Willful misconduct means intentional disregard of the employer's work rules.
It is deliberate misbehavior amounting to a substantial disregard of the employer's legitimate interests and expectations and of the employee's duties and obligations toward the employer. An employee can be fired without notice for willful misconduct. Unsatisfactory job performance, on the other hand, requires the employer to take a stepwise approach. The employer should warn the employee that his or her conduct is not up to the employer's expectations and provide an opportunity to bring the employee's performance up to the employer's expectations. If an employee fails to make corrections, the employee can be laid off but not fired.