So Your Employer Has Called You To A Disciplinary Meeting?
There are some immeidate Do's and Do Not's
Do Not's
Don't Resign in the heat of the moment. Resignation is the last option you should be considering at this stage. If you have resigned then so long as it was not too long ago then all may not be lost, but call me straight away on 0800 HELP-ME or 021 77 1919.
Don't Panic as that will achieve nothing constructive. Instead go down the check list below to ensure you are handling the situation to the best of your ability.
Do's
Go through the check list below to best equip yourself for this potential spot of bother you are now facing.
Check List For The Employee
Documentation
Meeting invite or Notice of investigation
Have you got the invite in writing? If not then send your employer an email requesting this. A good tactic here is to set your email out in such a way to document what was told to you verbally. This is for your protection so later on if need be there is a written record of what was requested of you. A sample email you can cut and paste to your employer like this (don't forget to change the details to match your situation) is;
Hi Mike,
Yesterday at about 10 am you requested that I attend a disciplinary meeting tomorrow afternoon at 2 pm about your accusation that I was involved with crashing the company car. In order for me to prepare for this meeting please can you email me exactly what it is you are alleging and the reasons you believe I have done something wrong and on what information you are making these allegations. Once I have this from you I will need to consider if I need a support person or not. If I do then the meeting time may need to be changed depending on the availability of my support person.
Regards,
Sarah.
Allegations against you
Is it clear in the documentation what it is that is being alleged against you? You need to know this to be able to appropriately prepare for your meeting. An allegation of "Serious Misconduct" with no details of what your alleged actions of serious misconduct were is simply not good enough as effectively you are going into the meeting completely blind, thus not able to prepare adequately.
Even if you think you know what the alleged item of serious misconduct is it is best to get this confirmed in writing. You may think that they are calling you to explain your actions after last Friday night drinks, when in reality it could be something completely different, like an unauthorised discount to a client. You need to be prepared to answer their questions on the topic. Failing to prepare for this in reality is preparing to fail.
If your employer has not provided you with this information then send them an email requesting it. A sample email you can cut and paste to your employer like this (dont forget to change the details to match your situation) is;
Hi Marie,
Further to your email calling me to the disciplinary meeting for alleged serious misconduct, your email is a bit light on specific details. In order for me to prepare for this meeing please can you email me exactly what it is you are alleging and the reasons you beleive I have done something wrong and on what information you are making these allegations. Once I have this from you I will need to consider if I need a support person or not. If I do then the meeting time may need to be changed depending on the availability of my support person.
Regards,
Peter.
Potential Outcomes of the Process
Does the email (or letter) state what the potential outcomes of this process could be. Typically there will be a sentence in the documentation along the lines of,
Should the allegations be substantiated or we do not accept your explanation then we will be considering disciplinary action up to and include XXXX.
The XXXX could be any of the following,
-
- Instant dismissal
- Termination of employment on notice
- Final written warning
- Written warning
- Verbal warning
Do I Need A Support Person?
It is always a good idea to take someone along to the meeting. The only person that I strongly advise you do not take is anyone who is also an employee of the same employer. The reason for this that should the meeting go pear shaped then it may be difficult for your support person to then give evidence against the employer as they will then be fearing for the future of their employment.
