, because it frightens the employee without giving you the record a real warning creates.
Escalation runs in one direction. If the concern repeats past the check-in date, the next step is a first written warning, then whatever your progressive discipline policy defines.
For sustained performance problems rather than a single lapse, a performance improvement plan is usually the better next document. The letter of concern still helps in that case, because it shows the standard was raised and explained before the formal plan started.
What to Include, and What to Leave Out
A complete letter of concern answers four things: what this document is, what happened, what you need instead, and when you will look at it again. What you leave out matters just as much, because one borrowed sentence from a warning template changes the character of the whole letter.
The support line is the part most templates skip and the part employees notice first. Asking what is going on, and offering something concrete, is what separates a letter that fixes a problem from one that just records it.
Which Letter of Concern Should You Use?
Pick by the situation, not by severity, since every version here is informal by design. One is all-purpose, three are organized by issue type, one confirms a conversation you already had, and one is a stripped-down version for a small team that does not want a formal document.
6 Free Letter of Concern Templates
Copy any letter below, or take all six as DOCX files in one download. Each follows the same shape: what this is and is not, dated observations, the expectation, support and a check-in date, space for the employee to respond, and a receipt-not-agreement acknowledgment line. Replace the blanks with your specifics.
Template 1: General Letter of Concern (All Purpose)
The default version: the observation, the expectation, the support on offer, and a check-in date, with a plain line saying this is not a disciplinary action. Use it when no issue-specific version fits.
Template 2: Letter of Concern for Performance
For work that is slipping: dated examples, the countable standard for the role, the support you are offering, and a named next step if the standard is not met by the check-in. It leads into a performance improvement plan only if the concern does not close.
Template 3: Letter of Concern for Attendance and Lateness
For a small attendance pattern: each occurrence with scheduled and actual times, the call-out procedure, and a stop-and-check reminder about protected leave before you send it.
Template 4: Letter of Concern for Conduct and Professionalism
For behavior that affected the people around it: what was said or done, who it affected, and the standard going forward. It carries a note on when a situation is too serious for this letter, including anything that looks like a refused directive rather than a one-off.
Template 5: Letter of Concern After a Verbal Conversation
The summary letter you send after a talk: the concern, what each side agreed to, the check-in date, and an invitation to correct the record.
Template 6: Short Small Business Letter of Concern
A few lines on company letterhead: the concern, what you saw, what you need instead, what you can offer, and a date to talk again. For a small team where a formal document would feel out of place.
Letter of Concern Examples, Line by Line
The difference between a letter that works and one that backfires is almost always a single sentence: whether you described behavior or described the person. Here are the lines that do the real work, in the weak version most letters use and the version worth sending.
| What you are trying to say | The version that fails | The version worth sending |
|---|---|---|
| Framing the letter | This is a formal notice regarding your conduct. | I am raising a concern in writing. This is not a warning and not a disciplinary action. |
| The performance issue | Your work has not been up to standard lately. | The March 4, March 11, and March 18 reports each came in a day after the deadline and needed corrections. |
| The attendance issue | You have been late a lot. | You were scheduled at 8:00 and arrived at 8:40, 8:25, and 9:05 on the 6th, 9th, and 14th. |
| The conduct issue | You have a bad attitude with the team. | In the Tuesday staff meeting you interrupted two colleagues and raised your voice when given feedback. |
| The expectation | Please do better going forward. | Reports are due by 5:00 on the Friday of each week, complete and proofread, starting this week. |
| The support | Let me know if you need anything. | I can move the deadline to Monday, or pair you with Dana for the first two, whichever helps more. |
| The close | Failure to improve may result in termination. | Let us review this together on April 8 and confirm the concern is resolved. |
Every improved line has the same two properties: it is checkable, and it is about work rather than character. A person can change what they do on a Tuesday; nobody can act on the word attitude.
One more habit worth copying. Read the letter back and delete anything you did not see yourself. Secondhand reports belong in a conversation where you can ask questions, not in a document with your signature at the bottom.
Does It Go in the Personnel File?
Usually not, and that is a deliberate choice rather than an oversight. Because a letter of concern is informal, most employers keep it in a manager or supervisor file and reserve the personnel file for formal warnings, so the difference between the two stages stays real.
Federal agency practice draws the same line. Under USDA's human resources desk guide, informal cautionary and warning letters are not maintained in an employee's Official Personnel Folder but are kept in a supervisor's file, while a letter of reprimand, described there as the minimum official disciplinary action, is filed in the Official Personnel Folder for up to two years. Small employers can borrow that structure without borrowing the bureaucracy.
Filing consistently is half the job. Keeping informal and formal records in separate, findable places is a small piece of organized employee files, and it is what makes the informal step defensible.
Raising a Concern Without an HR Department
Most guidance on this assumes an HR team sitting between the manager and the employee. On a small team there is no buffer: the person you are writing about is the person you eat lunch with. That changes the calculation, and it is why the informal letter is often the right first move.
The pattern that works for a team without a dedicated HR department is to make the informal step routine rather than dramatic. Write the expectation into your employee handbook, use the same template every time, and let the letter of concern be a normal part of managing rather than a signal that something has gone badly wrong.
Doing it early also pays for itself. Replacing someone carries a real cost of turnover, and a concern raised in month two is far more likely to be fixable than the same concern raised in month ten. Applicant tracking is coming soon to FirstHR, so for now the cheapest hiring decision available is usually keeping the person you already trained.
Deliver, Acknowledge, File, Follow Up
A letter of concern only works if it is delivered in person, acknowledged, filed where you can find it, and followed up on the date you named. The document is the easy part; the check-in is what makes it worth writing.
