Disciplinary and Grievance Procedures
Business Disciplinary and Grievance
Disciplinary and Grievance Procedures and Policies are important reference documents when a work place problem arises. From the 6 April 2009, ACAS revised its code of practice on disciplinary and grievance procedures and produced a new code of conduct. Care should be taken to ensure you meet at least the minimum requirements.
Disciplinary procedures may be used in relation to employees’ conduct or their performance. However, they should not be seen merely as a tool for imposing sanctions upon employees, but as an effective management aid.
Grievance procedures are extremely important to ensure that any worker feels able to raise with their employer any problems or concerns they have with their work, working conditions or relationships with work colleagues. It is very often in the interests of both parties to resolve problems before they develop into major difficulties. Grievances are best dealt with at an early stage, usually with the immediate line manager.
Even in well-run businesses, it may sometimes be necessary to take disciplinary action against employees.
Therefore it’s crucial that you have written disciplinary rules and procedures. They help to set out clear standards so that everyone understands what is deemed to be unacceptable behaviour and conduct in the workplace.
Your rules and procedures should:
- be set out in writing
- follow the good-practice principles set out in the Acas code of practice on disciplinary and grievance procedures
Failure to meet this requirement may result in extra compensation for the employee if they succeed in a tribunal claim.
When carrying out a disciplinary certain stages must be followed by law.Failure to follow these stages in the procedure will render any dismissal that follows automatically unfair, even if the reason for dismissal is a fair one.
A grievance procedure must also be in place to provide a way for employees to address any complaints about their employer in a formal way, if it has not been possible to deal with this informally.
As with the disciplinary procedure, it is a requirement by law for a written grievance procedure to be provided to all employees within two months of their joining date and for certain stages to be followed as a minimum.
If you are dealing with a disciplinary or grievance situation, it may be advisable to seek the help of a specialist employment solicitor to ensure you act within the law and bring resolution to issues in the most cost-effective manner.
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