[aguaviva]

This "it's difficult to fire people" idea seems to be a meme that has caught on in recent years.

In the U.S. it's ridiculously easy to fire people (as pointed out above), once management has made the decision. What people seem to really mean is that it's sometimes difficult to get management to see the problem in the first place -- but by definition, this ultimately points to an issue with the management team, rather than the supposedly stealthily incompetent (or flaky/abusive) employee.

And also - when the right decision has been made, the team generally rejoices, and bemoans only the fact that it took so long. If the effect is seen as demoralizing -- it means the firing was likely political, or a result of team chaos / poor communication not specific to the employee. So again, the issue rests with management -- by definition.