PAPER M
DISCIPLINE AND GRIEVANCE PROCEDURE
Disciplinary and Grievance Policy
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This procedure is designed to help and encourage all council employees to achieve and
maintain high standards of conduct whilst at work or representing the council. The aim is
to ensure consistent and fair treatment for all. This procedure is prepared in accordance
with the dismissal and dispute resolution procedures as set out in the Employment Act
2008 and the ACAS Code of Practice APR 2009
PRINCIPLES
a)
No disciplinary action will be taken against an employee until the case has been fully
investigated.
b)
At every stage in the procedure the employee will be advised of the nature of the
complaint against him or her and will be given the opportunity to state his or her case
before any decision is made.
c)
At all formal stages the employee will have the right to be accompanied by a trade
union representative or work colleague during the disciplinary interview.
d)
No employee will be dismissed for a first breach of discipline except in the case of
gross misconduct when the penalty of dismissal without notice or payment in lieu of
notice may be applied.
e)
An employee will have the right to appeal against any disciplinary penalty imposed.
f)
The procedure may be implemented at any stage if the employee’s alleged
misconduct warrants such action.
1. THE PROCEDURE FOR MISCONDUCT and GROSS MISCONDUCT
The following list provides examples of misconduct which will normally give rise
to formal disciplinary action:
Unauthorised absence from work
Persistent short-term and/or frequent absences from work without a medical
reason
Lateness for work or poor time keeping
Inappropriate standard of dress
Minor breaches of Health and Safety or other Society rules or procedures
Failure to perform your job to the standard expected or in line with your job
description/objectives
Time wasting
Disruptive behaviour
Misuse of the council’s facilities (e.g. telephones, computers, email or the
internet)
Refusal to carry out reasonable requests or instructions
Failure to follow an agreed council Procedure
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This list is not exhaustive and offences of a similar nature will result in disciplinary action
being instigated N.B. persistent or frequent absence on medical grounds and long term
sickness absence will be dealt with using a procedure for Incapacity, which is described
in the Absence Policy.
1.2 The following list provides examples of offences which are normally regarded as
Gross misconduct:
Theft, fraud, deliberate falsification of records, or other acts of dishonesty
Fighting, assault on another person
Deliberate damage to property of the council, its workers or members
Gross incompetence in the conduct of work
Gross negligence which results in the council or employees being put at risk.
Being under the influence of illegal drugs or excessive alcohol
Acts of incitement towards or actual acts of discrimination, harassment or
victimisation including on the grounds of sex, race, colour, ethnic origin, disability,
sexual orientation, age, religion or belief
Serious acts of insubordination
Serious breach of duty to keep information of the council, its service providers and
its clients confidential
Unauthorised entry to computer records
Serious breach of the council’s Security Policy, Health & Safety Policy,
Confidentiality ore-mail and Internet Policy
Any action, whether committed on or off the premises, that is likely to or does
bring thecouncil into disrepute
Serious negligence which causes or might causes significant loss, damage or
injury
Accepting bribes or incentive payments from suppliers
Unauthorised use of Society funds or credit
Working with an external agency to provide information which would be
detrimental toand cause commercial risk to the council.
This list is not exhaustive and other offences of a similar gravity will result in disciplinary
action being instigated at Gross Misconduct level which carries a potential penalty of
dismissal. Gross Misconduct is generally any conduct which places extreme pressure on
the mutual trust which exists in an employment relationship.
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2. INFORMAL ACTION
Minor misconduct will be dealt with informally usually in a confidential one-to-one meeting
between the employee and line manager. In the case of the Clerk being the individual
against whom there is a complaint or allegation the matter should be handled discreetly
by members of the Staffing (or similar) committee and involve an informal meeting initially.
However, where thematter is more serious or informal action has not brought about the
necessary improvement the following procedure will be used:
3.1 FORMAL ACTION
The level of warning you may receive for misconduct/gross misconduct will depend on
how serious the council considers the alleged actions to be and your previous conduct in
all the circumstances. In the event of alleged gross misconduct the formal process may
commence at Stage 4 -see 3.4 below.
