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Discipline / Investigations

Carefully document sudden performance slide

10/11/2017
Sometimes an excellent employee who has received great reviews and consistent raises exhibits a sudden performance decline. When that happens, be sure to carefully document the changes in his or her work.

How to question a witness about a workplace incident

10/11/2017

In questioning someone, you suddenly gain power over that person … and it’s incredibly easy for that to go wrong.

Use your ‘poker face’ when hearing complaints

09/14/2017
When listening to employee complaints of potential discrimination or harassment, your brain may be thinking “You’ve got to be kidding me!” but your face and voice need to say, “I hear your complaint and will investigate it fully.”

Are you obligated to investigate before firing? For at-will employees, you have discretion

09/12/2017
What kind of investigation, if any, is required before an employer can fire a worker for what it believes is some kind of misconduct?

Should you ‘write up’ an employee?

08/23/2017
When it comes to negative employee behavior, should you jump to write a formal written warning? It depends. Start with a face-to-face meeting to discuss issues and set expectations, but if that doesn’t work, draft a written warning.

Courts often cut slack for missing minor deadlines

08/09/2017
Don’t expect a quick dismissal of a lawsuit just because the employee or his lawyers miss a deadline. Courts are quick to grant extensions in the service of “justice” and won’t come down hard for seemingly minor deadline misses.

Prepare to defend against every lawsuit, even the ones that are obviously weak

08/09/2017
Defending against lame lawsuits is just a cost of doing business. Sometimes, you have to spend the time and money even when it’s clear you haven’t done anything wrong.

HR director charged with embezzling nearly $1 million

08/09/2017
The former HR director for HighPoint Solutions, a medical technology consulting firm headquartered in suburban Philadelphia, faces charges she wrote fraudulent checks totaling $919,301.

When discipline is suddenly harsher than usual, document details that explain why

07/31/2017
When you set out to discipline a worker for breaking a rule, prepare a report that tells the whole story. That’s especially important if you need to justify why one employee received a harsher punishment than others who, in the past, may have committed similar offenses.

What to do if you suspect workplace thievery

07/27/2017
Fraud prevention experts believe in the 10-10-80 rule: 10% of employees never steal, 10% do, the rest will go either way depending on the circumstances.