The templates above work on their own. To handle the delivery and follow-up without paper, FirstHR captures acknowledgment with e-signature, keeps the letter in document management and on the employee profile, and runs the check-in date as a tracked task so it does not quietly pass. FirstHR is an onboarding and HR platform, not a law firm, and it does not run payroll or administer benefits, so pair it with those and consult counsel for legal questions.
Most concerns are cheaper to prevent than to write up. Clear expectations set during onboarding, a written 30-60-90 day plan, and an early check-in remove the ambiguity that produces half these letters. Applicant tracking is coming soon to FirstHR, so the employee record currently starts on day one rather than at the offer, which makes that first onboarding week the place to set the standards you would otherwise be writing letters about.
The same is true one step earlier. A role scoped before you interview, with the standard written into the job description rather than assumed, produces far fewer surprises in month three. Applicant tracking is coming soon to FirstHR.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is a letter of concern to an employee?
A letter of concern is a short, informal letter a manager or owner sends to raise a performance, attendance, or conduct issue in writing before any formal discipline begins. It names what was observed and when, states the expectation going forward, offers whatever support is realistic, and sets a date to check in. It is also called a counseling letter, a counseling memo, or a letter of caution. The defining feature is what it is not: it is not a warning, it carries no termination language, and it does not start a disciplinary record. Employers use it because a written record is more reliable than a hallway conversation, while a formal warning would be out of proportion to a first, correctable problem. Written well, it usually ends the issue without anything further.
Is a letter of concern a disciplinary action?
No. A letter of concern is a non-disciplinary step, and the letter itself should say so in plain words. It documents that a concern was raised and discussed; it does not impose a consequence, does not put the job at risk, and does not commit you to any next step. The distinction is standard in mature HR policy. Stanford’s staff policy splits corrective action into informal non-disciplinary action, such as verbal and written coaching, and formal disciplinary action, such as written warnings that go into the personnel file. Federal practice makes the same split between informal counseling letters and an official reprimand. Keep that line visible in your own documents: if a letter threatens termination or names a warning level, it has stopped being a letter of concern and has become a warning.
What is the difference between a letter of concern and a written warning?
The difference is status, tone, and consequence. A letter of concern is informal, corrective, and usually kept in a manager file; a written warning is a formal disciplinary step that goes into the personnel file and forms part of a progressive discipline record. A letter of concern describes the issue and asks for a change by a check-in date. A written warning does that too, but adds a warning level, states that further problems may lead to further discipline up to and including termination, and expects a signature on a formal document. Use the letter of concern for a first, minor, correctable issue where a warning would feel like an overreaction. Move to a written warning when the concern repeats, when the issue is serious on its own, or when the check-in date passes with nothing changed.
How do you write a letter of concern?
Write it in five parts and keep it to one page. First, say what the letter is and what it is not, so the employee is not reading a warning by mistake. Second, describe what you observed as dated, checkable facts rather than as a judgment about the person: three specific missed deadlines with dates beats the phrase poor performance. Third, state the expectation and where it comes from, whether that is the handbook, the job description, or a standard you set together. Fourth, offer real support and ask what is going on, because a concern raised without a question is a complaint. Fifth, set a check-in date and leave space for the employee to respond in writing. Then deliver it in person rather than by email alone, and file it consistently.
Does a letter of concern go in the employee’s personnel file?
That is your choice, and the more common practice is to keep it out. Because the letter is informal, many employers store it in a manager or supervisor file rather than the official personnel record, reserving that record for formal warnings. Federal agency guidance follows the same pattern: informal cautionary and counseling letters stay in a supervisor’s file, while a letter of reprimand is filed in the Official Personnel Folder for a set period. Whichever approach you take, apply it identically to every employee and write the rule into your handbook. Also treat the letter as discoverable regardless of where it sits: if a decision is ever challenged, an informal letter can still be read, so it should be factual and dated either way. Set an end date after which a closed concern is no longer cited.
Does an employee have to sign a letter of concern?
No, and a refusal changes nothing about the letter. A signature on a letter of concern confirms receipt and discussion, not agreement, and the acknowledgment line should say exactly that. Because the letter is informal, some employers skip the signature entirely and simply note the date it was delivered and discussed. If you do ask for a signature and the employee declines, write on the letter that it was reviewed with the employee who chose not to sign, add the date, and keep your copy. Leaving a space for the employee’s own written response is worth doing regardless. It gives you their version while the facts are fresh, it often surfaces a cause you did not know about, and it demonstrates that the process gave the employee a real chance to be heard.
Can a letter of concern lead to termination?
Not by itself, but it can be the first document in a chain that ends there. The letter imposes no consequence and does not put employment at risk on its own. What it does is establish, with a date, that the issue was raised and that the employee was given a chance to fix it. If the problem continues past the check-in, the usual next step is a formal written warning, then whatever your progressive discipline process defines, with termination as a last resort. That earlier letter then becomes useful context showing the process was fair rather than sudden. This is also why the letter should never carry termination language: borrowing warning wording for an informal letter removes the correction window and makes the document harder to explain later.
When should you skip the letter of concern and go straight to a warning?
Skip it when the conduct is serious, when it repeats, or when your own handbook requires a formal step. A letter of concern is the right tool for a first, minor, correctable issue. It is the wrong tool for harassment, threats, violence, theft, safety violations, or anything involving discrimination, all of which call for an investigation and a formal process rather than an informal note. Skip it as well when you have already raised the same issue informally and nothing changed, because a second informal letter signals that the deadline was never real. And check your handbook first: if your written policy defines a specific sequence for a given category of issue, follow that sequence, since your own stated policy can create expectations you then need to honor.