Over the years it has been very useful to bear this gem in mind. Before a disciplinary it is vitally important to enter the room without any preconceived ideas of the outcome. I have lost count of how many times a manager will say, ‘well we know it will be a final written warning,’ before we have even convened the meeting! My response is always the same – ‘you don’t know anything until the fat lady sings!’
When conducting a disciplinary your probing skills will be used to the maximum. Every answer given by the employee has another great question waiting to be posed, another piece of information that needs to be clarified. You are trying to get to the bottom of why the incident occurred and what the impact was on your business or other staff members, but also what drove the employee to behave in the manner alleged. Were there any other influences at work that may be relevant?
Disciplinary
During a disciplinary hearing some years ago, a question was posed in regards to whether the employee cared that their behavior may lead to dismissal and how ‘would they pay their rent then?’ The answer changed the disciplinary hearing to a welfare meeting. The employee had a diagnosed intellectual disability for which they were claiming a disability allowance. Their condition meant that the environment in which they worked (cold, bright lights, white, noisy) was wholly unhelpful to their state of mind.
The outcome was that the employee was moved to another role in a softer lit area which was a much quieter environment and the employee thrived. A disability had been missed and the company made the reasonable adjustments to the workplace to allow the employee to continue with their employment.
The learning point from this is that the ‘open mind’ approach was beneficial to both employee and the company.
Quest can offer training on disciplinaries and how to manage disability in the workplace. Give our help line a call if you need assistance on 01455852028.
