How can you develop good policies and procedures to prevent workplace misconduct?
Policies should tell employees who to report incidents to and that all complaints will be investigated. Having policies in place and a good record of investigating, and taking actions to stop misconduct, gives employees no excuse to not report misconduct.
You need to make sure your policies are up to date and include employment law changes from the last several years. Supervisors and managers should be trained, as well as investigators, at least every other year so they’re up to date on the policies and any law changes. Investigators also need extra training on how to properly interview people to try and track down the facts to prove or disprove the allegation.
What action should you take following an investigation?
The severity of the conduct will determine how severe the punishment will be. You don’t always have to fire somebody, but you can take steps to try and change the person’s behavior before further actions are taken. The employee could receive counseling, have reprimand placed in his or her file, and have his or her behavior monitored by the victim and others working closely with him or her. The harasser can also receive extra training on appropriate workplace conduct and language. The employee should be terminated if the behavior continues or the initial incident was too severe.
What are the benefits of putting proper policies in place against workplace misconduct?
Having the proper policies in place and a good track record of investigations gives you a better defense if someone complains. If no report was made by the victim, it can actually give you a legal defense to certain claims. It can also send a message to your employees. The first time someone is reprimanded for harassment, even if it’s not made known publicly, people hear about it and know this is taken seriously.
The number of complaints can actually go down if you put the proper training and education in place, and if you create an environment where workplace misconduct is not tolerated.
Charles Huddleston is a shareholder with Baker, Donelson, Bearman, Caldwell & Berkowitz, PC. Reach him at (404) 221-6536 or [email protected].
