The union in my manufacturing construction employer has made it incredibly hard to terminate workers. Do I have any options?

Unions may be on the ropes in terms of membership, but they can still pack a powerful wallop. If you have security-camera footage of an employee swigging Jack Daniel's at the wheel of a forklift you may quickly prevail. Short of that, expect labor to put up a fight. The problem is that there's rarely a smoking gun for subjective infractions like laziness or a bad attitude. That makes it tough to win over labor arbitrators--the folks who resolve disputes between unions and management. Your challenge is to marshal evidence that the employee consistently fails to meet clearly communicated expectations.