3.2 Disciplinary Letters
If there is a concern about an employee’s conduct or behaviour then a letter will be given
to the employee advising him/her of the allegation(s) and reasons why this is
unacceptable. The letter should invite the employee to attend a meeting at which the
alleged misconduct will be discussed and will inform the employee of their right to be
accompanied to the meeting. The letter will specify at which stage the disciplinary
procedure is being invoked (see 4 stages below) and if invoked at Stage 4 for Gross
Misconduct the letter will warn that a potential outcome could be dismissal. The time, date
and venue of the meeting will also be advised. Anydocuments to be produced at the
meeting will also be provided.
3.3 Disciplinary Meetings
The time and location of a disciplinary meeting should be agreed with the employee and
it should be held in a private location with no interruptions. This will normally be without
undue delay but allowing the employee to prepare their case e.g. within 5 days of the
letter being sent, where practically possible. At the meeting the manager (or in the case
of the Clerk being disciplined, the Chair of the hearing panel) will state the complaint
against the employee and go through the evidence which has been gathered. The
employee will also be allowed to ask questions, present evidence and call witnesses if
advance notice has been given that they will do so.
If the employee is unable to attend the meeting due to unforeseeable reasons out
of their control (e.g. illness) then the council will reasonably rearrange the meeting.
However, if the employee fails to attend the meeting without good reason the meeting
can be held in the employee’s absence.
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4. OUTCOMES AND PENALTIESStage 1 - Oral Warning
In the instance of a first complaint that conduct does not meet acceptable
standards, theemployee will normally be given a formal ORAL WARNING. He or she will
be advised of;
the reason for the warning,
that it is the first stage of the disciplinary procedure,
the improvement that is required and the timescales for achieving this
improvement,
together with a review date and any support available (where applicable) and
his or her right of appeal.
A brief note of the oral warning will be kept but it will be spent after 6 months,
subject tosatisfactory conduct.
Stage 2 - Written Warning
If the offence is a serious one, or if further to previous formal disciplinary action, a
WRITTEN WARNING will be given to the employee by the Line Manager. This will give
details of the complaint, the improvement required and the timescale. It will warn that
action under Stage 3 will be considered if there is no satisfactory improvement and will
advise of the right of appeal. Acopy of this written warning will be kept on file but it will be
disregarded for disciplinary purposesafter 12 months subject to satisfactory conduct.
Stage 3 - Final Written Warning
If there is still a failure to improve and conduct or performance is still unsatisfactory, or
the misconduct is sufficiently serious, a FINAL WRITTEN WARNING will normally be
given to the employee. This will give details of the complaint, will warn that dismissal will
result if there is no satisfactory improvement and will advise of the right of appeal. A copy
of this final written warning will be kept by the Line Manager (or in the case of the Clerk
being disciplined by the Chair of the Hearing Panel) but it will be spent after 12 months
(in exceptional cases the period may be longer) subject to satisfactory conduct.
Stage 4 - Dismissal or other sanctions
If conduct is still unsatisfactory and the employee still fails to reach the prescribed
standards, or where the Society reasonably believes Gross Misconduct has occurred,
DISMISSAL may result. Only the appropriately convened hearing panel can take the
decision to dismiss an employee. The employee will be given a written statement of
allegations against him/her, invited to a meeting and then be notified in writing of the
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reasons for the decision taken at the hearing. Penalties at this stage may include
dismissal with notice or summary dismissal (i.e. without any notice), Final Written Warning
with/without demotion, loss of pay or loss of seniority. If dismissalis the outcome, the
employee will be advised of the date on which employment will terminate. In all cases
the employee has a right of appeal.
Very exceptionally, if an offence of Gross Misconduct is extremely serious an employee
can be dismissed immediately without a meeting. In this situation a letter setting out
reasons for dismissal would be sent to the employee offering the opportunity for an appeal
hearing.
5 SUSPENSION
If you are accused of an act of gross misconduct, you may be suspended from work on
full pay while the council investigates the alleged offence. Only the appropriately
convened committee has the power to suspend. This enables a swift and thorough
investigation to occur. Whilst suspended pending disciplinary investigation regular contact
with a nominated person at the council will be maintained although access to premises,
equipment or systems may be denied. The Investigator who compiles evidence for the
disciplinary hearing must play no part in the subsequent decision-making to ensure
impartiality. Councils need to consider the implications of such arrangements on its
hearing and appeal panel plans early on in the disciplinary process.
