Boom! And theres the breakdown. Had you made a solid attempt to do the sit down, things would have been different. How do you do this when your superiors are not readily avilible do you ask? One key phrase, "Supension Pending Termination" Using that phrase in both word of mouth and written documentation will win you almost any case if executed properly.
Rather than firing him on the spot and moving to remove him from payroll, you should have told him he was Suspended Pending Termination. At which point you also tell him that you will be contacting the next availible superior to schedule a sit down meeting to give an unbiased mediation between the two of you. It sucks, but its the process. If grounds are found to terminate the employee, well the superior does it, and youre off the hook. If no grounds are found then the worst thing that can happen is the employee gets paid any SCHEDULED hours missed, and continues working with the understanding youre not fucking around anymore... big whoop.
When it comes to HR, i know almost every loop hole there is, and have become an expert in covering my own ass. Why you say? Because at one time I was an HR nightmare... maybe not the biggest, but most deffinatly the most reoccuring. I even threw an employee out on to the pavement once... literally... and kept my job because i played the process correctly. So in my professional opinon, the breakdown is what got you fired. Its unfortunate, but ive seen it several times. Most times the employee wont lawyer up, but you just happen to be dealing with a tool of an employee.
If you ever get into a jam with anything business management, ESPECIALLY HR issues, give me a shout, im sure i can add some insight
Good Luck :woowoo: