Stay on the right track.
Q. “I’ve always dealt with any problems that have cropped up in my practice myself. There are only 12 of us and I know everyone really well. Having to publish a formal disciplinary and grievance procedure just puts ideas into people’s heads!”
A. The key background points to this comment are that, in October 2004, it became a legal requirement to provide employees with a written statement setting down the procedures for dealing with disciplinary actions, dismissals and grievances. This has to be in line with certain minimum requirements. A failure to follow these procedures makes any resultant dismissal automatically unfair. There are no exemptions for small companies.
This requirement to publish and abide by a formal disciplinary and grievance procedure simply clarifies and formalises what has long been considered good practice by Employment Tribunals. As much as you may feel that your staff would always be happy to raise problem issues directly with you, this is not necessarily the case. Even in smaller practices, a clear process whereby grievances may be addressed provides a level of protection to your employees. In situations where a serious incident has taken place, they should feel confident that the matter will be dealt with professionally, without fear of retaliation or jeopardy to their position.
Besides which, wouldn’t you rather be aware of problems so that you can deal with them, rather than suffer the loss of talented staff who felt they couldn’t work under certain conditions.
Similarly, a formal procedure also means that you in turn can deal with disciplinary issues promptly, fairly and consistently. It is a rare practice that does not have individuals whose performance or work is not up to the level expected. Aren’t there people about whom you receive complaints on a regular basis? The ones that keep cropping up in project staffing meetings because no-one wants to work with them – or those whose names are bandied around as “not pulling their weight”. Well, now your approach is clear to all parties, you follow the procedure.
Since the Employment Act has presented you with something of a fait accompli, use it to your advantage. Make the policy clear and in line with ACAS guidelines. They have been brought into place for the reason that many companies were failing to provide adequate formal protection for their employees to deal with problem issues.
The best use of your time and effort is to take this as an opportunity to enhance your market reputation. You will be better able to attract and maintain talented staff who feel they can work more creatively in the environment that you have fostered, where issues such as bullying or worse are not tolerated and are dealt with promptly and professionally.
February 2005
FX Magazine