• The HR Specialist - Print Newsletter
  • HR Specialist: Employment Law
  • The HR Weekly

Discipline / Investigations

Paid suspensions help cool down disputes

02/01/2008

When things get heated in the workplace, call a timeout. You need time to investigate what’s going on, and employees may need time to cool down. Paid administrative leave is often the best way to do that. Continue to pay the employee (and provide benefits) so he won’t be able to point to the suspension as an adverse employment action …

Can you discipline employees for committing adultery?

02/01/2008

It didn’t take fancy detective work for one employer to crack this case. A running shower, a sleeping man and a squad car parked out front was all one employer needed to invoke a unique policy.

Unequal treatment during investigation can trigger lawsuit

02/01/2008

When conducting internal investigations into alleged wrongdoings, make sure you don’t treat employees who belong to a protected class (e.g., age, sex, race or disability) differently than others who may have misbehaved. As the following case shows, discharging one person based on an emotional reaction during an interview and keeping another who kept his cool under questioning may lead to a discrimination lawsuit …

Different punishments for different infractions are legit

02/01/2008

Fairness and equal treatment are basic tenets of the HR profession. But that doesn’t mean all discipline cases merit equal punishment, even if the offenses are superficially similar. You can—and often must—punish some rule breakers more severely than others. Just make certain you can justify the differences …

Insist on HR oversight of disciplinary investigations

02/01/2008

Does your HR office take an active role in workplace investigations? If not, it should. By centralizing the investigative and decision-making functions, you increase the odds that your organization’s disciplinary decisions will be fair and evenhanded …

OK to place employee on paid leave pending investigation

02/01/2008

Ever since the U.S. Supreme Court’s landmark Burlington Northern retaliation decision in 2006, employers have been struggling with exactly what to do while investigating wrongdoings. One vexing issue has been whether it could be retaliation to place an employee on paid administrative leave pending an investigation …

Can we demand a polygraph test to identify theft suspects?

02/01/2008

Q. Recently, money from my office’s petty cash lockbox came up missing. As a part of our investigation, can we require employees to take a lie detector test? …

Investigation notes, report may prove valuable in court

02/01/2008

How do you handle internal discrimination complaints? If you use an ad hoc process, sometimes taking notes or preparing a report, you may be missing out on an important litigation advantage later. Develop a routine investigation process …

Carrot or stick? Motivating managers to finish reviews

01/29/2008

HR can waste lots of time and energy hounding supervisors to complete their performance reviews. Choose the best mix of incentives and penalties to inspire managers to do reviews right and on time …

How to counsel employees with attitude problems

01/15/2008

With some employees, the problem isn’t a matter of ability, it’s a matter of attitude. This can manifest itself in everything from quiet disobedience to outright insubordination. How should you respond?