If you’re running a small to medium-sized business then the odds are that you lack professional support staff to help you manage your employees. This leaves the administration of your staff to you and your line managers (if you have any). Handling staff administration can be a potentially tricky business – especially when things get contentious. If a member of your workforce files a grievance or is alleged to have committed an act which is worthy of a disciplinary (and potential dismissal) then you’ll need to handle the various processes in a professional and efficient manner to contain any potential “fallout” and keep your staff happy. In this post we’ll therefore be looking at how as an employer you should best handle a disciplinary process. This will entail an examination of the following:
- Why it’s important to deal with disciplinaries in the right way
- What procedures you should have in place to deal with disciplinaries
- How you should handle a disciplinary
- What the consequences are if you fail to handle a disciplinary procedure properly
Why it’s important to deal with disciplinaries in the right way
Disciplinaries should be handled in the right way for any number of reasons, with most of them being fairly obvious. A failure to handle a disciplinary in the correct manner may have (among others) the following repercussions:
- An impact on staff morale
- Higher rates of absence from work
- Decreased productivity
- Potential litigation (such as unfair dismissal, constructive dismissal or discrimination claims)
It’s therefore extremely important to get your disciplinary procedures right.
What procedures you should have in place to deal with disciplinaries
You should have in place:
- A staff handbook (and, if you wish, a separate disciplinary procedure)
- An induction process for new employees
- Adequate training
You should provide (or make easily accessible) a staff handbook that sets out (among other things) the rules that relate to disciplinary action in the workplace. You may also have a separate written disciplinary procedure. The important element of this is that it is clear, concise and easily available for your employees. You should further ensure that the rules are non-discriminatory and are applied equally regardless of race, sex, disability etc.
An explanation of the rules should be given to all new employees as part of their induction process. If you don’t have an induction process then implement one. You should also train your line managers to make them aware of what the rules are and recognise when they may be breached.
How you should handle a disciplinary
If possible, it is always preferable to conduct an informal disciplinary if possible, with the employee being told what action is unacceptable in the workplace and how their conduct (or performance etc.).
However, if you believe it is necessary to subject an employee to your formal disciplinary procedure then you should effect the following process:
- Investigate – investigate the allegations against the employee. Instruct an impartial employee to conduct an investigation of the facts and report back to you
- Inform – inform the employee of the problem in writing and the date of the hearing using a disciplinary letter template
- Meet – hold a disciplinary hearing with the employee. Inform them prior to the meeting that they may bring a Trade Union representative or a colleague with them
- Decide – decide what the appropriate action is in the circumstances and inform the employee in writing. Use this employer’s disciplinary outcome letter template to do so.
- Provide – provide the employee with an opportunity to appeal against the decision (this should be in the outcome letter)
- Inform again – notify the employee of the date of the appeal hearing using this disciplinary appeal notification letter template
- Meet again – hold an appeal hearing if the employee does appeal. Inform the employee of the outcome of the appeal hearing using this disciplinary appeal outcome letter template
- Decide again – decide whether to uphold or reject the appeal and inform the employee
Keep thorough notes of the process and all of the documents utilised in the procedure. Ensure especially that the disciplinary meeting is undertaken by impartial members of staff and that thorough minutes are kept of the disciplinary hearing – these may be crucial at a later stage.
What the consequences are if you fail to handle a grievance procedure properly
The consequences can be serious if you fail to handle a disciplinary hearing policy. The following effects may occur (among others):
- An impact on staff morale
- Higher rates of absence from work
- Decreased productivity
- Potential litigation (such as unfair dismissal, constructive dismissal or discrimination claims)
If you fail to follow your written disciplinary procedure (or any reasonable procedure if you don’t have a written disciplinary procedure) then you may find that you have breached the ACAS Code. This is not fatal to a defence against a claim for unfair dismissal but if you are found liable for unfair dismissal the compensation awarded can be increased by up to 25% because of this.
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