6. APPEALS
The Appeals stage of the disciplinary process is part of the Code of Practice to which an
employee has a right. It can be exercised after any of the stages of disciplinary action for
Misconduct/Poor Performance or Gross Misconduct.
An employee who wishes to appeal against a disciplinary decision should inform the
Chair/Mayor (or Chair of the relevant committee) within five working days, in writing and
giving reasons for the appeal. An Appeal may be raised if:
§ The employee thinks the finding or penalty is unfair
§ New evidence has come to light
§ The employee thinks that the procedure was not applied properly
Where possible the Appeal will be heard by a separate panel of elected members who
have not been involved in the original disciplinary hearing, who will view the evidence with
impartiality. The employee will have the right to be accompanied by a colleague or
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accredited Trade Union official or lay member at the appeal hearing. The outcome of the
appeal and reasons for it will be advised to the employee as soon as possible after the
meeting and be confirmed in writing. At the Appeal hearing any disciplinary penalty
imposed will be reviewed but it cannot be increased. The decision taken at the Appeal
hearing will be final.
7. THE RIGHT TO BE ACCOMPANIED
At each formal stage of disciplinary interview an employee has the right to be
accompanied and can make a reasonable request for such a person to accompany them.
An employee can ask any other employee or a trade union representative or an
appropriately accredited official employed by a trade union to accompany them, to give
support and help them prepare for the disciplinary interview. This right is enshrined in the
1999 Employment Relations Act. As this is an internal process there is no provision to
have any external person accompany or representan employee e.g. partner, parent,
solicitor etc. The companion can address the hearing, put and sum up the employee’s
case, respond on behalf of the worker to any views expressed atthe meeting, confer with
the employee. The companion cannot however answer questions on the employee’s
behalf or address the hearing if the employee does not wish him/her to or prevent the
employee explaining their case.
8. HEARING PANELS
The SLCC advise that councils establish hearing panels to hear disciplinary and
grievance hearings on an annual basis so that if a dispute does arise in the workplace the
elected members involved are already trained and briefed on their duties as a hearing or
appeal panel member. In situations where individual members are implicated in the
dispute or have undertaken an investigatory role then they will need to be substituted as
panel members.
9. NOTE-TAKING
It is highly recommended that a note-taker be provided to every meeting/hearing which
arisesas a result of a disciplinary process as Employment Tribunals are particularly keen
to view contemporaneous notes of events which have led to an employment dispute.
Councils will need to give this requirement careful consideration in order to respect
employee confidentiality.
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10. GRIEVANCES RAISED DURING DISCIPLINARIES
In some circumstances when a disciplinary process has commenced an employee
chooses to exercise his/her right to raise an internal grievance about the employment
relationship with the council or individual Members. The SLCC recommends, in line with
ACAS advice, that disciplinary matters are placed on hold until grievances have been
aired and actions towards a resolution have been progressed. In exceptional
circumstances it is pragmatic to deal with the two disputes concurrently but SLCC would
advise caution and specialist advice should be sought if this arises.
11. CRIMINAL CHARGES OR CONVICTIONS
If an employee is charged with or convicted of a criminal offence this does not
automatically give rise to a disciplinary situation. Consideration needs to be given to how
a charge or conviction may affect an employee’s ability to undertake his or her job duties
and their relationships with the employer, colleagues, subordinates or customers.
12. GETTING IT WRONG
Failure to follow the ACAS Code of Practice (available at www.acas.org.uk ) can lead to
an Employment Tribunal awarding an uplift of an award against the council of up to 25%.
Tribunalsdealing with unfair dismissal claims are particularly interested in whether the
employer followeda procedure and whether the employer acted fairly and reasonably.
One way in which to avoid such a penalty is to have an agreed procedure, communicate
that procedure to staff and Members, revisit and review the procedure regularly and have
some training for those who are expected to operate the procedure.
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