What Is the Disciplinary Process and When Should This Be Used?
When an employer is having troubles with an employee, it can be hard to know what to do. It is vital to follow the correct course of action to resolve situations that could be damaging to a business. The best way to do this is to have a disciplinary process that can be followed in the event of an incident that requires corrective action.
The disciplinary process is a procedure set by an employer which provides guidance throughout a disciplinary situation. The process should set out:
- The rules of the procedure regarding confidentiality, investigation and suspension.
- The circumstances in which it should be applied.
- The procedure for special cases such as where trade unions are involved, or a criminal offence has occurred.
- What the company considers to be gross misconduct or gross negligence
- The review process for improving performance
- The disciplinary procedure itself
Ideally, as an employer, you should consider if the issues presented can be resolved informally. If this is not sufficient to resolve the issue, the employee should be invited to a formal disciplinary meeting. At the meeting, the company will explain the complaint and present their evidence, then the employee will have the chance to present their own evidence and explain themselves. Following the meeting, the employee should be informed of the outcome as soon as possible and given the opportunity to appeal against any formal disciplinary action taken.
The disciplinary process is there to support a positive outcome from issues that can arise from time to time. If you are unsure of when to apply your disciplinary policy, then you should always seek advice.
For a review of your disciplinary process or for help drafting one, call us on 0844 8797286.
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