Employees need consistent company policies to guide them on their roles and responsibilities. At some point these rules are bound to be broken by one of your employees. When this happens, you’ll likely have to enforce the rules with some form of discipline. Here are some tips on being prepared for disciplinary procedures.
Clear policy
Employees need to know the consequences of bad behavior or poor performance before it happens. Your policy should spell out your company’s progressive discipline procedure. Many companies follow a format of verbal warning(s), written warning, final warning and termination. Some cases of misconduct are so severe that you may skip the first one, two, or even three steps. For example, assaults or fighting, stealing, intoxication on the job, gross insubordination, destruction of company property, etc., may all justify immediate action. Firing someone is a serious action, and should be handled in private. Sometimes situations are not as they appear. Give yourself some time to investigate, and, at a minimum, to be sure of what happened and who was responsible.
Consistent
A fair policy also means that discipline must be applied consistently to all employees in an unbiased way. Fair discipline is also easier to defend and justify in court, should the need arise. Progressive discipline is a discipline system where the severity of the penalty increases each time an employee breaks the rules.
Document incidents
Any formal warning should be documented with the details of the incident and what actions were taken. Maintain a written record in the employee’s electronic file, or a handwritten and dated note in a physical file. In cases of progressive discipline, record all written and final warnings. Be sure the employee signs the completed form or report. If an employee refuses to sign it, ask the employee to note that they refused to sign it. This way you have documentation showing the employee received a copy.
Minor rule violations
Some enforcement of rules can be done on a casual basis. When the rule is minor, such as violating attendance, dress code or work duty rules it’s usually best to talk to the employee. Avoid waiting until the problem requires you to issue a formal warning. Employees should receive a copy of company policy and sign an acknowledgement form. A new copy should be given a to employees whenever a significant policy is revised.
Terminating an employee
Be sure all network access is cut off before the terminated employee leaves the building. Take all company property, such as laptops, keycards, and cell phones. Do not allow the employee to go back to their desk or use the computer. Send another employee to gather any items the employee needs immediately and bring those items to your office. Send any other personal items to their home. If they have additional company property, send a courier to retrieve the items. In certain cases, you may want to have a security guard waiting during the termination meeting to escort the terminated employee out of the building and watch until the employee is off the property.
Company policy protects your employees and your business. Only you can decide how many chances to improve you’ll allow before dismissing a person. A fair policy means discipline is serious and even harsh, but applied fairly. Have a plan in place before you need it for what you will do if an employee needs to be terminated.
